Sanctification - Day One

1 Peter 1:2
Who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ, and sprinkling by his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

NIV

Sanctification.

What is it?

Mr. Webster gives us this definition:

Sanctification

Sanc`ti*fi*ca"tion\, n. [L. sanctificatio: cf. F. sanctification.]1. The act of sanctifying or making holy; the state of being sanctified or made holy; esp. (Theol.), the act of God's grace by which the affections of men are purified, or alienated from sin and the world, and exalted to a supreme love to God; also, the state of being thus purified or sanctified. God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. --2 Thess. ii. 13. 2. The act of consecrating, or of setting apart for a sacred purpose; consecration. --Bp. Burnet.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Easton's Bible Dictionary says this:

Sanctification

involves more than a mere moral reformation of character, brought about by the power of the truth: it is the work of the Holy Spirit bringing the whole nature more and more under the influences of the new gracious principles implanted in the soul in regeneration. In other words, sanctification is the carrying on to perfection the work begun in regeneration, and it extends to the whole man (Rom. 6:13; 2 Cor. 4:6; Col. 3:10; 1 John 4:7; 1 Cor. 6:19). It is the special office of the Holy Spirit in the plan of redemption to carry on this work (1 Cor. 6:11; 2 Thess. 2:13). Faith is instrumental in securing sanctification, inasmuch as it (1) secures union to Christ (Gal. 2:20), and (2) brings the believer into living contact with the truth, whereby he is led to yield obedience "to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come." Perfect sanctification is not attainable in this life (1 Kings 8:46; Prov. 20:9; Eccl. 7:20; James 3:2; 1 John 1:8). See Paul's account of himself in Rom. 7:14-25; Phil. 3:12-14; and 1 Tim. 1:15; also the confessions of David (Ps. 19:12, 13; 51), of Moses (90:8), of Job (42:5, 6), and of Daniel (9:3-20). "The more holy a man is, the more humble, self-renouncing, self-abhorring, and the more sensitive to every sin he becomes, and the more closely he clings to Christ. The moral imperfections which cling to him he feels to be sins, which he laments and strives to overcome. Believers find that their life is a constant warfare, and they need to take the kingdom of heaven by storm, and watch while they pray. They are always subject to the constant chastisement of their Father's loving hand, which can only be designed to correct their imperfections and to confirm their graces. And it has been notoriously the fact that the best Christians have been those who have been the least prone to claim the attainment of perfection for themselves.", Hodge's Outlines.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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I will be going into more detail on some of the verses mentioned, but I would encourage you to get out your Bible and look up these verses. This is God's "Field Book" for life. USE IT!!!

In laymen's terms, sanctification means to make holy, to consecrate, to separate from the world, and to be set apart from sin SO THAT we may have intimate fellowship with God and serve Him gladly.

I am currently involved in an online Bible Study with the 5:16 chicks. We are studying 1 John. As I was reading last week, I came upon a note in my Bible that referenced 1 John 1:7 -

But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

I don't know about you, but this sounded good to me, so I was anxious to learn more. The note took me to an article about Sanctification, which really struck me. Over the next few days I will be sharing more about this article on Sanctification. Today, ponder over the definitions, and if you have a chance, look over a few of the verses.