By Evangeline Esaaba Folson

 To sanctify according to Oxford English mini-dictionary is to make holy or sacred. Some synonyms of the word sanctify from google.com are:

• To purify
• To cleanse
• Free from sin

Sanctification, therefore, can be said to be the process of making holy or sacred. Four major questions would be answered on sanctification. They are:

• Why should I sanctify myself?
• How do I sanctify myself?
• How do I maintain my sanctification?
• What are the benefits of sanctification?/Conclusion.

 

Why should I sanctify myself?

One may say, why should I sanctify myself or purify myself?

First of all you need to sanctify yourself because the bible says in Romans 3:23 that:

For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

We are all sinners, even babies are sinners because we are descendants of Adam and Eve who disobeyed God and destroyed God’s original plan for man. God created man so He could have close fellowship with him. Sins separates us from God so must cleanse ourselves from all sin.

Secondly, you need to sanctify yourself so that God can use you and do wonders with your life.

Joshua 3:5

And Joshua said unto the people, sanctify yourself; for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

According to this verse, without sanctification, the Lord cannot do wonders in your life. You cannot experience the supernatural. We cannot experience the great move of God. After Joshua asked the people of Israel to sanctify themselves, what happened next? God parted the Jordan River and the people of Israel walked through.

Thirdly, we need to sanctify ourselves because without sanctification we cannot see God. The bible says in Hebrews 12:14 that:

Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

From the definition of “sanctify” in the introduction, it was stated that sanctify means to make holy. Therefore, the holiness in this verse is referring to sanctification. I believe seeing the Lord not only means, seeing with your physical  eyes only but also feeling the presence and nearness of God in your life.

Also, you need to sanctify yourself because it is God’s will that you do so.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5

It is God’s will that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God.

Sexual immorality is one big challenge to the youth therefore sanctification among the youth is very important.

How do I sanctify myself?

There are three major ways of sanctifying one’s self. Perhaps, there are more than three, but I would like to concentrate on these three:

• Confession of sin
• Not serving or yielding to sin
• Humbling ourselves before God.

1 John 1:9 says:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

God has put in us that ability to tell what is wrong and what is right. He has also given laws and commands for us to live by. Disobeying our in-born intuition and the laws and commands of God is sin.

Also, James 4:17 tells us that:

Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

If you find yourself caught up in any of the situations stated above then you have sinned and you need to confess to God and ask for forgiveness.

Our next point is explained in Romans 6:6

Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

When you serve sin, you allow yourself to do things you know are wrong or you allow yourself to get into situations that draw you to sin. In order not to serve sin or yield to sin, pray for the Holy Spirit’s help and make a conscious effort to stay away from sin.

The final point on how to sanctify ourselves, humbling ourselves before God can be found in 2Chronicles 7:14

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Humbling ourselves here, I believe involves having a repentant heart and feeling sorry for our sins and yielding to God’s will for our lives. If we do this, pray and turn away from our sin then God would forgive our sin, cleanse us and we would be sanctified.

 How do I maintain my sanctification?

Sanctification is not a onetime thing, it is a continuous process, because of our in-born sinful nature we are drawn to sin         frequently and we need to plead for the blood of Christ to sanctify us always.

To maintain our sanctification, therefore, we need to abide in Christ, John 15:4-5

Abide in me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches; he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me you can do nothing.

Abiding in the Lord, I believe involves praying and reading the bible daily, learning the commands and laws of God, obeying them and, therefore living to please God. If you do this continuously, you maintain your sanctification and you are set apart for the Lord’s use.

What are the benefits of sanctification?/Conclusion

The benefits of sanctification have already been mentioned. However, I will go over the two most important ones in my opinion.

First of all in Joshua 3:5 we are told that when we sanctify ourselves, God does wonders among us. Sanctification gives place to experiencing the miraculous in your life.

Secondly, in  2 Chronicles 7:14 the bible tells us that if we humble ourselves, pray and turn away from our wicked ways, God would forgive our sins and heal our land.

The world needs healing, healing from medical conditions, healing from the effects of war and crimes etc. I  believe, if we want the world to be a better place then we must all sanctify ourselves.

I will like to end with the words of a song. It says:

As the Lord has called us out of this world, let us stay outside

He is looking for a righteous people holy in His sight

Looking for a people who have chosen that which pleases Him

And would freely stay away from this world’s attitude and sin

Chorus

He said sanctify yourself for tomorrow, I will do wondrous things among you.

You just sanctify yourself for tomorrow I will do wondrous things among you.

References

1. King James Bible
2. Google  Bible
3. Oxford English Mini-dictionary