Sanctification Recap (Part 1 of 2)

Ephesians 4:17–5:13: A Call to Practical Sanctification

Ephesians 4:17–5:13 illustrates the practical importance of sanctification. This passage calls believers to a transformed life, distinct from the way of unbelievers.

Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus. To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure or who is covetous (that is, an idolater) has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible.

Defining Sanctification: Separation and Holiness

The primary Hebrew and Greek terms for sanctification are synonymous with holiness. Sanctification is the process of being made holy—God conforming an individual to the declaration made in justification. You are declared righteous, holy, and Christ-like, and sanctification shapes you into that reality.

The Hebrew root means "to cut," forming the foundation for understanding holiness and sanctification as separation—cutting off from something and bringing to something else. This applies to people and objects in the Old Testament, separating them to the Lord.

The Greek terms in the New Testament carry the same idea. Holiness movements in the 1800s misunderstood this, promoting sinless perfection achievable in this life. Biblically, sanctification involves separation, not moral perfection.

Scripture distinguishes a one-time sanctification (Hebrews 10:10, 14)—a definitive act—and an ongoing process where believers are continually sanctified by the Holy Spirit. It is dedicating for service, worship, and a restored relationship with God.

Hebrews 10:10: By the one offering he has sanctified for all time those who are being sanctified.

We were created in God's image, marred by the fall. Sanctification mends that image, making us true image-bearers again. It pits consecration (purification through obedience) against desecration (defilement through disobedience).

The Goal of Sanctification: Change Through Put Off and Put On

The purpose of sanctification is change—a cessation of old activities and incorporation of new ones. J. Adams calls this de-habituation and re-habituation.

Consider the joke: When is a door not a door? When it's ajar. More seriously: When is a thief no longer a thief? When he stops stealing and starts working honestly to give to others. A liar is no longer a liar when he becomes a truth-teller. Change requires both stopping the sin and replacing it with its opposite, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 4:17 commands: "You must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds." "Walk" means lifestyle. Unbelievers pursue pointless thinking, leading to sin and callousness. Believers abandon unprofitable activities—even if not sinful—for what builds spiritual value. All things may be lawful, but not all are profitable (1 Corinthians 6:12).

Sanctification demands separation: a fundamental difference between your life now and before, and between you and the world. Pursue only what profits sanctification, as without it, no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). It evidences regeneration.

1 Peter 4:3-4: Not in the passions of the Gentiles.

Avoid decisions driven by sensual passions. Focus on God to shape holy desires. Put off the old self (Ephesians 4:22) and put on the new (Ephesians 4:24).

Practical Examples of Put Off and Put On

• Lying: Put away falsehood; speak truth (v. 25).
• Anger: Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on anger (v. 26).
• Stealing: Stop stealing; labor honestly and give to those in need (v. 28).
• Corrupting talk: Use words that build up and give grace (v. 29).
• Bitterness: Put away bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, malice; be kind, tenderhearted, forgiving as God forgave in Christ (vv. 31-32).

Forgiveness flows from the gospel: God forgave your greater offenses through Christ's sacrifice. If God withholds no charge against others for whom Christ died, neither should you.

Why Change Is Hard: Habit from Youth

Change is difficult because sin is habitual from youth.

Jeremiah 22:21: I spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, ‘I will not listen.’ This has been your way from your youth—that you have not obeyed my voice.

Habits program us toward disobedience. Even deciding which shoe to put on first is habitual. Breaking them requires intentional, Spirit-empowered effort.

Habits and the Battle Against Sin

Think about your morning routine. You don't consciously decide whether to put on your right shoe or left shoe first—it's habitual. But the habitualness of disobeying God's voice has been programmed into us. That's why, in moments of temptation, the ingrained practice is to give in to sin. It's hard to say no to sin and yes to righteousness, no to lying and yes to telling the truth.

Recognize this: on an ongoing basis, like building medieval walls, if you spend zero time preparing, you're wide open to attack. Doing nothing in Christianity produces failure.

We rely strongly on the Holy Spirit's power for real change, as Ephesians 4 warns against grieving Him. The Holy Spirit effects sanctification, but Christians are responsible to participate actively.

Training for Maturity: Hebrews 5

A great example is Hebrews 5:11-14:

About this we have much to say, but it is hard to explain since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

These second-generation Christians, possibly 30 years into faith around AD 64-68, should have been teachers by now. But they grew dull of hearing—not from hearing loss, but laziness. They stopped practicing, becoming unskilled, unable to handle solid food.

If you're waiting for temptation to figure out how to fight sin, it's too late—like a new soccer player fumbling in the game. Instead, outside those moments, practice saying no to sin and yes to righteousness. Constant practice trains discernment to distinguish good from evil.

Imagine throwing an untrained person into battle. Soldiers climb walls effortlessly because of practice. Without it, you're lost. Growth comes from knowing what to do and practicing it. Verse 12 mentions teachers; verse 14, maturity. There's a direct correlation between Bible knowledge and life maturity.

Addressing the Objection: "I Can't Change"

Objection: "I get putting off sin and putting on righteousness, but it doesn't work. I can't change." That's bogus—we've changed routines our whole lives. Even a baby adapts through practice. The issue is laxness in sinful habits without incorporating new ones.

The Biblical Process: 2 Peter 1:1-15

Consider 2 Peter 1:1-15. God's divine power grants all things for life and godliness through knowledge of Him who called us. This storehouse of promises lets us partake in the divine nature, escaping worldly corruption.

Verse 5: "For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love."

If these qualities are yours and increasing—through constant practice—they keep you effective and fruitful in knowing Christ. Lacking them makes you nearsighted, forgetting your cleansing from sins.

Be diligent to confirm your calling: practice these, and you will never fall. It's not sinlessness, but growth prevents stumbling. Increasing them reminds you of forgiveness, providing rich entrance into the eternal kingdom.

Peter reminds us through his letters, stirring us up. Through the Word, fellowship, church, study, and practice, we recall these qualities to stay effective.