Q. 53. What is sanctification?

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Sanctification … righteousness … holiness. In justification, we are accounted righteous; in sanctification, we are made righteous. Justification frees us from the penalty of sin; sanctification frees us from the power of sin. “Sanctification” and “holiness” are synonymous. They are translated from the same Greek word. “Since God, who called us to salvation by the gospel, is holy, those who obey his calling must also become holy in all their thoughts and behavior, especially since he who calls us to this also provides the necessary sanctification” (Didymus the Blind, Commentary on 1 Peter 1.15). “When mention is made of our union with God, let us remember that holiness must be the bond; not that by the merit of holiness we come into communion with him (we ought rather first to cleave to him, in order that, pervaded with his holiness, we may follow whither he calls), but because it greatly concerns his glory not to have any fellowship with wickedness and impurity” (Calvin, Institutes 3.6.2).

Work. Sanctification is an ongoing work of God in the life of the believer. It requires us to take up our cross daily (Luke 9:23) and “walk by the Spirit” so that we do “not gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16). Sanctification begins with regeneration (Q. 52) and continues until death and glorification (Q. 56). As we “keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25), we become more loving, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled (Galatians 5:22). “We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18). “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14).

Whole nature. Since our whole nature is corrupted by sin (Q. 12), our whole nature must be renewed by God’s grace. Our body and soul, mind, heart, and will, must be given completely to God and transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 12:1–2). Christians differ in their understanding of the exact nature and extent of sanctification in this life. Wesleyans emphasize that it is possible, by God’s grace, to love God with our whole heart and our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:36–39; Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18). This is commonly called entire sanctification (1 Thessalonians 5:23), in which the word “entire” does not mean that the work of sanctification is finished, but that every part of human nature is set apart to God for cleansing and service. Charles Wesley prayed, “Refining fire, go through my heart, illuminate my soul; scatter thy life through every part and sanctify the whole” (Jesus, Thine All-Victorious Love). In church history, entire sanctification is more commonly called Christian perfection (Matthew 5:48; 19:21), in which the word “perfection” does not mean that there is no room for growth, but that—in the older sense and usage of the word—growth in Christlikeness is perpetual and unimpeded. John Wesley explained that “it is nothing higher and nothing lower than this, the pure love of God and man—the loving God with all our heart and soul, and our neighbor as ourselves. It is love governing the heart and life, running through all our tempers, words, and actions.” “The more care should we take to keep the simple scriptural account continually in our eye: pure love reigning alone in the heart and life, this is the whole of scriptural perfection” (A Plain Account of Christian Perfection 9).

Renewed … image of God. We were created in God’s image (Q. 8), but our likeness to God was corrupted by sin (Q. 12). Sanctification renews and restores the image of God in man by transforming us into the likeness of Jesus Christ, who is the perfect image of God (Colossians 1:15). God has predestined us to be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29) and called us to “put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:24). “Mercy wishes you to be merciful, righteousness to be righteous, that the Creator may be seen in his creature, and the image of God may be reflected in the mirror of the human heart” (Leo I, Sermons 95). Sanctification is the result of union with Christ by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 1:30), through whom we “become partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). “The Holy Spirit works in us in his own way, truly sanctifying us and joining us to himself; and by this coalescence and union of ourselves with him he makes us sharers in the divine nature, beautifying human nature with the splendor of the divinity” (Cyril of Alexandria, Thesaurus 34).

Die to sin. Scripture calls us “to bid adieu to the will of the flesh, subdue, nay, abjure our lusts, devote ourselves to God and our brethren, and lead an angelic life amid the pollutions of the world” (Calvin, Institutes 3.7.3). “Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and … be renewed in the spirit of your minds” (Ephesians 4:22–23). “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5). “True believers are no hypocrites. They crucify the flesh with its evil desires and lusts” (Luther, Commentary on Galatians 5.24).

Live. While sanctification can be difficult, since it means confronting our sinfulness and purging ourselves of everything that is contrary to God’s will, holiness is ultimately liberating and life-giving. “[God] disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:10). While sin makes us miserable, holiness makes us happy (see Q. 2). “Holiness and happiness are inseparable; sin and misery are equally so” (Adam Clarke). As we grow in holiness, we grow nearer to God, and enjoy greater happiness in him (see Q. 1). “[The virtues] delight those who possess them with a sincere and holy delight and give birth in them to a spiritual joy” (Peter Lombard, The Sentences I.3.9).