He is, after all, the Holy Spirit.
In the Old Testament, the tabernacle and the priests who served in it were sanctified to the Lord. Given the detail of the instructions regarding its structure and their service, one might be excused for imagining that these details somehow led to the sanctification of the tabernacle, or of the priests who served in it. But it was not its lavishness nor its splendor that set apart the tabernacle. What consecrated the tent of meeting was the very presence and glory of God (Ex. 29:42-46).
When the more permanent structure of the temple was built, it, too, was beautiful beyond compare. And when the Lord appeared to Solomon upon its completion, He proclaimed that the temple was sanctified. But once again, it was not sanctified due to its own outer glory, nor by the service within. God told Solomon, “I have chosen and sanctified this house that My Name may be there for ever: and Mine eyes and Mine heart shall be there perpetually” (2 Chron. 7:16). God’s presence was what sanctified the temple.
When we arrive in the New Testament, we see a similar principle in the lives of believers. Although the believer is holy, it is not through his or her skill, personality, beauty, or charisma that they are sanctified or set apart to God. It is, once again, the very presence of God with the believer by which he is sanctified—the indwelling Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:16-17).
The principle of sanctification
The Scriptures have much to say about sanctification. Our English words for “consecration,” “holy,” “sacred,” and “set apart” are often derived from the same word for sanctification. God wants His people to be different, to be set apart for His glory. This was true for Israel: “lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations” (Num. 23:9). As John Bramhall has put it, “God’s protection for Israel depended solely on their unlikeness and separation from the nations around them; never upon their federation with them. This same principle is to govern us today as His people.”1 As Israel was to be set apart, so, too, Christians ought to be sanctified, both positionally and practically. And He has provided many resources by which we are sanctified. For example, the Scriptures speak of sanctification by the truth (Jn. 17:17), by faith (Ac. 26:18), by the blood of the covenant (Heb. 10:29), and the Word of God and prayer (1 Tim. 4:5). There are many enriching truths that can be gleaned from these methods of sanctification that are worthy of continued study. Clearly, sanctification is a glorious and complex process. But with some effort and diligence, we can understand much of what God would wish to teach us about this subject in His Word.
Universality
There are a few references that discuss the sanctification of the believer by the Spirit of God specifically. In Romans 15:16, Paul talks about Gentiles being sanctified by the Holy Spirit. This was, no doubt, music to the Romans’ ears! This would represent a shift for the nation of Israel, who, up to that point, was sanctified from the nations (Ezek. 37:28; 38:16; 39:27). Now, the Spirit of God would also sanctify people from these same nations, with no distinction between Jew and Gentile (Rom. 10:12), provided they responded to the message of salvation. The Gentiles, once aliens and foreigners to God’s grace, were brought nigh by the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Praise the Lord that the floodgates of His grace were opened, so that Gentiles could enjoy sanctification by the Spirit as well!
Purity
In 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, we’re given another reason to rejoice in the sanctifying work of the Spirit of God. For any who would boast in their own righteousness, we are reminded of our wretched state before we knew the grace of God. The list of attributes that precluded the unbeliever from inheriting the kingdom of God included the most abominable sins (e.g. idolatry and adultery) as well as (in our feeble minds) the most trivial (e.g. covetousness). Notwithstanding its type or magnitude, our sin separated us from God and any inheritance in His kingdom. But thanks be to God for the work of the Lord Jesus and the Spirit of God. We have been washed, sanctified, and justified through it (v. 11). The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in salvation gives us a position acceptable in Christ Jesus, now fit for the inheritance. However, it also urges us to be set apart from our former way of life. We are to be holy and undefiled by sin. The draw of sin still entices the old man. Were it not for the sanctification of the Spirit, we might very well fall into the same sins that we were characterized by before we met the Lord Jesus as Saviour.
Deliverance
We are also encouraged that God’s sanctifying work through the Spirit is not partial. It is complete and will carry us through to the end. 2 Thessalonians 2 talks about the man of sin (v. 8) and end time events. This is the context for verse 13 which begins with the transition word “but.” The man of sin will deceive the perishing in that time. Those who will suffer at his hand do so “because they received not the love of truth, that they might be saved” (v. 10). Verse 13 paints the opposite picture for those sanctified by Holy Spirit: “But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” Salvation and truth will be the difference between those who perish and those who are saved from the wiles of the man of sin. The enabling catalyst will be sanctification by the Spirit.
Closeness
In 2 Thessalonians 2:13, we also read that not only will those sanctified by the Spirit be delivered, they will also enjoy a closeness to God. The phrase is added by divine instruction that these are they that are “beloved of God.” Its inclusion must add to our appreciation that the sanctifying work of the Spirit of God produces a closeness to God; it produces believers who have a desire for God, believers who are not easily deceived by those who would attempt to destroy, Christians who believe in and are built on the truth (v. 13), those who stand firm and hold to the teachings of the Word of God (v. 15). These attributes are direct results of those who have been sanctified by the Spirit of God and enjoy a close relationship with Him.
Obedience
In speaking to believers scattered throughout the world, 1 Peter 1:2 states that these believers had been chosen “through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience, and sprinkling of the blood of Christ.” They were chosen for a purpose—obedience to Christ. That obedience began with the sprinkling of the blood of Christ and the salvation that comes to each believer through His shed blood. Peter picks up the subject of the value of the blood of Christ again in verse 19 where we are told that our redemption is through the precious blood of Christ.
What a position we have in Him: incorruptible! But it would be nearsighted to suggest that sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience ended at salvation. Day-by-day obedience to Christ is a process that is abetted by the sanctification of the Spirit. One of the Spirit’s primary roles is to reveal Christ to the believer (Jn. 14:15-26). As we see Him more clearly, our response ought to be obedience. Our sanctification through the Spirit is a continual process of ever-increasing love and submission to the Saviour. Much of the rest of 1 Peter bears this out with its instruction on godly living. We are assured by Scripture that God will complete this work in us to the utmost. “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is faithful who will do it” (1 Thes. 5:23-24).
1 John W. Bramhall, I am My Beloved’s (Grand Rapids, MI: Gospel Folio Press, 1994), p. 19.