3. Sanctification
Sanctification
Holiness is a Bible doctrine but most unholy controversies have been stirred up on the subject. And yet the doctrine of sanctification, or holiness, is simple; as simple as the way of salvation. Much misunderstanding springs from the fact that there are two meanings given to the word, "holy," in ordinary conversation and also in the dictionary.
There is a family of holiness words translated from the same root in Hebrew and in Greek. Sanctification and holiness mean exactly the same thing. A saint is a sanctified person, in fact we should think of sanctification as "saintification"; for the word undergoes a change of spelling in passing from the noun form to the verb forms. Some of this family of words which carry an identical root meaning are, saint, sanctify, sanctification, holy, hallowed, holiness, sanctuary, and, in some cases, consecrate. The two definitions of "holy" as given in The Standard Dictionary are: "Free from sin and perfect in righteousness and purity, or approximating that condition"; "Set apart for the service of God or for sacred uses; sacred."
There is a vast difference between thinking of "Aaron, the saint of the Lord," (Ps. 106:16) as perfect in righteousness; or thinking of him as set apart for the service of God. There is a great difference whether you think of your friend and neighbor as perfect in righteousness; or as set apart from other men by the atoning work of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There are dozens of holiness sects. Some are violent "splits" from other holiness groups. They do not agree on practices nor do they get along very well with one another. They differ on, "How perfect is perfection?" They all agree that sanctification is a synonym for righteousness; and that it comes as the result of a highly emotional experience which they label, "sanctification"; and without it, the most faithful believer will be lost. This writer has known many holiness people; some of whom would be a credit to any fellowship; but he has never known one who by any stretch of the imagination could be considered free from all sin. You may free a man from vices like smoking, or card playing; but to free him from pride, selfishness, envy, and covetousness, is another matter. Many with Puritanical standards of living are unbearable as companions and a nuisance in any church.
Preachers of holiness are fired because of evident faults perhaps more frequently than are pastors of other faiths. Holiness congregations wait to see what is wrong with the next pastor like hardened Methodists or Baptists and are seldom disappointed. We say with the old Quaker, "If thou canst find a man without sin, send him to me; and I will pay his fare, though it be from the uttermost part of the earth." To preserve this delusion of righteousness, holiness people must drug reason with excitement and emotionalism, so that sound thinking is impossible; and then an experience must be emphasized to the exclusion of the results of that experience. They dwell on how they came to the altar, yielded all to God, and had a glorious experience which they label, "sanctification." The FACT of righteousness is lost in the EXPERIENCE of getting it. It is far more important to establish the fact, by observation and testimony, that a certain man is actually SINLESS than to listen to the story of his experience. The "experience" of sanctification fails to interest us because we have never met the man from whom sin has been eradicated. A man with a very limited knowledge of English and no knowledge of Hebrew or Greek can settle the question of the meaning of the word "holy," by merely reading his Bible. In Genesis 2:3, we read that God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it: in Exodus 20:8, Israel was told to remember the sabbath day to keep it holy. The sabbath day was not free from sin and perfect in righteousness. Work ceased; but work is not sinful. The sabbath day was "Set apart for God": it was a sacred day. Common work violated sacredness. The ground, on which Moses stood when God spoke at the burning bush, was called holy ground (Ex. 3:5). It was not righteous ground; and the man who stood there was far from sinless; and loathe to do the will of God; but he was standing in the presence of God. It was a spot more sacred than any cathedral built by man: it was holy ground.
Holy convocations were commanded (Ex. 12:16). These were gatherings sacred to the worship of God as distinguished from the ordinary convocations of men. The Lord said to Israel, Sanctify unto me all the firstborn of man and beast: it is mine (Ex 13:2). The firstborn was no more free from sin than the second born but God claimed the firstborn, "It is mine." That which belonged to God was sanctified, or sacred. Our readers can take a concordance and travel through the Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi and find that the holiness group of words is used everywhere in this one sense. The tabernacle was holy because devoted exclusively to the worship of God. Priests were holy, set apart for the sacred service of the tabernacle: A man who was not "set apart," dared not perform the sacred ceremonies. Priests were probably little better than ordinary men in the matter of righteousness; but by virtue of their sacred office they were holy. Even the garments they wore were holy because worn exclusively in the service of God. When we speak of God as holy, we are not referring to his righteousness. God is set apart from men: He is holy. In the worship of the tabernacle and temple he was approached only by a mediator, the high priest. Today there is no entering into the presence of God except through the blood of Jesus Christ, "No man cometh unto the Father but by me." (John 14:6) It is this attribute of God which is described by the word "holy." In the New Testament, we find the word "holy" used in exactly the same sense; and we find not the slightest change in its meaning whether applied to things or people.
Jerusalem where, our Lord was hated, persecuted, and crucified is called the Holy City (Matthew 4:5). The Lord has put his name there and eventually he will reign there. Because of the Lord’s purposes and plans for Jerusalem, it is sacred above all other cities of the world: it is a holy city.
We are told to sanctify the Lord God in our hearts (1 Peter 3:15). We cannot make him more righteous but we can set him apart for reverent worship: "Hallowed be thy name." Our Lord prayed, Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth (John 17:17). Believers are set apart from unbelievers as oil is set apart from water: the more of God’s word, the more set apart. Sanctification is separation, rather than sinlessness.
Believers are told, Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers; because there is no fellowship between righteousness and unrighteousness, no communion of light with darkness, no peace between Christ and the devil, no agreement with idols: wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing: and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God (2 Cor. 7:1). Apart from unbelief, apart from idols, apart from the devil, there is a place of blessing; where God blesses his sons and daughters with precious promises. It is one thing to avoid yokes with unbelievers, fellowship with unrighteousness, peace with the devil and agreement with idols; and it is another thing to seek an emotional experience that will instantly free us from sin. One is a simple practical manner of life and the other is unscriptural wishful thinking. It is one thing to step out of worldly tangles, with all of our weaknesses and infirmities to walk with a Father who will bless; and it is another to boast of self-righteousness. To cleanse ourselves from things that defile flesh and spirit is one thing; and to claim that sin has been eradicated is a very different thing. When Lot fled from Sodom, he was perfecting holiness (set-apartness) in the fear of God but he was not perfecting Lot. He left a very wicked city but he did not leave his own sinfulness. The Lord had said unto Abram in Ur of the Chaldees; Get then out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house. He came into the land of Canaan with his nephew Lot and Lot’s household; and that is a fair example of the way most of us obey the word of God; but the plan did not work; neither did the plan to marry Hagar; nor the plan to keep Ishmael; nor the plan to save Sodom and Gomorrah for the sake of ten righteous. But some forty years after coming to Canaan, Abraham had learned much and he was ready to do exactly what the Lord told him to do, and to offer up Isaac. Through weary years in which tribulation worked patience; and patience experience; and experience hope; God perfected the setting apart of Abram. In the smaller lives and experiences of the Thessalonians, the God of patience was working; and Paul writes of their many little trials and testings; Esteem them which are over you, warn the unruly, support the weak, be patient, rejoice, pray, give thanks, prove all things, abstain from all appearance of evil, and the very God of peace sanctify you wholly. Not in the excitement and emotionalism of holiness meetings but in a constant succession of daily duties; well done, God was wholly setting apart for his service believers at Thessalonica. Great soldiers are made on the battlefield; motherhood blooms at the cook stove and wash tub: and sanctification flourishes in patient church life.
There is a wide spread emphasis on certain lines of conduct that would make a believer a constant irritant to those about him; preaching to the unwilling ears of fellow workers, warning the neighbors, and fomenting the liquor issue. There are many verses that call us to another policy. "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord." (Heb. 12:14). We are to avoid yokes with unbelievers and fellowship with unrighteousness but we are to do it peacefully; or perhaps courteously; as we go out to walk with some one far better, the living God; and to follow after sanctification without which no span shall we the Lord. Which brings us squarely up against the question, how do men become sanctified?
Sanctification is as simple as salvation; it comes at the same time as salvation: it comes to the same people: and in the same way, by simple faith in a Saviour. "We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all," (Heb. 10:10). So also comes salvation. Salvation comes once for all. Sanctification comes once for all. Sanctification is combined with perfection, "For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified," (Heb. 10:14). Salvation refers to one aspect, saved from perdition: Sanctification refers to the other aspect, set apart to be heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. Look down at the pit from which we were digged and talk of salvation: look upward to eternal life with God, the Father, and Jesus Christ our Lord, and talk of sanctification. Preachers speak constantly of salvation and seldom mention sanctification. We believe that the New Testament speaks more often and more freely of sanctification than of salvation. Nothing brings this out more clearly than the word "saint," as used in Paul’s epistles. A saint is a sanctified person, or a holy person. There are no unsanctified saints. While men search for a word to describe the children of God and awkwardly refer to them as: "the saved," "born-again one," "true believers," and similar terms; they are overlooking the fact that the common term for ordinary believers is "saints." Paul tells Agrippa of his experience on the Damascus road and how Jesus said to him, "I send time to open their eyes and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith in me," (Acts 26:18). Men, that are sanctified by faith, are saints; and Paul called them saints. We are sanctified by faith in Christ. We are sanctified by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Every man who is sanctified, is a saint. Whenever you read the word "saint," you, are face to face with sanctification in flesh and blood. Sanctification makes, a saint; and it is not a second work of grace; but the work of grace. As to unsanctified living, much depends on the viewpoint. Is a pious man who tells a whopping lie about sin eradicated from his life, any more sanctified in his living than the soul who chews tobacco?
Over sixty times the term "saint" is used in the New Testament to describe the children of God. Here are some examples: Salute every saint in Christ Jesus. Many of the saints did I shut up in prison. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints. At the coming of the Lord Jesus with all his saints. Receive her in the Lord as becometh saints. The love which ye have to all the saints. The word, "Christian" is used only three times: the word "disciple" is not used after the book of Acts.
Some will ask, Why does the dictionary give two definitions for Holy? Became the English language is notoriously inaccurate. That is one reason why we have so many lawyers and sects. For centuries men of more or less repute have attached to the word two meanings. The habit still remains and the dictionary records our bad habits. We cannot change habits of speech or dictionaries but can point out that the Bible uses the holiness group of word with one clear distinct meaning—"set apart for the service of God, or sacred." We regret that printers use titles brought out of Catholicism for the books of the New Testament; such as "‘Saint Paul," and "Saint Pete. Paul did not give his fellow apostle the honorary title of "Saint Peter," but he did honor every believer in Jesus Christ with the title "saint," and he referred to himself as less than the least of all saints.
Jeremiah was sanctified before he was born, "Before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee." Set apart for the predestined work that God elected! (Jer. 1:5) ORSON P. JONES PASTOR GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH 3844 GEORGIA ST.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA