Focus: 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - KJV
23. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 5:12-24
Sanctification is the action of making or declaring something holy, being freed from sin or purified. Purification is a complete process. It takes away everything that appears like or represents a spot, wrinkle or blemish. This is the state of being that the Lord wants to meet His Church when He returns to take the same for a special presentation unto the Father. It is important we give this a thought: no man wants to present a slut whether known or unknown, as his bride. Aside the public disgrace, the thought of the defilement can create nausea in the would be groom. In the same light, Christ does not want to and will not present anyone who is unclean in any way unto His Father. The Church is the bride of Christ. He has spent so much investment on her to make her pure: from the blood shed on the cross to daily appointing teachers unto her, to having the Holy Spirit teach her all things and bring to her remembrance those things He Himself had taught her as well as putting angels on the prowl to ensure her protection and guidance.
It is not enough to carry an outward appearance of cleanliness. Sanctification as Christ would have it must be total and not just the body: it is to be spirit, soul and body to be complete. It is possible to have a terrible spirit and a good body. For instance, one may abstain from fornication, adultery and such sins that affect the body and yet be terrible in thoughts towards the neighbor plotting and scheming evil against him. That clearly is impurity of the spirit. The spirit and the body may appear to man clean whereas the soul is filthy. A filthy soul is characterized with living in stack disobedience to God’s dictates though appearing holy in the sight of men. Unless and until all three components of man are cleansed and submitted unto God, sanctification is not whole. Meanwhile, all of these, while in the flesh, may not be attainable except by the help of the Holy Spirit of God as none can achieve anything without the help of Christ. Let us therefore pray God to please in His mercy sanctify us wholly that we may be pleasing unto Him at the presentation by the Christ, in Jesus’ name.
Father, please make us acceptable unto you by your mercy so that our time on earth will be meaningful and not a waste in Jesus’ name. Do please sanctify us wholly that we may meet your standard in the end in Jesus’ name. Please work out your own salvation with fear and trembling as you pursue your complete sanctification in Chris Jesus. Shalom!