Paul
wrote 1 Thessalonians while in Corinth on his second missionary journey. This
letter is considered one of the earliest New Testament writings. We should
understand a few things about the Thessalonians and Thessalonica. Thessalonica
was a port city and was the biggest city in Macedonia. There were a few Romans who
lived there, but the Romans did not rule its government; hence, it was Greek. When
Paul arrived in the city, some scholars say there were enough Jews to need a
synagogue and others say there was not. Whether there was or was not, Paul did
not let this deter him. He adapted his presentation of the Gospel for whatever
hearers were listening. From historical documents and from the Bible, we know
that many people became Christians in Thessalonica. It seems Paul stayed there
at least three weeks, but then had to flee to Berea.
Chapter
1 has Paul’s standard opening to a letter, but it also introduces us to who the
Thessalonians were to Paul. Paul felt like a father to the Thessalonians believers.
He heard from others of the Thessalonians love, endurance, and faith, which was
guiding their actions.
In
chapter 2, Paul reminded the Thessalonian believers of how he lived among them.
He recalled for them his integrity and pure motives that came from not seeking
to please men, but God. Paul did not speak to them with flattery to trick them
to believe a false doctrine. He was gentle with them like a mother and loved
them so much that he lived out the Gospel to them. He modeled for them what a
Christian does and is. He stated that He lived holy, righteous, and blameless. Holy,
righteous, and blameless are words used to define the “consecration” /“sanctification,”
words that are used in chapter 4. This will become important. Paul brought to
their attention how his being and actions modeled what he will later teach them
to be – sanctified/consecrated. [Note: consecration and sanctification mean the
same thing. I will use the word sanctification in this writing since it is used
in the New American Standard Translation of the Bible to which I am referring.]
Paul
mentioned Timothy in chapter 3 because he sent Timothy to check on and
encourage the Thessalonians. What Paul heard from Timothy was a credit to the
Thessalonian believers. They were loving and encouraging each other in the
faith. Paul desired to be back among them to supply what was lacking in their
faith (vs. 10) and encourage their love to overflow to the brethren and others [actions]
“so that He (Jesus) may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints” [being]
(vv. 12-13). See this last part. He wanted them
to be established as blameless and holy. Paul used these words of himself in
chapter 2. Sanctification is being made pure, blameless, holy, and set apart
for God.
Chapter 4 is the point where Paul began to
explain their next step of growth in their Christian faith. Paul told them to
be sanctified, which is the will of God (vs. 3). He explained that
sanctification means doing and being. Paul wrote that being sanctified means
doing or not doing things: abstaining from sexual immorality [action - possess
their body in sanctification and honor, vs. 4], not lusting [mental], not harming
the body of another or defrauding a brother (a fellow Christian), being pure,
loving one another (other Christians, vs. 9) as they are doing. Paul also told
them to excel still more. What is this “more”? He is referring to what he said
in 3:12, “to increase and abound
in love for one
another, and for all
people.” How can you increase in love? Macedonia knew the
Thessalonians for having a faith as great as the churches in Judea. What more
is it they needed to learn to fill up what they were lacking? The answer lies
in 3:13 and 4:3. Their love for the brethren, others, and God must increase to
the level of Paul’s whose example is Jesus. This comes only through
sanctification. Read 3:13. Their lives needed to exhibit the love Jesus
commanded the disciples, which only comes when Jesus establishes their hearts -
“so that He may establish
your hearts without
blame in holiness
before our God
and Father.” Jesus wants them to be blameless and holy, which
is sanctified. This comes from Him; sanctification becomes a new part of their
being, but it must be worked out [action].
Paul
was very explicit about being sanctified as Jesus is sanctified. He recognized
it as a gift from Jesus, but he also modeled it for the Thessalonians. What
does being sanctified mean though? For some people, this seems to be a “churchified”
word. People see it as a grandiose religious word that other people pull out of
their hat to show they are better than others are. That was not the intention
of the word when God instituted it. Sanctified is not a new term, mentioned
first in the New Testament. Yahweh God established the term and its meaning from
the beginning, in Genesis 2:3, when the writer of Genesis said, “God blessed
the seventh day and sanctified it.” What is this word “sanctified” which is used
in Genesis? It is qadash. In Hebrew,
it means to dedicate, separate, consecrate, be holy, or to set apart. The
seventh day is to be set apart to be holy for God, to dedicate it solely for
God. Sanctification
means the separation of oneself from things that are unclean, especially anything
that contaminates one’s relationship with the perfect God. Qadash is used 152 times in the Old
Testament. Qadash is used most in Exodus
and Leviticus when God told the Israelites what and who to set apart for Him
and His service. God spoke of setting apart utensils, firstborn children and
animals, the priests, and the temple, synagogue, and the tent of gathering. He also
called Himself the sanctifier, qadash, in
Exodus 31:13. God told the
Israelites, “I am the Lord who sanctifies you.” In Leviticus 6:18 & 27, God
told them that whoever of the priests touched the meat set apart for the Lord would
be sanctified. Second Chronicles has the third largest number usages of qadash. These instances also talk about
the priests sanctifying the temple and the utensils for the purposes of God and
of God sanctifying the temple/house of God. Jeremiah and Ezekiel use qadash the fourth and fifth highest number
of times. Jeremiah 51:27-28 shows that God will even sanctify a foreign nation
for His service, like when He used them to discipline Israel. To sum up, humans
sanctify things, themselves, and others for God’s service and God sanctifies
people, places, things, and days to Himself. God established qadash, setting apart someone or thing as
holy for God’s service.
The idea of sanctification stays the same in
the New Testament, but is given the supreme example of its meaning in the life
and death of Jesus Christ. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 6:17, "Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the
Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." In both the Old and
New Testaments, then, sanctification means the same thing. What is different is
the means of being sanctified. In the Old Testament, sanctification came by following
God’s commands, precepts, and statutes. In the New Testament, sanctification comes
when a person becomes a believer in Jesus Christ and follows Him. Jesus is the
example/model of true sanctification for humans. It is a part of His being and He
lived it out in His interactions by word and deed while on earth.
Let us read Paul’s letter to the
Thessalonians again. What was the word he used when he spoke of sanctification
to the Thessalonians in 4:3? It is the Greek word hagiasmos, which means to sanctify or purify. It comes from the
word hagiazo (to separate from
profane things and dedicate to God) which comes from the root word hagios, a most holy thing or saint. In 1
Thessalonians, Paul used hagios four
of the five times referring to holy God or the Holy Spirit. We can see that the
word used in Greek, hagiasmos, which
means to sanctify and set apart for God, has the same meaning for which the
Hebrews used the word qadash. God’s
intention from one covenant to another, Old Testament to New Testament, did not
change. He still calls us to set aside the Sabbath day and ourselves as
believers of Jesus Christ. He calls us to be sanctified.
God gave us sanctification
in the beginning and continues to give it now. In 1 Thessalonians 4:7, Paul
told them that God called them for the state of sanctification, not impurity. Sanctification
is hagiosmos, purification of heart and life. It is
something that resides in you which God gives and which you live out. It is
being and acting your chosen-ness by God - your purification by God - in the
world. Jesus’ acted/embodied this sanctification of God, which is given to His
children upon their salvation. A person does not have sanctification apart from
God because of the fall of Adam and Eve when human sin marred the perfection of
God’s creation in humanity. Jesus provides and gives this to believers when
they repent and follow Him as their Lord and Savior. First Peter 1:15 says, “Like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also
in all
your behavior.” Holy in this verse is hagios, a most holy thing, a saint. Hagios is the root word of hagiasmos. It is something we receive
and do. We receive from God and act it out for God’s glory while we are here so
that others can see and experience whom God is and what He can do for them.
Being sanctified is not only being purified by God for His purposes, but is an
enacting of what He put in/did within our lives so others can see and come to
know Him. Paul gave specifics of what this acting out is with examples from his
life in 1 Thessalonians 2 and with his charge in chapter 4:3-12.
In becoming a believer of Jesus Christ, we are
renewed so that the perfection of Christ changes the “old man” living in us to
the “new man,” the perfect human God intended when He created the world. We
become the person God created humanity to be and we can then fulfill humanity’s
purpose, to give glory to God. Jesus gives us this perfected image when we
believe in Him as our Lord and Savior. He makes us holy, sanctified, and set
apart for His original purpose. Jesus is the embodiment of this perfection and gives
it. He showed it while He lived on earth. We are to do as Jesus did on earth
and as He does now in heaven, give glory to God with our being, actions, and
words. This is the working out of our salvation of which Paul spoke in
Philippians 2:12-13, “…Work
out your salvation
with fear and trembling; for it is God
who is at work in you, both
to will and to work for His good pleasure”
[NASB]. Living out sanctification shows the world the believer’s love of God,
other believers, and other people. It shows the ultimate love, which is
displayed in our sanctification, our choosing to be set apart for God’s
purpose, to bring Him glory, and to obey His statutes, precepts, and commands. What
were the three commandments Christ left His disciples? From Matthew 22:36-39,
love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love
your neighbor as yourself. The other commandment Christ gave His disciples when
He said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35 [NASB]). What in the Old
Testament did God say would show the Israelites chose to be His chosen people? When
they walk in His statutes and keep His commandments (Leviticus 26:3) He will
walk among them and be their God and they will be His people (Leviticus 26:12
[NASB]).
The Israelites were God’s
chosen people. God set them apart for Himself. He sanctified/consecrated them
and made a covenant with them. The Israelites could never live up to the standard
of being holy no matter what they did. They acted in ways to deny their chosen-ness
and had to purify/consecrate themselves repeatedly. The Israelites could not
keep their side of the covenant. Holiness is a characteristic
of God, an attribute. Humankind lost the ability to be set apart as wholly
clean for God at the fall of humanity by Adam and Eve. God provided the means for
humankind to be sanctified/holy through of Jesus Christ’s life, death, and
resurrection, which restores people to the original image God created on the 6th
day of creation. God provided this salvation because of His love.
God,
through Jesus, gave us the ability to be made new and set apart for Him. When we believe Jesus
is the Son of God and accept His forgiveness, we give ourselves to God and He saves
and sanctifies us. As we live each day, we can choose whether to continue to be
set apart for God, His service and His glory, or not. If we choose to walk in
God’s ways, our sanctification is displayed in our actions and words, which comes
from the changed person into whom Jesus makes us. This changed person is a new
being and brings with it new attitudes with which to face each day, person, and
encounter. This is how we receive and act out sanctification. Sanctification is
something we receive and be. If we are truly followers of Christ, our being in
Him will result in actions that show our love for God, other Christians, and
other people. We work out our salvation, as Paul says in
Philippians 2:12-13 “for it is God who works in you to will and to act
according to his good purpose” [NASB]. Receiving and being
consecrated/sanctified must be worked out in this world. Our living in Christ
in this world means we work as He worked in this world, as servants. We become
His disciples to whom He said, “Therefore go
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and
teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you
always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20, [NASB]). We do the
examples He showed us, caring, loving, touching, helping, healing, preaching,
teaching, and being the shining light of God to all people.
Paul closed the first letter to the
Thessalonians with admonitions that reflected this understanding of
sanctification. He told them to appreciate their leaders
(brethren) and love them; live in peace; admonish the unruly; encourage the
faint-hearted; help the weak; be patient with all; do only that which is good
to all. These are actions or conduct. Next he spoke of their spiritual attitude/behavior
- rejoice always; pray without ceasing; give thanks in all things; do not
quench the Spirit. Additionally, Paul addressed their mental
capacities/judgment by telling them to examine everything and determine what is
good and to abstain from evil. Finally, Paul said a prayer over them, as he
outlined what their whole selves were: “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23
[NASB]).
Sanctification
is not new to Christians. It is being holy and set apart for God and acting as He
guides. Yahweh God established sanctification from the seventh day of creation.
What is new for those who follow Christ is that we do not have to keep
purifying ourselves, as the Old Testament Israelites did, hoping that we are
clean enough to be in God’s presence. Jesus provided the purification that each
of us needs. When we accept His forgiveness and His salvation, we become His
children (His chosen ones) and are purified and made holy to be in God’s
presence. With the acceptance of Jesus’ love gift of salvation and the
resultant sanctification, our response is love (to God, believers, and other people),
which shows our sanctification, being set apart for God’s purposes, glorifying
Him. Our being is made new and we act from the perfectness that Christ has made
us through His purity and perfectness. This is what Paul tells the
Thessalonians, to excel still more, show the sanctification that Jesus put in
you through your acts, words, and being.
We
come to our final thought. Are we acting out of the sanctification (the calling
out of us by God) to show His love? Have accepted Jesus’ free gift of salvation
and resultant sanctification? If not, take the time now to ask for His gift of
love to you, His forgiveness and salvation. Ask Him to show you Himself and
help you to believe. Upon your belief and acceptance of His forgiveness, you
will have this new life. You will be set apart for God. You will be sanctified
for Him. He will be your God and you will be His child as He promised in
Leviticus 26:12.
