Saved and Sanctified
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. Philippians 1:3-7
The way of salvation is also the way of sanctification.
The way of the cross leads directly to the grave, out the empty tomb and into new life. He who begins the work of the cross in you, will complete the work through the process of living a new life. Because there is complete unity in the trinity, the salvation Jesus provides for you is inseparable from the sanctification that the Holy Spirit works in you. Sanctification is not an extra, unnecessary icing on the cake of the Christian life, it is an essential ingredient in the batter that causes the cake to come together. Without sanctification, the cake of Christianity would become a crumbly mess without any substance.
If God saved you, he will sanctify you if you submit to Him.
From the first day you believed in Jesus and submitted to His lordship, He began the good work in you that continues to form you now. Sanctification is not about trying harder; it is about submitting to His will as you grow in the knowledge of His will. The more you grow in sanctification, the more you will be aware that salvation and sanctification both come from God. Since He saved you, He is responsible for doing the work to sanctify you; you have to submit to him in the process.
If you saved yourself, then you have to be the one who will sanctify yourself.
If salvation was not your work, then sanctification cannot be your work either. “‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain?’” (Zechariah 4:6b-7a). Even the great mountains cannot boast in their majesty, how much less can you, oh mortal man, boast in your ability to sanctify and purify yourself? You can help or hinder the good work that God is doing in you, but you cannot shape yourself into the good image God wants you to become.
God shapes your salvation for you.
Everyone is saved the same way - Jesus but the way the salvation-sanctification process forms in your life is unique. Everyone is to produce the fruit of the spirit but you will have a unique combination of those fruits. All apples are apples but a granny Smith is different than a Gala apple. God loves diversity. He created the many kinds and species of animals, each having its own function while having unifying characteristics that identifies it within its kingdom—animal, plant mineral, etc. You will have the fruit of the Spirit, but you will have your own flavor combination. I.e. Granny Smith Apple love, Navel Orange joy, Jamaican Red Banana, peace, etc. The fruit comes from the Holy Spirit, not from the works of the believer, so while you have your own flavor combination, the same fruit will be in your life as other believers.
If you confess your sins, he will forgive them.
God wants to forgive, but you have to let Him instead of holding out on your own. The common attitude you share with other believers is an acknowledgement that you cannot save or sanctify yourself. Salvation comes from God when you accept His work on your behalf and sanctification comes from God when you allow Him to complete the good work He began in you.