Vol.
XL November 3, 2008 No. 11
Sanctify
by Tom
McLemore
One of the
great tasks of the Christian life is giving appropriate reverence to the
holy. The action involved is to sanctify,
that is, to set apart, to treat as holy, to hold in reverence. The failure to do so is to commit sacrilege
and to profane, that is to treat as common and ordinary that which is holy.
Our
consideration herein will be limited to the New Testament,
however, the Old Testament is invaluable and fundamental background for
understanding this concept that is so vital to Christian living. Throughout the Old Testament, emphasis is
place upon treating holy things as holy.
One passage will suffice to underscore how serious it is to profane that
which is holy: “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your
God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name” (Exodus 20:7).
Sanctify
the Name of God. Let us
sanctify, set apart, treat as holy, and hold in reverence whatever God’s word
teaches us to sanctify. What would be
included? First, there is the name of
God. “Pray then in this way: Our Father
in heaven, hallowed be your name” (Matthew 6:9; Luke
11:2). Jesus teaches his disciples to
pray in recognition of the holiness of the name of him whom they address in
prayer. Also, he teaches that his
disciples express before God their desire that his name be held in reverence by
all, a desire which is fulfilled in life as well as expressed in prayer. (Recall what we noticed earlier about Exodus
20:7).
Most
obviously, sanctifying the name of God would involve not speaking it in a
profane manner, as in what we call “swear words” or “cussing” (“cursing”) which involves invoking the Lord’s name in
vain). But there are other ways beside
the verbal that we may profane the name of God.
If we are associated with him, and then we behave unbecomingly, we “give
God a bad name.” If “the name of God is
blasphemed...because of you” (Romans 2:24), then you and your conduct have profaned
the name of God.
One of the
greatest hindrances to the gospel is the effect of those who claim to be
Christians but live immoral and unsanctified lives. While the presence of hypocrites in the
church is no excuse for refusing to hear and obey the good news of
Jesus, it naturally places a stumbling block before the lost. Each of us must continually guard our conduct
and make sure that we do not give God, his Son, and his church a bad name.
Sanctify
the Son of God. In addition to
sanctifying God’s name, we are urged to sanctify God’s Son. “[B]ut in your
hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to
make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope
that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). This
amounts to a constant determination to allow Christ to rule in our hearts. We recognize his right of ownership, because
he has paid the debt for our sins. “For
you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body” (1
Corinthians 6:20). If you are a
Christian, Paul says that you are “a slave of Christ. You were bought with a price; do not become
slaves of human masters” (1 Corinthians 7:22, 23). Our allegiance is to Christ over all
others. “If we live, we live to the
Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we
die, we are the Lord’s” (Romans 14:8).
But what is
involved in sanctifying Christ as Lord?
How is holding Christ in reverence as Lord manifested in life? There are numerous things, but at the top of
the list would be holding in reverence the things associated with the Lord,
such as the
Lord’s day (Revelation 1:10) and the
Lord’s supper (1 Corinthians 11:20). To
hold in reverence the day when Jesus rose again, the first day of the week,
would mean devoting oneself to gathering with his people. No one who treats that day as holy would
desire or decide to be absent from that gathering. No one who sanctifies Christ as Lord in his
or her heart would wish to miss out on an opportunity to have fellowship with
Christ around his table with the saints in partaking of his supper. No one who holds the Lord, his day, and his
supper in reverence would view gathering with the saints as a mere duty to be
performed but would view it as a privilege to be enjoyed.
Sanctify
the Gifts of God. In 1 Timothy
4:4-5, Paul wrote, “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be
rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by
God’s word and by prayer.” (See also Romans 14:6; 1 Corinthians 10:30). This has reference to giving thanks for our
food. Jesus emphasized that God is the
daily source of our sustenance: “Give us each day our daily bread” (Luke
11:3). Jesus also exemplified the
teaching of 1 Timothy 4:4, 5. The scriptures report that on occasions of
eating, he gave thanks. This includes
the miraculous feedings of the multitudes as well as the blessing of the
emblems of the Lord’s Supper which he gave to his disciples on the night he was
betrayed.
Paul says that this offering of thanks sanctifies
the food that we eat. This means that it
is set apart and given recognition as a gift from God. It underscores our trust in and dependance upon our gracious Creator. For us to eat our food with no thought of God
implies that we think we provide for ourselves and that we are in no need of
God. It is vitally important to be
reminded of our need for God, and mealtime is a superb opportunity to remember
that he sustains us and to impress this attitude upon our children.
Of course,
this idea would apply to every blessing we have. We are urged to give thanks for all
things. Those who sanctify the name of
God and Christ as Lord in their hearts will be “giving thanks to God the Father
at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians
5:20).
Sanctify! Let us determine to give
appropriate reverence to the holy. Let
us be sure to sanctify, that is, to set apart, to treat as holy, to hold
in reverence God’s name, God’s Son, and God’s gifts. During this season of thanksgiving, let us especially
give thought to the need to sanctify God’s gifts with gratitude issuing in the
giving of thanks.
Designed and maintained by Houston Park Church of Christ Copyright © 2000 by Houston Park Church of Christ 2 Crescent Hill Drive Selma, Alabama 36701 334-874-7941. All rights reserved. Revised: 24 Sep 2008.