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Chapter Ten: Sanctify Them By Your Truth

If there is one thing that non-Christians usually associate Christianity with, it is moral behavior,or a “holy lifestyle” in some sense of the term. This could be largely negative – Christians may be seenas “holier-than-thou” hypocrites, who maintain squeaky clean external lives but are filled with prideand hatred, and look down on all the heathen sinners out there, whom they gladly profess to bedifferent from. Or perhaps, Christianity may be seen as basically comprising some list of rules andregulations, which many good, sincere, persons strive to follow. The specific list may differ widelyfrom culture to culture, but in many places in modern America it would probably include such elementsas abstaining from alcohol and tobacco, performing well and without complaint in the workplace, andrefusing to cheat in school. In some cultures, however, Christianity may be seen as characterized by analtogether different set of rules – for instance, the best Christians may be they who have given up anyassociation with the world whatsoever, in order to pray in a solitary place in the desert, eating onlycrusts of bread and wearing nothing but rags. But in any case, a lifestyle that is different from thetypical, and that is somehow viewed as holy, is what sets a real Christian apart from the rest of theworld.In one sense, there is some truth to this perception; and yet, just what holiness actually is, andwhat role it has to play in the Christian life, is so misunderstood that it would be best to describe it fromthe ground up, for fear of conveying a false impression due to common misperceptions. In this chapter,that is just what I hope to accomplish: to show that true holiness is so vital a part of Christianity that thetwo cannot exist apart from each other; but at the same time, to show just what role holiness plays inthe whole process of redemption, and just what it actually means to be holy, in contrast to much of what is understood by professing Christians and non-Christians alike.It may be helpful, first of all, though, to step back and consider how we have arrived at thistopic from the whole flow-of-thought in the chapters preceding it.After an introductory chapter, in which I suggested that much of Christianity in modernAmerica, for all its outward prominence, is largely corrupt and has obscured the gospel in many ways, I proceeded to give an overview of just what Christianity is, briefly re-telling the big-picture story of the bible and the redemptive-historical message it proclaims, culminating with the cross-work of Christ.After this, I tried to demonstrate how this true gospel message still matters to every person aliveregardless of background or circumstance, and concluded my application with an appeal to turn toChrist, and an evaluation of what it would cost to do so, and what you might expect to gain.After that, starting in chapter eight, I began to explain the purpose of this gospel message that Iwas inviting you to embrace, and to show just what it is that we are saved

and

for

. I demonstratedfrom the scriptures that the whole plan of salvation was worked out in history according to the terms of a solemn, inter-Triune pact, in which the Father chose a people for the Son's heritage, the Sonundertook to redeem them, and the Holy Spirit agreed to apply the effects of that redemption to their hearts. The whole purpose of it all was the display of the manifold glory of God, and its consummationwas to be a corporate people, perfectly unified and sanctified, and finally presented to Christ to be hisglorious and spotless bride as the reward of his sufferings.In the last chapter, we saw how the Word of God is a necessary means for laboring toward thisChurch-wide unity that it is our ultimate purpose to display. The unity of the people of God is not somesuperficial politeness that glosses over differences, it is rather the elimination of those differencesaltogether, occasioned by growth in our understanding of Christ from the scriptures. Our essential unityis grounded in a shared knowledge of Christ the Redeemer, and our knowledge of Christ grows onlythrough the Spirit's illumination and application of the bible to our lives. Hence, as we strive on thisearth to grow into what we were saved to become, we must do so through a careful and Christ-centered

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study of the Word, in harmony with the whole Church (although, as we discussed earlier, the only practical way to do so in this age is by becoming involved in a specific, genuine local church).But this principle does not just hold true for the unity which our salvation demands and willultimately provide for us; it is equally true for our sanctification, the spotless holiness that we weresaved for. We were saved not just to be one unified bride, but to be a bride spotless in holiness, stained by no moral imperfection whatsoever. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary, as Christians, that we pursue a holy lifestyle. So important and intense is this struggle for holiness, in fact, that the blessedness of heaven, for the true believer, consists in large part of this, that there we will be finallyassured of victory in our struggle against sin, which is fierce and unfinished in this lifetime. But if thestruggle is so important, the questions must arise, “How are we supposed to pursue this holiness?”, and“What exactly does it mean to be holy?”.From the beginning, I must stress that we become holy in the same way that we grow in unity: by studying the scriptures, in reliance on the Holy Spirit and in harmony with the whole Church,specifically with the goal of seeing Christ and his redemptive work on every page. This is not just theway to grow in unity; it is also the way to grow in holiness. In Jesus' “high-priestly prayer,” which wehave discussed before, a prayer in which he says much about the need for perfect unity among those for whom he is giving his life

,he has this to say to the Father about the holiness of his people: “Sanctifythem by your truth; your word is truth”

. Holiness is absolutely necessary to Christianity, it is the goalfor which we have been saved; but how do we grow in holiness? How does God go about to “sanctify”us (that is, make us holy)? According to Jesus, it is by his word. Now, what was the one, central truth we learned about the word of God in the last chapter? Onlythis: that it is all about Jesus and his redemptive work, and to read it, in any portion, without seeinghim, is to read it in a damning and not a life-giving fashion. The conclusion we should draw from thesetwo principles – that the word of God is intended to show us Christ, and that it is intended to make usholy – is that, we become holy in proportion as we see Christ more clearly.So is this just an inference? Or are there any clear scriptural principles that confirm that this isactually the case? Well, yes, there are several passages we could go to in support of this truth, but oneof the clearest is found in 2 Corinthians 3. There, Paul is speaking of the superior and eternal glory of the New Covenant, which has replaced the temporal and inferior Old Covenant glory. But tragically,some people still read the scriptures with Old Covenant “blinders” on. There is a veil on their heartshindering them from seeing the glory of Christ in the Old Testament, just as there was a veil over Moses' face to hide the glory shining out from it after he had spoken with God. But what happens whenthe Spirit of God enters in to take that veil away, and reveal Christ from the scriptures? Then, “we all,with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord as in a mirror,

are being changed into that sameimage

, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord”

. In other words, as we read the scripturesand the Spirit uses them to reveal Christ to us, we begin to reflect his own perfect nature, and arechanged into the same image. We grow more holy. Hence, it is not just reading the bible as a moralhandbook, and striving to follow a list of rules and regulations that makes us holy – it is reading it as arevelation of Jesus Christ the Savior, whom the Spirit causes us to love more deeply and makes us longto reflect more accurately. The more clearly we see Jesus, therefore, the more closely we will beconformed to his image; and in fact, another apostle, John, has declared that we will some day see him perfectly, when he returns for us in all his glory – and what will the outcome be at that time? Then “wewill be like him, because we will see him as he is”

. Perfect holiness will finally be attained, because

1 e.g. John 17:21-232 John 17:173 2 Corinthians 3:184 1 John 3:2

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perfect sight of the Savior will finally have been granted. This means that, as we strive to live theChristian life, we must ultimately be striving to know Jesus more deeply, through the bible whichreveals him to us, and by the power of the Holy Spirit who delights to testify of him. The most basicquestion of the Christian life, then, is not “What would Jesus do?”, but “Who is Jesus and what has hedone for me?”.It is deeply important, when we turn to these questions of what the Christian life looks like,what it means to be holy, and what role holiness has to play in the process of salvation, that we answer them accurately and scripturally; because to answer them the wrong way is not just damaging to our pursuit of holiness, but it can turn Christianity on its head, and utterly destroy the very gospel of Christ.If I start to believe that I

become

remain

a Christian, in some sense, by the works of holiness that Ido, then I have utterly denied the gospel, which always rests on the merits of Christ alone, and his freegrace by which he has made me the beneficiary of his own perfect righteousness, which is fully mine by faith. In order to answer these questions, then, I will address in this chapter just what the role of holiness and sanctification is in the plan of salvation, and give some practical means for pursuing it.

Without Which, No One Will See the Lord

Is holiness necessary for salvation? The answer to that question, I would contend, is yes. But inanswering it this way, I must be very clear on what kind of necessity I'm speaking of. There is a vastdifference between a necessity of means or instrumentality, and a necessity of goal or purpose. And to be confused on the kind of necessity here, that is, on just

how

holiness is necessary for salvation, is a problem that could destroy the gospel. If holiness is necessary as a

means

to salvation, then I must livea holy life in order

to be

accepted by God. But if it is necessary as a purpose of salvation, then I mustlive a holy life because I

have been

accepted by God. The difference may seem minor, but it is actuallyvast and fundamental.Perhaps an illustration will help demonstrate the difference. Let's suppose I want to enjoy avacation sunbathing in Hawaii. Now, in order to get there, I'll need some necessary means of transportation, such as a jet. But it is equally necessary, although in a fundamentally different way, thatI lie back on the white sand beaches and enjoy the sun. That is the whole purpose of my trip, and if Ifail to do that, the trip has not been successful. But think how vastly different those two needs are: Icannot get to Hawaii by lying in the sand no matter how long I practice or how many times I try. Lyingin the sand is a necessity of purpose, but not a necessity of means or instrumentality. I need a jet to getme to Hawaii, because I simply cannot do for myself what a jet can do for me.The need for holiness is the same type of need as lying on the beach. It is the purpose of redemption, it is what we are saved for – but it is not the means to get me saved, it is not how I arrive atthe destination of dwelling in God's presence in joy and holiness. I need something else, someinstrument to get me to where I can enjoy the true holiness that I am striving for.The reason I am making such a big deal of this point is that it is so often misunderstood, andwhen it is misunderstood, the consequences are devastating. The book of Hebrews, it is true, tells usthat without sanctification, no one will see the Lord

. But it also tells us in no uncertain terms that, byGod's immutable will, “we have been sanctified by the offering up of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all”

. Holiness is necessary for the ultimate realization of the goal of our salvation, which is essentially just seeing the Lord. That is because holiness is the very atmosphere in which God dwells, even the