Jesus Day By Day: A 5-Day YouVersion By Sharon KaselonisMinta

Transformed Into His Image

This might be one of the most encouraging verses in the entire Bible! It promises you and me that Jesus Christ, personally, will never give up on us. You might be thinking, But don’t we see that same promise in several places throughout the Bible? Yes, we sure do! Genesis 28:15, Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:5, and Hebrews 13:5 are just a few. But here in Philippians 1:6 we hear our brother the apostle Paul beautifully and succinctly summarize our Christian walk. 

The “good work” Paul refers to is our salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. That precious prayer of salvation was just the beginning! The Bible speaks of our salvation as a process taking us from justification through sanctification and culminating someday in glorification.

Justification is being set free from the penalty of sin, which happened the moment we believed in Him. Peace comes by way of justification (“just-if-I’d” never sinned), but happiness (our desires fulfilled) comes by way of sanctification. Sanctification is His Spirit giving us power over sin, which continues to happen until we’re with Him.

To be sanctified is to be set apart for God’s purposes. When we allow God to have His way in our lives and we obey the things the Spirit calls us to do, we find ourselves withdrawing from the world and the things that once gave us pleasure. Our appetites change, and we find ourselves desiring the things of God and fellowship with Him. The Bible tells us that if we draw close to Him, He will draw close to us (James 4:8). This is all part of that vital process of sanctification.

And glorification is being delivered from the presence of sin, which will happen the moment we see Him.

Justification, sanctification, and glorification are all part of God’s good work of salvation. This is precisely what the apostle Paul so beautifully described through the powerful promise of Philippians 1:6.

As you grow closer to Christ in prayer, as you fellowship with Him, as you read His Word looking for Jesus, may you be transformed into His image, showing His love to the world around you.

How does it change your perspective on the way you live to know that God promises to complete His good work in you?