Sermons/Discussions

Sanctification: Being Made Holy

Article for the October 14th, 2005 Weekly Update

The Rev. Matt Kennedy

The Church of the Good Shepherd

Last week I wrote about the atonement and what it means to say, “Jesus died on the cross for my sins”.

This week I want to define an equally “churchy” word, “sanctification.”

The English word “sanctification” derives from the Latin word “sanctus” which means “holy”. We get the word “sacred” from the same Latin root.

Well, thank you Mr. Webster but who cares?

Well, we all should care. It's not the Latin root “sanct” that matters so much for us as the part that comes after it “ification” which means essentially “to make”

Put it all together and “santification” means, “to make holy”

Again, so what?

Well, this is where you come in…and me too.

The very moment you invite Jesus Christ into your life, God forgives your sins on the basis of Christ's atoning sacrifice on the cross (covered last week) and he counts you as righteous in his sight on the basis of Jesus' righteousness that he credits to your account.

Before going on, let me flesh that out a bit. The perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ is CREDITED to you. Think about a credit card. When you pull out your plastic and pay for dinner you're not using your own money but the bank's money. The bank has given you a credit line and you can use that credit line to spend what you don't have.

In much the same way, God credits you with a righteousness you don't have, Jesus' own righteousness, so that you can spend eternity in his kingdom. There are three huge differences between your credit line from the bank and the righteousness of Christ credited to you by God. 1. You don't have to pay God back. The righteousness of Christ is a free gift he gives to all who believe. 2. You'll never run out. The righteousness of Christ cannot be maxed or overcharged. Nothing you do can destroy it because it's not yours. It belongs to Jesus. You're just being covered with it. When you sincerely come to faith, you are assured of salvation on the basis of Christ's righteousness 3. While you'll probably never have as much cash on hand as you have credit, God WILL bring you into conformity with the righteousness of Christ he credited to your account (Philippians 1:6).

And this, with no further delay brings us finally to sanctification. Sanctification is the process whereby God, through the Holy Spirit changes you from the inside out. He changes your heart, your mind, and your will so that over time you begin to desire, think, and act more and more like Jesus himself. (Rom 8:29; 2 Cor 3:18; 1 Thess 3:13, 1 Pet 2:24)

Here's an easy way to think of it. Before you came to faith in Jesus Christ, you were a lot like a fish. You breathed water though gills and you lived under the water. The water represents sin. When you surrendered your life to Christ, the Holy Spirit set up his home in your heart and you were transformed into a human being. You were given a set of lungs and the ability to breath oxygen from the air. The air represents righteousness.

As a fish you might have occasionally jumped out of the water into the air, but it was unnatural .You were most comfortable under the water. As a human being you might still be able to dive down under the water, but you can't stay down too long. The further down you dive and the longer you stay under the worse you feel.

You have been changed and you are being changed. The further you go in the Christian life the more difficult and uncomfortable it becomes to dive into sin; and the more miserable you feel when you do. And, conversely, the further you go the more capable you are and the more comfortable you are living a godly, righteous life.

In the process of sanctification, God transforms your heart mind and soul so that over time you begin to be more at home living a life of righteousness in God's presence than you do living a disobedient life apart from God.

This is the work of the Holy Spirit. But, unlike your salvation (which is given to believers on the basis of Christ‘s work alone), this is a work in which you must cooperate (Romans 12:1-2).

The more you seek God's face the more you grow.

What do I mean by “seeking God's face?”

Two things:

1. Devoting yourself to daily prayer and the study of God's Word alongside a weekly habit of corporate worship.

2. Praying daily to be free of sin and disciplining yourself to do good and avoid evil as defined by the Word of God.

Sounds like a lot of work?

It can be.

But it is more than worth it.

The deep and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ that results from seeking his face brings the greatest joy and satisfaction available on earth. In fact, as you grow closer to Jesus you realize that the joy you formerly sought in a life of sin and disobedience is truly and only found in him and in a life lived in obedience to his commands.

One final point for those of you who might be wondering. Your progress in being sanctified on earth has absolutely no bearing on your salvation. You were saved the moment you turned your life over to Jesus Christ. Your sins were forgiven, Christ's righteousness credited to you. Forever.

May God be with you as you are sanctified, made holy, and drawn closer and closer to his Son our Lord Jesus Christ.

Matt+