Salvation is God’s sovereign work. Glorification is God’s sovereign work. Is sanctification the fruit of our efforts? The answer to that question is simple, but it does require nuance. Justification by faith is a pillar of reformation thought, but sanctification by faith is no less significant. Scripture must fully form our understanding. Disconnecting sanctification from faith can conflate it with justification or send it spiraling into careless antinomianism.
Christ Our Sanctification
And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
1 Corinthians 1:30
Paul appeals to unity before grounding that appeal in the foolishness of the cross (to the world’s eyes). He continues to elaborate on the wisdom of God and its antithetical nature to the world. He identifies a primary purpose as ensuring that no human being would boast before the Lord. Verse thirty is bookended by the reminder that all boasting must be in the Lord. Being in Christ Jesus means that He is our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. He is our sanctification.
He Will Do It
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
Paul’s benediction follows an encouragement through the coming day of the Lord and exhortations for Christian living. He introduces his conclusion by reminding the Thessalonians and us that the God of peace is the sanctifier, He is faithful, and he will surely keep our souls and bodies blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The God who calls is faithful. He does not rescue us and leave us to our own devices. He will sanctify us completely. He will surely do it.
Being Sanctified
For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.
Hebrews 10:14
The author of Hebrews repeatedly highlights the supremacy of Christ. He is higher than the angels, a greater high priest, and a perfect sacrifice. Through His offering of Himself, He made us right with God, who are being made holy by God. His act of perfecting doesn’t negate our part in the process as the author continues in chapter ten to call us to stir one another up to love and good works and avoid neglecting meeting together. The basis for the stirring and attending is our confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus.
Slaves of Righteousness
I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
Romans 6:19
Paul poses the question of whether we should sin since we are now under grace. He emphatically responds in the negative. Once upon a time, we presented our members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness, but now we must submit our members as slaves to righteousness. Our presentation of our members as slaves of righteousness leads to sanctification.
The Fruit We Get
For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:20-23
We are dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus and must, therefore, not let sin reign in our mortal bodies (Romans 6:11). We were slaves to sin formerly but are now slaves of God. The fruit we get as slaves of God leads to sanctification. Our lives are the product of God’s gracious and loving care of our souls.
Work Because of God’s Work
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Philippians 2:12-13
Paul encourages the Philippians to humbly consider others more significant than themselves before lyrically rejoicing in Christ’s humility and exaltation in Philippians 2:6-11. He then appeals to their obedience and calls them to work out their salvation with fear and trembling based on God’s working in our will and ways.
For This Very Reason
His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. By these he has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
2 Peter 1:3-7
God gives everything required for life and godliness. By His divine power, He has gifted us great and precious promises through which we can supernaturally escape the corruption that comes with evil desire. For that very reason, we can make every effort to add characteristics of goodness and godliness with our faith.
Sanctification and obedience are not merely passive categories. Yet they are depend entirely on union with Christ, the God of peace, and the indwelling Spirit (Romans 8:9-13). The beauty of scripture is that while it may seem contradictory at times, it is perfectly consistent though it explodes the wineskins of our theological presuppositions.
We must align our views with what God’s word teaches regarding sanctification, which includes His working in us and our working for His glory. However, we must keep our justification distinct from our works and affirm that any of our work in sanctification is the fruit of His work. The nuance may seem slight, but the implications lead to liberty or legalism. Our justification is by faith alone. Our sanctification is by faith. We have a gracious and powerful God who has made every provision perfectly in Christ and gifted us with the Holy Spirit and the sacraments to nourish our faith continuously. He will do it!