CHRIST OUR SANCTIFICATION.

The term “Sanctification,” used in this text, means, set apart, consecrated, devoted to, or marked out for a holy use or purpose.

Christ by God is made unto us sanctification. That is to say, God through Christ sets apart or marks out for a special share in his great plan “us” – the Church.

Many make the serious error of supposing that God is sanctifying the world, – sanctifying sinners. As a consequence of this error, many are seeking to copy Christ’s example, and thus be sanctified before God, while they repudiate the doctrine of the ransom, or justification by faith. They confound sanctification and justification in their minds, and suppose that if they consecrate or sanctify or set apart their lives to God’s service and to deeds of kindness they are thereby justified.

This is a serious error. Justification is entirely separate and distinct from sanctification; and no one can be sanctified in God’s sight, and in the Scriptural sense, unless he has first been justified or cleansed from all sin.

Consecrating a person or thing to God’s service does not cleanse that person or thing. On the contrary, God always refuses to accept anything imperfect or unclean. This is distinctly and repeatedly shown in the typical arrangements of the Law given to typical Israel. The priests were obliged to wash themselves and put on new, clean linen garments BEFORE consecration to their office and work as God’s typically set apart, or sanctified, priesthood. Their cleansing and new clothing represented justification, the appropriation of Christ’s righteousness instead of the filthy rags of their own unrighteousness, as members of the fallen race.

The seal or mark of their consecration was a totally different one, and followed the cleansing ceremony, as consecration should in every case follow justification. The sign or mark of consecration or sanctification was the anointing with the holy oil, which symbolized the holy Spirit.

The anointing oil or symbol of consecration was poured upon the head of the High Priest only, but the under-priests were represented in the members of his body, even as Christ is the Head over the Church which is his body, and all together constitute the Royal Priesthood. So, the holy Spirit given without measure to our Lord and Head applied to us (his body) through him. The Father gave the Spirit to the Son only: all of the anointing oil was poured upon the Head. At Pentecost it ran down from the head to the body, and has continued with the body ever since, and whoever comes into the “body” comes thereby under the consecrating influence – the spirit of holiness, the spirit of God, the spirit of Christ, the spirit of the Truth. – Acts 2:4.

But in consecrating the typical priests the blood was not ignored. It was put upon all, upon the tip of the right ear, upon the thumb of the right hand and upon the great toe of the right foot, thus showing that the hearing of faith, the work of faith and the walk of faith must all be touched and made holy by an appreciation of the precious blood of atonement – the blood of Christ – the blood of the New Covenant.

And then the garments of all the priests – their clean linen garments – were sprinkled with a mixture of the blood and the oil, implying that both justification through the blood and sanctification through the possession of the spirit of holiness are necessary in our consecration.

To what end or service are God’s people, the Royal Priesthood, consecrated or set apart?

Some would be inclined to answer: To live without sin, to practice the graces of the spirit, to wear plain clothing and in general to live a rather gloomy life now, hoping for greater liberty and pleasure hereafter.

We reply, this is the common but mistaken view. True, God’s people do seek to avoid sin; but that is not the object of their consecration. Before consecration, they learned the exceeding sinfulness and undesirableness of sin, and saw Christ Jesus as their sin-bearer and cleanser. Consequently, they had fled from sin before consecration. When consecrated they will still loathe and abhor sin, and that more and more as they grow in grace and in knowledge; but we repeat that to seek to live free from sin is not a proper definition of consecration or sanctification.

It is true also that all of the consecrated will seek to put on the graces of Christ’s spirit and example; but neither is this the object of our call to consecration under the Gospel high-calling.

It is true, also, that our consecration may lead to plainness of dress, and bring upon us sufferings for righteousness’ sake, in this present evil world (age); but, we repeat, these are not the objects of our consecration. They are merely incidental results.

The object of God in calling out the Gospel Church, and providing for the consecration or sanctification of its members, is a grand and worthy one; and when once clearly seen by the eye of faith it makes all the incidentals which it will cost, such as self-denials in dress, loss of friends and companionships, and even persecution for the Truth’s sake, etc., to be esteemed but light afflictions, not worthy to be compared to the glorious object of our consecration, which is that we may become “partakers of the divine nature” and “joint-heirs with Christ,” and together with him bless the world during its day of judgment – the Millennium – as we will show.

God in his wisdom and foreknowledge knew that sin would enter this world and bring its blight, – sorrow, pain and death. He foresaw that after their experience with sin, some of his creatures would be, not only willing, but anxious, to forsake sin and return to his fellowship and love and the blessing of life everlasting. It was in view of this foreknowledge that God formed his plan for human salvation.

In that plan Christ Jesus, our Lord had first place, first honor. As he was the beginning of the creation of God, so he was the chief of all God’s creatures thus far brought into being. But God purposed a new creation – the creation of a new order of beings different and higher than men, angels and archangels – higher than all others, and of his own divine essence or nature. The worthiness of any one accepted to that great honor should be recognized not only by God himself, but by all of his intelligent creatures. Hence God, who knew well the character of his first-begotten Son (our Lord Jesus), decided to prove or test his well-beloved Son in a manner that would prove to all of his intelligent creatures, what they all now recognize in the new song, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory and blessing.” – Rev 5:12.

Continued with next post.