The accuracy of a definition of any particular word can be tested by substituting it for the word in question, and ensuring that the sense of the passage is not only retained but, ideally, is made more plain. After much thought, and the application of such a test, the following definition of sanctify is offered: “To set apart from the rest so as to highlight a uniqueness of character that expresses divine purpose”. However, one might still reasonably question why the usual definition - to set apart - is thought inaccurate, and the reason is not so much to do with inaccuracy as with incompleteness. Something might be set apart because its value qualifies it for special attention, or it might be set apart because it is worthless and of no use to its owner. The scriptural sense of sanctification always carries with it the idea of selection for higher service, hence the suggested definition which links the act of setting apart to the intention of the divine mind and will. The reader is invited to test the definition in each mention of the word “sanctify” (and its derivatives) in the Bible, and see if it is valid or not.
As a quick reference, however, consider the following quotations from the book of Exodus: “Sanctify unto me all the firstborn…” (13.2); “And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them…” (19.10); “I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to me in the priest’s office” (29.44). Now, if sanctification merely meant setting something apart to one side, who would have been left of the children of Israel once “all the firstborn”, “the people” and “Aaron and his sons” had been set apart? Nobody, of course, because all of the congregation would simply have been moved from one place to another. But if we apply the thought of each act of sanctification expressing a different aspect of divine purpose, then we can see how each of these groups among the children of Israel could be sanctified without the act of setting apart being meaningless.
Besides the references already quoted, it will be found that numerous objects and persons were sanctified in the OT Scriptures, and, in each case, a different aspect of the divine purpose was in view. Mount Sinai was sanctified in Exodus 19.23, and the brazen altar in Exodus 29.36. The laver and its foot were the subject of sanctification in Exodus 40.11, and so the list could go on. Different people and different objects were sanctified at different times, in different ways and for different reasons, and thus tremendous variety marked God’s commands to set certain things apart so as to highlight some uniqueness of character that expressed divine purpose. In this way His people were instructed, and, as Hebrews 1.1 teaches us that “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets”, so He also spoke to His people through the truth of sanctification in all its variety.
Before we look at sanctification in relation to the believer, we should note that in every reference to sanctification there is a need to identify (1) the sanctifier; (2) the person or object that is sanctified; and (3) the purpose for which sanctification is effected. For example, in the first reference to sanctification in our Bibles we read, “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made” (Gen 2.3). The Sanctifier is God; the object that is sanctified is the seventh day; the purpose for which it was sanctified was to teach the principle of Sabbath rest, because it was the day in which God Himself had rested. The seventh day was thus set apart from the rest of the days of the week so as to highlight a uniqueness of character that expresses divine purpose.
Sanctification in Relation to the Believer’s Salvation
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied” (1 Pet 1.1-2). In these opening verses of Peter’s first letter, each of the three Persons of the triune Godhead is stated to have an active part in the sovereign purpose of God. The order is the same as that seen in the Creation, namely: the Father is seen as the Architect, “For thus saith the Lord (Jehovah) that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else” (Is 45.18); the Son is seen as the Executor of the divine purpose, “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Col 1.16); and the Holy Spirit is seen as the Energiser of that which had been brought into being, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters” (Gen 1.2).
So, in the work of salvation that effects a new creation, the Father is the Architect, “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father”; the Son is the Executor of the divine purpose, “(the) sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” (the sprinkling being the seal of obedience as taught in Exodus 24.5-8); and the Holy Spirit is the divine Energiser who illuminates the darkened mind through the application of the word of God, sets apart those who are sovereignly chosen of the Father with a view to obedience, and imparts new life unto those who exercise the obedience of faith. Thus we know “sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience”.
Do not let it be supposed for a moment that the responsibility of the sinner to believe the Gospel is being in any way diminished. It is simply not the principal thought in 1 Peter 1 which is emphasising the glorious sovereignty of our God in the salvation of souls. The same can be said of 2 Thessalonians 2.13, “But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth”. Here again, the way in which the divine purpose is realised in the experience of believers is “through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth”. The Holy Spirit is the Sanctifier, those sanctified are men whom God has sovereignly elected to be saved, and the purpose of the sanctification is “belief of the truth”. Don’t let us be frightened or argumentative about this wonderful aspect of our salvation, neither let us rob God of the glory of His sovereignty in all things, including the salvation of souls. Rather, we should bow in worship and bless the Almighty God of Eternity that He should ever regard rebels such as we with a heart of love and grace, and send His beloved Son into the world to be the Saviour of sinners.
Whereas the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit effects the divine purpose in bringing us to salvation, the sanctifying work of the Lord Jesus is that which gives us standing before a righteous God. “But of him (God) are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Cor 1.30). That is, through our identification with Christ He has become to us the divine means of knowing the mind of God, of standing before God, of being set apart for the glory of God, and ultimately of being bodily in the very presence of God. Believers in the Lord Jesus are thus the subjects of divine counsel and intention, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world” (Eph 1.4), and have been set apart by the co-ordinated work and desire of the triune Godhead so that we, a unique people, might be an eternal expression of wonderful divine purpose. This glorious standing must have, of course, a practical outworking in the lives of believers, and that, God willing, will be our study next month.
We observed last month that many different people and objects in the Bible were sanctified at different times, by different means, for different reasons. However, an act of sanctification always finds its source in the revealed purpose of God, so we might say that all sanctification is of God. An act of sanctification must, therefore, be an inherently good thing because its source is divine and its purpose is for His glory. Sanctification does not make something good, but it is the means by which a person or thing is taken up by the sovereign decree of God and used to demonstrate some aspect of His purpose and His ways. Hence the definition suggested last month for the verb “to sanctify”: To set apart from the rest so as to highlight a uniqueness of character that expresses divine purpose.
Sanctification in Relation to Standing
The point that sanctification does not impart virtue, or give its object standing in the sight of God, is an important one to understand. As far as believers in the Lord Jesus are concerned, our standing before God is on the ground of justification, not sanctification. The doctrine of the gospel of God is expounded in the first eight chapters of the Roman epistle, and the only references to sanctification in that section are in ch.6 where sanctification (translated “holiness” in the AV) is seen as the product of our righteous standing before God, and not the means of it (Rom 6.19 & 22). Again, the fact that sanctification does not impart virtue is evident from Scriptures concerning the Lord Jesus: “Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?” (Jn 10.36). If sanctification ‘turns the common into the holy’ as is sometimes stated, what dreadful implications there would be in this verse! Nothing was ever wanting in the moral and spiritual standing of the Son of God, so His sanctification by the Father clearly has to do with the divine purpose and not with any regenerative or corrective work.
As a final emphasis of the point that sanctification does not affect one’s standing before God, consider the statement in 1 Corinthians 7.14: “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy”. The context of this verse is the question of whether a believing husband or wife is defiled by continuing to live with an unbelieving spouse after conversion. As a married couple, whether or not they are saved, the two are one flesh. The subsequent salvation of one of the partners does not violate or cancel that creatorial principle and, if it did, the apostle argues, the children of that union would not be legitimate, they would be unclean. But it is self-evident that this is not the case, so if the children are legitimate then so must be the marriage. The passage is not teaching that the unbelieving partner is sanctified as a result of the other being saved, but that the unbeliever remains sanctified in relation to the marriage bond even though the other now believes. The verse has nothing to do with the unbelieving partner deriving any merit or standing through their association with a believer, but their sanctification is in relation to the divinely instituted marriage bond which is not affected by the welfare of their respective souls. The unbeliever in this verse, therefore, remains set apart (unto the marriage bond) so as to highlight a uniqueness of character (as either husband or wife) that expresses divine purpose (the making one flesh of twain).
Sanctification in Relation to Practice
Whilst sanctification does not affect our standing before God, we have a solemn responsibility to live our lives in the conscious knowledge that we are sanctified. The outcome of understanding the doctrine of sanctification ought to be seen in believers living lives that are holy and distinctive. That lovely, dignified description of every child of God, saint, comes from the same root as the word sanctify, even as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours” (1 Cor 1.2). The religious world has its own saints, those whose saintliness is supposed to grant them standing before God. The true saint, however, is a saint because of his or her standing before God, and the indwelling Holy Spirit is the source of all the necessary power and ability to live a life that reflects our standing and our divinely appointed purpose. Paul was about to give solemn corrective ministry to the Corinthian assembly, so he immediately reminded them in his salutation of their high calling and the divine purpose for them. Their ungodly practice did not affect in any way their calling as saints, but it certainly did not reflect the truth and the purpose of their calling. The responsibility for conformity to our calling as saints is ours alone.
Sanctification means Holiness
The Greek word hagiasmos appears ten times in our New Testament Scriptures, and is translated by the word sanctification in five instances, and by the word holiness in the rest. So sanctification means holiness in a literal sense, but the truth of sanctification also means practical holiness in a moral sense. In the midst of a growing trend towards the notion that if we conform to the world in its dress, entertainment, speech and social habits we shall be better able to witness to them about the Lord, it is timely to restate, unequivocally, that a holy life is a mandatory requirement of every believer in the Lord Jesus. There are things which are obviously incompatible with those who are ‘called saints’, as Paul wrote to the Ephesians: “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks” (Eph 5.3-4). The necessity for such an exhortation reminds us that the potential for such unbecoming conduct lies in every one of us, even though we have been saved by the grace of God. The old nature will exert all its considerable force to take the believer away from a manner of life that pleases God, and holiness of life will be a constant conflict with the flesh until the Lord comes. How solemn it is that amongst the venal sins mentioned in this exhortation to the Ephesians is that of covetousness, which a lexicon defines simply as “a greedy desire to have more”. Sadly, it cannot be said that this feature is unknown amongst the saints of God today, and it is not ‘becoming (befitting) saints’. The ungodly, conformity to whose manner of life seems not to worry some who profess to be saints, are “the children of disobedience” upon whom “cometh the wrath of God”, and we are expressly enjoined; “Be not ye therefore partakers with them” (Eph 5.6-7).
It has often been noted that particular features of new life were seen in the three people whom the Lord raised from the dead. In relation to Jairus’ daughter there was new appetite; with the widow of Nain’s son there was new affection; with Lazarus there was new activity (Mk 5.43; Lk 7.15; Jn 11.44). In the book of Leviticus the people of God are three times called unto holiness because their God is holy. In ch. 11.41-45 the call to holiness is in relation to appetite; in ch. 19.2-4 the call is in relation to affection; in ch. 20.22-26 the call is in relation to activity. These calls to practical sanctification are entirely relevant for today: “And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you…I am the Lord your God, which have separated you from other people…And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine” (Lev 20.23,24,26). “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification” (1 Thess 4.3).