Let us read from 1 Thessalonians 4:7, “For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.” God has called us so that all impurity in our lives must be gone. In verse 4 we read that one must possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. And in verse 3 we read that sanctification is God’s will for us. We need to be sanctified – we need to be set apart for Him. We need to be separated from the world, from all impurity and sin.
In John 17 we read in verse 14-19, Jesus’ prayer to the Father. “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” This sanctification is God’s will for us. God wants to make us holy through sanctification. For sanctification, the Holy Spirit is the primary helper. In 2 Thessalonians 2:13 we read that the Holy Spirit makes us holy through sanctification.
In Mathew 3:11,12 John tells about Jesus. “ “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” The winnowing fork is an ancient method of removal of the chaff from the wheat. While there is a wind, the wheat is sanctified from the chaff. This is an example of the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. God can’t allow impurity in our lives just as the wheat and chaff have to be separated. If we submit to God, he will remove all the chaff in our lives. The Holy Spirit will give us revelation of the impurities in our lives that have to be removed.
In Galatians 5 we read of Flesh vs Spirit. We read in this chapter the deeds of the flesh and the fruits if the Spirit. The Spirit and the flesh are always against each other. God wants all the deeds of the flesh to be burnt up and that we be holy. In Ephesians 5:27 we read that God wants us to be holy and blameless without any spot or wrinkle. This is the purpose of God’s calling in our life. Sometimes God allows us to go through different situations for our sanctification, just like how God allowed Job and Peter to be tested by Satan. But even in these situations, Jesus is praying for us that our faith may not fail. Satan’s intention of testing us is to destroy our faith, but God can turn it to strengthen our faith; that we may be sanctified. Those who love God and seek His kingdom first, and whose ambition is to please God can be assured us that He will make all things to work together for their good. God has put a fence around His children and no weapon formed against them shall prosper. God is in control of all situations and is praying for us. This is the loving God that we serve. We read in Hebrews 7:25 that Jesus always lives to make intercession for us.
There needs to be a continual sanctification in our life. And our hope is that when we see Jesus we will be fully sanctified. Let us purify ourselves just as He is pure. God is looking for the pure wheat. He is coming again to take His bride who is spotless and blameless. In John 15: 2 we read that God prunes our lives so that we may bear more fruit. May God help us all to live this life of sanctification.
