Are You Sanctified?

7) Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God. 8) Keep My decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.

Leviticus 20:7-8 (NIV)

What stands as an obstacle for some Christians—hindering their spiritual growth—lies in their misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the word "sanctification." It is a term frequently used in the Old Testament, where God calls upon the Israelites to sanctify themselves. We often ascribe a meaning to this word that it does not truly possess, or we portray God as a demanding taskmaster in the way He applies it—a misconception that leads us to serve Him in a manner different from what He actually desires. Consequently, there may be days when we feel sanctified because we feel spiritually strong; yet, on other days, we might find ourselves wondering whether we are truly sanctified in God's eyes.

What is the source of this problem? It stems from the interpretation we place upon this word in an effort to establish a higher standard for our own spirituality. We believe that being sanctified means possessing the spiritual capacity to perform miracles, to pray with the same intensity as Jesus Christ, to perceive spiritual realities invisible to others, to refrain from retaliating against the attacks or threats of others, never to sin, or even to be immune to the temptation of evil. In reality, however, this is absolutely not what God requires when He commands us to sanctify ourselves. Furthermore, He explicitly indicates what we must do to attain this state. To sanctify oneself is to set oneself apart in order to be used by God. And to be used by God means doing what He asks of us—as revealed in His Word—while allowing Him to work through us throughout this process.

You might then ask: what, exactly, does this process entail? As we see in verse 7, we must keep God's Word; This entails studying it, meditating upon it, and putting it into practice in our daily lives. Even while doing so—while actively pursuing our sanctification—we may still stumble and sin. Yet, this does not exclude us from the process, for God helps us to persevere; He sees the desires of our hearts and knows our weaknesses. Verse 25 provides us with further details regarding this process, enjoining us to separate ourselves from anything that is impure. In our case, I would say this means separating ourselves from those things of the world that do not glorify God. Thus, as you can see, sanctification is not limited to everything I mentioned previously. However, as we advance in this process, God will help us to attain this dimension.

May the grace and peace of God be with you.