But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
1 Peter 1:15-16
Sanctification means to “separate” or “set apart.” In the Bible, sanctification generally relates to a sovereign act of God whereby He “sets apart” a person, place, or thing in order that His purposes may be accomplished. When a person is sanctified, he or she is set apart by God for a specific divine purpose. The very moment we are saved in Christ, we are also immediately sanctified and begin the process of being conformed to the image of Christ. As children of God, we are set apart from that moment to carry out His divine purposes.
Sanctification, like all of God’s promises and gifts, flows through and from the work of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the cross. Our holiness was purchased by His blood. As a result of that finished work, holiness comes through the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (2 Thessalonians 2:13). Through Christ, we are made to be what we are declared to be at conversion. When we were declared righteous by God (justified), we were also positionally sanctified. They are not the same thing, but they are tied together! Look at Hebrews 10:10: “By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
The Bible speaks about three types of sanctification. First, there is what we call positional sanctification (Heb. 10:10). This is something that God has done through the finished work of Christ, regardless of our growth or where we are in our Christian lives. Look at those at Corinth, for example. They are called saints in 1 Corinthians 1:2 and are set apart for God (1 Corinthians 6:11), yet they had all sorts of sins among them, and they were carnal (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).
The Bible also teaches practical or progressive sanctification, which involves our daily dealing with sin and growing in holiness. Second Corinthians 7:1 challenges us: “Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” Paul mentions this again in 2 Timothy 2:21 when he exhorts us to be vessels fit for the Master’s use: “a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”
Lastly, the Word of God informs us that there is such a thing as perfect or complete sanctification. But this will only happen when Christ returns, when we see Him as He is and we will be like Him (1 John 3:1-2).
Anchor For Today:
The Lord is looking for our hearts to be surrendered and set apart to Him in a practical way, even as He has set us apart for Himself positionally through the finished work of Christ.