Sanctification is the Bible's term for the state, condition, and process of being separated from others for God's purposes, serving as a major step in enabling us to fulfill our responsibilities in this process. It is both a result of God's calling and an active, ongoing process that becomes more refined over time. The basic meaning of sanctify is to set apart or separate, akin to cutting an animal from a herd for a specific use. Our calling by God initiates this condition and process of sanctification for His purpose of salvation and the creation of Himself in us. God sovereignly chooses whom to sanctify, as seen in the separation of the Israelites from the Egyptians and other nations they encountered. This act of setting apart was not by the works of the Israelites but by God's grace and love, distinguishing them for a special purpose. Sanctification, as a pattern in the Bible, is evident in the lives of Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Israel, each called out and separated by God for His objectives. Similarly, we, as the church, are drawn by God's grace, separated from the world, and placed in a unique position relative to Him. The Greek word ecclesia, meaning a calling or summons to an assembly, underscores our specific and formal separation from the world. Over time, this term came to imply those called and separated by God to have Him reproduced in us. The terms sanctify and sanctification also carry implications of cleanliness, purity, blamelessness, and sacredness, often translated as holy or holiness in contexts emphasizing devotion to God. Under the New Covenant, our sanctification is not geographical but spiritual, moral, and ethical, requiring us to depart from the world's ways, attitudes, and lifestyles while remaining within it. We are called to be different, to become moral instead of immoral, ethical instead of unethical, and spiritual in God's way rather than the world's. This spiritual separation aims toward the Kingdom of God, achieved through a change in attitude, practice, and conduct. God demands that those set apart as a dwelling place for Him be holy as He is holy, not merely separated but clean in life and sacrifices. We are to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ, reflecting our present responsibility as a royal priesthood. As living stones, we are being built up into a spiritual house by God and His Son, individually selected, shaped, and fitted into place according to an intelligent plan, emphasizing the active process of sanctification. We are a chosen, holy, special people set apart for God and His purpose, tasked with witnessing that our God is the Creator through keeping His commandments, statutes, and judgments. By living this way, we demonstrate our separation and holiness. Simultaneously, God shapes us spiritually to perform these commands, creating us as His workmanship for good works. Our privilege and responsibility as a royal priesthood involve drawing near to God, serving at His altar, and fulfilling our duties in nearness to Him.

Sanctification and holiness are central to our relationship with God, reflecting His standards and calling. God alone makes us holy, setting us apart through His calling, and we are charged with maintaining that holiness in our conduct. Everything we do must be to the glory of God, ensuring that nothing obstructs His glory from being reflected in our lives. Holiness is tied to what we consume, as eating something abominable or unclean renders us defiled, both physically and spiritually. God designates specific foods as acceptable for His children, and consuming anything outside His designation defiles us, making us unacceptable. This principle extends to offerings, where only what God has stipulated as authentic is recognized by Him. Offerings must be pure, as seen in His rejection of unacceptable sacrifices on His altar, symbolically His table. We are now the temple of the living God, His dwelling place, and must keep our bodies pure, just as the Tabernacle and Temple were to be kept undefiled. Defilement, whether through unclean food or sin, is not merely ceremonial but spiritual, affecting our holiness. To eat unclean things is to commit a spiritual sin that defiles God's temple, as we are holy and must remain so because He is holy. The laws of purity and holiness, including regulations on clean foods, set us apart from the world, teaching that God's holiness cannot coexist with uncleanness. Only those cleansed by God through His calling and the blood of Jesus Christ are made holy and acceptable; others remain unclean and unrecognized by Him. We are living sacrifices, clean only as God has cleansed us, and we bear the responsibility to keep ourselves clean. Sanctification by God qualifies specific people, objects, and responsibilities for His worship and service. Those set apart must carry out commanded duties, but being qualified for one role does not automatically qualify for another. Attempting a responsibility for which one is not sanctified renders one a stranger, not authentic or recognized by God. This principle applies to sanctified things as well; only what God has designated is acceptable, and substitutes are deemed strange, profane, or abominable. God's standards remain unchanged, expecting worship in spirit and truth, adhering to His eternal character. Only a holy God can make things truly holy, stipulating precise requirements for worship, ensuring that only what He has given within our covenant relationship is acceptable as an offering back to Him. Faith and the fear of the Lord are intimately involved in maintaining and increasing holiness, trusting and respecting His Word even when we lack full understanding. Through His Spirit, God creates us anew in Christ Jesus, imparting His holy love. He expects us to return this love through sacrifices of obedience, worship, and good works. Our calling reveals His purpose and love, demonstrated in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, forming His love within us to be given back in practical application.

We are called to be part of a royal priesthood, as Peter reminds us, emphasizing our sacred role within the church. This calling ties directly to sanctification and holiness, reflecting the responsibilities and qualifications outlined for priests. First, God alone appoints and elects, ensuring that no one can volunteer or elect themselves into this role; it is solely by His judgment that we are chosen. Second, as priests, we belong entirely to God, not to ourselves or any earthly nation, for we are bought with a price and our kingdom is in heaven. Third, being God's property, we are made holy, set apart as saints, specifically as kings and priests, with a focus on our priestly duties. Fourth, this holiness qualifies us to draw near to God, an exclusive prerogative and duty that defines our service to Him. Sanctification is of utmost importance to God, as demonstrated through His severe judgments and miracles to affirm His appointments. He expects His choices to be respected, and disrespecting them is seen as a lack of faith or even rebellion, leading to chaos. The distinctions in roles among the Levitical families show that not everyone is holy in the same way or called to the same functions, yet each appointment is critical and must be honored. God's actions, such as the dramatic judgments and the miracle of Aaron's rod budding, underscore how vital sanctification is, setting us apart for His use and service. No one is to interfere with what He has ordained, whether for an individual or the collective body. God is specific and serious about these holy appointments, warning of severe consequences if they are not followed. Whether it pertains to a person, a thing, or a day, if He has declared it holy, it must be used exactly as He commands. His reasons may not always be clear to us, but they are rooted in His authority and purpose. As our Father, He guides with wisdom far beyond our understanding, and we are called to submit patiently to His will, recognizing the gravity of sanctification in our relationship with Him.

God desires that His stipulations be followed precisely, and sanctification, or setting apart, is central to fulfilling His specific requirements. Just as certain herbs and spices are set apart for particular recipes to achieve the desired flavor, God's instructions must be adhered to without alteration to produce the intended outcome. He warns against changing His Word, emphasizing that following His way brings protection from harm and good success. Deviating from His commands, as influenced by satan's deception with Adam and Eve, results in failure and harm, for God's purpose is to ensure well-being and success through obedience. Sanctification involves being set apart for specific roles or purposes as defined by God. In the accounts of Numbers 16 through 18, God's response to rebellion underscores the importance of adhering to His standards of holiness. Even items like censers used by rebels were considered holy, while the fire they used was deemed unholy due to its improper treatment, illustrating the necessity of using only what God recognizes as authentic. Holiness and being a stranger can coexist in a person, depending on their actions or qualifications; a Levite, though holy by covenant and service, becomes a stranger if attempting priestly duties for which they are not set apart. God only accepts as holy that which originates from Him. Offerings, clothing, or actions not sourced in His provision are deemed strange, profane, and unacceptable. For instance, a man at a marriage feast was rejected for not wearing the host-provided garment, symbolizing a rejection of God's righteousness in favor of personal righteousness, which is not holy. Similarly, produce from pagan fields or days set apart by men for worship are not acceptable to God because they lack His designation of holiness. The fire under the altar, ignited by God, was to be kept burning by the priests and treated with utmost reverence, as it symbolized God Himself. Rejecting this fire, as the rebels did, was a rejection of God and His purifying work. Even the ashes from this fire were holy and required special handling, to be taken to a clean place, demonstrating that nothing associated with God's holiness is to be treated as common. Incense offered to God had to meet His exact specifications and could not be duplicated for personal use, highlighting the sacredness of offerings and prayers directed solely to Him. The priests' meticulous handling of the holy censers after the rebellion, despite the gruesome circumstances, serves as a reminder of the sanctity of items set apart by God. Only those sanctified for specific roles, such as priests descended from Aaron, were permitted to offer incense before God. This principle extends to personal conduct and reverence in God's presence, recognizing that He is the Holy God who sets the standards, requiring submission to His ways by faith, even when His reasons are not fully understood.

God has entrusted His holiness to those called now into the body of His Son, a relationship with Him that must stand forever. This holiness is being honed in a major separation from the ways of this dying world, both physically and spiritually. We are entrusted with the true principles of liberty in God's Word, stirred by His Holy Spirit to be internalized and lived in each of our lives. We have been called to be united in love with the Father and the Son, to be holy as They are holy. This entrusted holiness and love will be a beacon of our unity with Him for the entire world to see. This same beacon of unity with the Father and the Son, with Their entrusted holiness, is going to bring the wrath of a dying world down on those called now, but we must always stay faithful in the place that He is preparing for us through continuous growth, understanding, and love under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In this very room and among the scattered brethren of God are the elect of God, called to truly be holy as God is holy, in unity through His Holy Spirit. He has entrusted us now with His holiness, from the inside out, and we must vigorously stay the course. We have the awesome privilege of learning and growing and having a relationship with God and one another by diligently learning and living His Word. God has given us this time, unlike any other, so that we will have the privilege to serve with Jesus Christ in a specifically prepared place within His body for eternity. We need to be carefully diligent with the holiness that has already been entrusted to us, knowing that He who has begun a good work in us will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. This is His holy way of life that He has entrusted to each one of us.