1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 Sanctification

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. I adjure you by the Lord to have this letter read to all the brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. [1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 NASB]

Paul is finishing his letter to the Thessalonians with a prayer, and a greeting. His prayer is that God would make us holy (sanctified).

Earlier in the chapter, Paul gave us some guidelines for living a holy live, such as rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks.

After giving us these guidelines, he says that it is God, Himself, who sanctifies us. We can't sanctify ourselves. We are unable to live according to God's standards in our own power.

We are not to fret or grow anxious about our sanctification. We needn't worry if we fail in some respect. Although He has called us to perfection, we don't need to fear if we fall short of His perfection. It is the "God of peace" who sanctifies us.

It is God's Spirit inside of us who guides us and leads us. He nurtures us, patiently and lovingly as a good father patiently and lovingly nurtures his child. Jesus said;

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” [Matthew 11:28-30 NASB]

Sanctification is often defined as the ongoing word of salvation. At a certain point in time, we gave our lives over to Jesus, and we were saved. Through the work of sanctification, we continue to be saved as we are being transformed into His image. One day, at the resurrection, we will receive new, spiritual bodies, and we will see our Lord face to face. In that day we will be finally, completely saved.

When we turned from our sins, and gave our hearts to Jesus, we received salvation as a gift, by faith. As Paul said;

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. [Ephesians 2:8-9 NASB]

In the same way, our sanctification - our ongoing salvation - is also a gift, received by faith, and not by works. God tells us to be holy, then He Himself makes us holy. He tells us to not sin, and He gives us the power to overcome temptation.

A man wishing to be holy may exert great willpower to resist temptation. But it takes much more faith to admit that you do not have the power to resist temptation, and to surrender your will to God. It takes faith to stop struggling.

I remember a Superman episode where Lois Lane was hanging from a precipice, struggling with all her might to stay alive. Superman flies up to her and tells her to let go. When she looks down, all she sees is air and a very long drop. She needed faith to believe that Superman could defy gravity, and support both him and her.

When it come to temptation, we are a lot like Lois, hanging on with every fiber of our being to survive and overcome. But God wants us to let go. If we put our trust completely in Him, He will not let us fall.

It is God who calls us, and it is God who completes our calling. The more effort you put into being holy, the less holy you will become. Holiness comes only by surrendering your will to God.

Father, I thank you that my sanctification is not by might nor by power, but by Your Spirit. I pray that you will complete the work You started in me, and I know that You will do so according to Your promise.