A sanctifying effect is a mouthful. This is not a devotional that will get a lot of responses. Most will look at the title and move on. Some because they don’t understand what it means, but mostly because of the attitude of “I’m saved, and I don’t need that info.” Their attitude is, “we are in the period of grace and we have liberty. God doesn’t care if I cross all my t’s or dot all my i’s, I’m still going to Heaven.” Sanctification brings all sorts of images to the mind because it is not a subject dealt with in most Christian circles. Yet, all who are saved are in the process of sanctification.
The word effect is a verb and it means “to influence something.” The word sanctification in Greek means “holiness.” To sanctify therefore means to make holy. The only one who is truly holy is God, but God commands us to be holy. In Leviticus 11:44-45, God commanded His people to sanctify themselves and be holy. His people had been in Egypt for 400 years as slaves. They were living in a land where idols were common. This was no excuse for them to defile themselves. God expected and commanded them to be holy, set apart for Him, and Him alone. In Matthew 5:48, Jesus tells His disciples to be perfect. He was instructing them to be complete, pure, or holy. In I Peter 1:15-16, Peter instructs Christ-followers to be holy. They are to be holy in their “conversation,” which means conduct. He refers back to God’s instruction to His people in Leviticus, where God’s people are to be holy.
Leviticus 11:44-45 “For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”
Matthew 5:48 “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.”
I Peter 1:15-16 “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”
Now that we understand what sanctification is, how do we live our lives to have that kind of effect on those around us?
First, we need to be real. If we are living our lives in a hypocritical manner, others will see it. Nothing we can say will be validation for a holy life if our lifestyle is the opposite of Christ. If we say we love God but use His name in vain, or take that extra shift on Sunday to pay for a new boat, we are being hypocritical. Even if you do convince them to come to church with you, they will see no need for salvation. In their minds, their value system is the same as yours. You have dumbed down the gospel and cheapened grace.
Second, we need to love the things Jesus loves, and He loves people. We are to go out of our way to show others Christ’s love. We are to see them as they are lost, without a Savior, and doomed to an eternal Hell.
Third, we need to have a servant’s heart. Jesus was the greatest servant of all. He always took time for those in need. He would meet a physical need to make them aware of a spiritual need. In Philippians 2:3-4 we are to think of others more highly than we think of ourselves. We are to serve others first! That is totally opposite of the world’s philosophy, and it is the opposite of most Christians. We want to think we are better than others. We don’t want to take the hand of someone who stinks and lift them up. If we do feel the conviction to help, we’d rather give a dollar to someone else to do the job.
Fourth, we must love God more than anything else in the world. When we do, our desire will be to do all that He wants us to do. Our desire will be to please Him, not gather accolades for ourselves. It won’t matter who sees or knows what we do because we will have one goal in mind, to honor and obey God.
None of us have arrived at full sanctification because then we would be like Jesus. Our sanctification will be complete when we reach Heaven. However, while we are still here, we are to be in the process of becoming more like Jesus every day. If we do, we will have a sanctifying effect on those around us and the effect will be them becoming more like Jesus.
You’ll know if you are being successful when those who don’t know Jesus ask, “what makes you so different?” They will see your actions in tough situations are not like their own. For your Christian friends, they will begin to change, and may even ask how to handle certain situations. Look around, are you having a sanctifying effect on those around you? The only way to do that is for you to not be satisfied where you are spiritually. You must be pushing forward to be more like Jesus every day. You must study, pray, and obey God’s commands if you are to continue this pathway to be a sanctifying effect on others.
