Sanctification means to be holy, set apart for God. It is how unredeemed souls having a propensity to sin—or sin nature—become cleansed and made holy by God’s Spirit so you can have real relationship with God. In the Old Testament priests had to be sanctified to do God’s work. Joshua told the children ofIsraelthey had to be sanctified to inherit God’s blessings and enter the Promised Land. “And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you” (Joshua 3:5).
Today we still need sanctification. Peter revealed how all believers in Christ are “a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9) Sanctification is how we come out of darkness to live in His light.
RELEVANCE
In the Old Testament repeated animal sacrifices atoned for sin and served the purpose of making people justified and sanctified before God. Christ, however, became the final sacrifice. Sanctification, however, is a process of appropriating Christ’s sacrifice through the continuing work of the Holy Spirit, progressively transforming you to bring glory to God.
“For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one…”(Hebrews 2:10-11).
“And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:11-14).
REFLECT AND RELATE
As God brings you through His sanctifying process, ask Him to reveal His greater purposes for your life and shed light on future ways He will work through you for His glory.
REFERENCES
1 Thessalonians 4:1-8