The setting apart of the Christian for the glory of God.  Sanctification takes place positionally at conversion, progressively through life, and ultimately in glory.

Introduction

Sanctification is the present work of salvation in the believer’s life..  When a person places their faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sins, he or she is immediately justified (considered righteous) in the eyes of God (Rom. 3:22).  Then, just as faith was the source of power for justification, it then becomes the source of sanctification (Rom. 1:17) – the progressive change in the life of the believer that sets him or her apart in holiness as instruments for God’s glory.  One day, when the believer is united with Christ in heaven, his body will be completely glorified and the sin nature totally removed (Eph. 5:26-27; Jude 1:24-25).  At present, the desires of the flesh and the desires of the new nature battle continuously.  This is the battleground of sanctification.

Aspects of Sanctification

1. Positional sanctification – the operation of God through the shed blood of Christ Jesus to make a believer holy and into a saint (Heb. 10:10).  The cleansing of all iniquities, redemption and forgiveness of sins, imputed righteousness, and invitation into the family of God all classify the believer as set apart and distinct.  This separation is past (I Cor. 1:2; 6:11), permanent and eternal and is the motivation for daily walking with Christ in righteousness.  Many of Paul’s epistles begin with sweeping explanations of the change God has worked in every believer’s life, then based on that work he makes a call to holiness (Rom. 12:1; Eph. 4:1; Col. 3:1).
2. Progressive Sanctification – As positional sanctification is completely unrelated to the daily life, so experiential sanctification is completely dissociated from the position in Christ.  The growth of the Christian in holiness is dictated by his reliance on and yieldedness to God.  Christ’s death removed the power of sin in our lives (Eph. 2:1-3), but while our flesh is still alive, we must continually “reckon” it dead (Rom. 6:11-12) and die to ourselves (Gal. 2:20). Every command in the New Testament relating the the Christians holiness is part of the process of progressive sanctification (I Pet. 1:16).
3. Ultimate Sanctification – By the power and grace of God we will be transformed completely and eternally in spirit, soul, and body.  Today we are “blameless,” then we will be faultless without spot or blemish (Eph. 5:27).

Importance of the Distinctions

Sanctification is just one a part of the greater whole of God’s work in salvation.  And sanctification itself is received and experienced at different levels at different times, so the distinctions must be recognized in order to avoid confusion.  If the reader of the Bible understands these distinctions, he can properly ascertain his role in the process of sanctification. 

God has already accomplished sanctification for us today – the Christian is completely, once and for all set apart to him by the work of the Son (Heb. 10:10).  Further, he has provided His Spirit as the source for holy living (; Gal. 5:21).  It is to the Father that Christ asks for the sanctification of his people (John 17:17).  In all this, the believer is responsible for to use these resources provided by the Godhead.  We are to be slaves of righteousness (Rom. 6:18-19), purify ourselves from “everything that contaminates the body and spirit” (II Cor. 7:1) and “throw of everything that entangles us” (Heb. 12:1).  We must obey these commands to progress in holiness.

The Possibility of Failure

Although God has sanctified every believer positionally and provided all the resources necessary for a life glorifying to His Name, Scripture continually warns that the believer may in fact not use these resources.  He may fall away (Heb. 6:4-6) only to be saved by the foundation of Christ (I Cor. 3:10-15) with nothing to show at the judgment seat of Christ.  A believer may undergo punishment from the Lord (Heb. 10:26-27) or even given to death (I Cor. 5:5; Jam. 5:20-21 as Ananias and Sapphria did for their disobedience (Acts 5:1-5). These negative warning passages are sometimes confused as addressing other aspects of salvation, but instead when coupled with the positive assurance of our final salvation in Christ and our current new nature, serve as the motivation for our continued walks with Christ.