Last week I had the chance to be in the northwoods of Minnesota for four whole days! It was a great chance to rest, and it looks like church went along without a hitch, so no worries there! These are some of my thoughts from the time I had to read and journal.
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole soul and spirit and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
How would you describe "sanctification"? Sanctification is a big word to say set apart for a purpose. So a book that is read is sanctified. A book that is holding up an unsteady table is not. In being set apart someone or something who is sanctified is not mixed up with anything that distracts or detracts from their intended purpose. Another way to say it is, sanctified is to be holy. Only God is truly holy but he also commands us, "Be holy as I am holy" (Lev. 11:44).
Don't miss the severity of Paul's language here. He prays that the believers would be sanctified completely and that every aspect of the reader's being would be totally blameless until the end of time. In other words, be perfect, and be perfect forever. If that doesn't break your heart and make you feel at least a little bit hopeless, you don't understand your sin in light of God's holiness. Thank God for verse 24: "He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." The same God who says, "Be holy as I am holy" is the one who carries us to that end. And really, he's the only one who could. 2 Timothy 2:13 says, "If we are faithless, he remains faithful--for he cannot deny himself."
I am afraid we have a view of sanctification that is much too soft. Of course we will never be made perfect in this life, but that doesn't give us permission to take Paul's prayer (or the Lord's command in Lev. 11:44) any less seriously. In John 17:17, Jesus prays for believers saying, "Sanctify them in truth. Your word is truth." Sanctification comes through the power of the Word, but it's not just 15 minutes in a devotional over a cup of coffee, praying that God would make you stop doing the same sins you've been praying about for years, and then living just like anyone else in the world. No, Sanctification is a radical transformation that takes drastic measures to accomplish.
In his book Every Body Matters, Gary Thomas spends a lot of time looking at 2 Timothy 2:20-21.
"Now, in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work."
What is it that makes silver useful? Proverbs 25:4 gives us an insight, "Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel." Dross is anything mixed with the silver that is not silver. This could be other metals like copper, or clay, or quartz. Until the silver is totally separated from the rest, the blacksmith cannot use it to make anything. As the dross must be removed, our sin has to be dealt with before we can be of any use to the Master.
Removing dross from silver is not like an archeologist uncovering an ancient city; it is not done with a little brush and chisel. It is removed with fire. The mixed up metals get heated up to the point that everything else burns away, melts, or can be hammered into form. This process is brutal, but it's the only way for a vessel of silver to be made.
To use Gary Thomas' phrase, do you have a "silver soul"? Are you able to withstand the brutal process of eradicating sin in order to be sanctified? Are you burning up your sin, or are you content to live all mixed up with worthless things? If sin has a stranglehold around your neck, massaging it's fingers will not loosen it's grip. You have to cut off the hand.
Yes, sanctification will take a lifetime in Christ. But that is no excuse for appeasing our sin, letting the dross of this world take residence in our souls. If you have become accustomed to anything in your life that is less than holy, repent and turn to Jesus! Let him sanctify you. Let go of the junk and be made wholly useful.
So, we need to be sanctified by the Spirit. But don't forget it's for a purpose. The Lord wants to take our ridiculous mess, burn away the dross, and hammer us into something useful in his great house. As we eradicate sin by the power of the gospel, we need to look at every aspect of our being. I mean every part of us. Paul says, "may your whole soul and spirit and body be kept blameless." See that? He prays for our spiritual, emotional and physical elements. Are you testing your spirit and soul and body to see if it is ready for every good work and useful to the Master? Ask yourself these questions:
Am I filling my soul with Scripture, or am I worshiping lesser gods?
Is my attitude motivated by Christ, or am I responding to others like one who has no hope?
Are my thoughts honoring to God, or am I meditating the things of this world?
Am I filling my body with life-giving food, or am I content to fill up on empty calories that leave me with no energy to be ready for good work?
Am I caring for my body in a way that makes me "ready for every good work" and "useful to the Master"?
We as the body of believers need to spur one another on in this. I encourage you as we come to the end of this series to talk with others in your Community Group or close friends about where you need sanctification. And then don't be afraid to ask each other how it is going! Follow up is a crucial part of the process of spurring one another on. How great would it be if every single person in Antioch had a "silver soul"?
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