You Have Been Sanctified!

We are in first Corinthians chapter six. First Corinthians chapter six this morning and we are going to begin by reading verses nine through 11. We may turn to a couple other pass ages. I have most of them up here on the screen or we'll have them up here in a moment. But please hold your place or put a bookmark here at first Corinthians six.

Then verses nine to 11. Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Be not deceived, neither fornicators nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you are washed.

But you are sanctified. But you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus. And by the spirit of our God. Let's go to the Lord in prayer once more. Thank you Lord today for your word and what it tells us of the salvation, redemption, justification, and this morning's sanctification that we have in Jesus Christ, our savior.

Lord, how wonderful and matchless is the grace of our God and mercy toward us. That you since your only begotten son to do on Calvary's Cross the only thing that could rescue us from an eternity in hell. The sacrifice of the sinless son of God. Lord, thank you today. May Jesus be exalted.

Wait, may your people today be enlightened and encouraged in your grace, in your work, in our behalf. And Lord, if there be one here today that's never trusted Christ as savior. May they come to know you today. In Jesus precious name, we do pray. Amen.

Sanctify Sanctify means to set apart for a purpose to consecrate or purify. The word sanctified is used in the passage we just read. It It comes from a root word meaning holy. Holy. It means that it's core to be set apart, to be set set apart for a purpose, to be set apart in this case of salvation to a person to be dedicated or consecrated and to be purified for that purpose.

It is one of the terms God uses to describe the newborn Christian along with justification, redemption, and regeneration or the new birth that we looked at last Sunday morning. We who are in Christ have been set apart from the world unto him. We have been sanctified. We have been set apart unto our God. By his grace and power.

Look if you would on the screen. John ten twenty seven and twenty eight. My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Jesus said, here of us that we are his what?

That the redeemed in Christ Jesus are his sheep. We belong to him. We're his sheep. We're the sheep of of his pasture. We have a wonderful shepherd.

Jesus Christ, the shepherd of the sheep, the good shepherd, And we have been set apart from all others. To to him. To be his. John one twelve verse and 13, but as many as received him, that is Jesus. To them gave he power to become the sons of God even to them that believe on his name which were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God.

So, we have become who have received Jesus Christ, we have become the sons or the children of God who have believed in his name. Not by the not of blood that is not of birth, okay? Not of the will of the flesh, not by the power of the flesh, not by the will of man, not by our own doing or good works, but by the power and will and purpose of God. Have we been sanctified that is we have been set apart as the children of the king of kings and Lord of lords by his grace. First John, first Peter two nine, but you are a chosen generation.

A royal priesthood and holy nation, a peculiar people. Now, he's talking again. Peter is writing about those who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, who have put their faith and trust in him. We are chosen of God. We are a royal priesthood in the service of the king.

We are a holy set apart nation unto our God, not a nation as in America or Brazil but a nation as in a group of people who belong to the Lord. A peculiar people. When I was a kid, I didn't like that that phrase. I just keep that one out. Peculiar people.

I don't want to be peculiar. But that's not a bad thing. It's a good thing. And the word peculiar means that we are special. Not because we have earned it.

Because by God's grace, we have been set apart. Unto him. Through his sacrifice on Calvary, we have become a peculiar people. This world is not our home. We're only pilgrims passing through this place.

But we are a peculiar treasure unto our Lord. I've yet to understand why he should treasure me or maybe some of you. Really any of us because we are sinners but the Bible says that God commended his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. To make of us a peculiar people, Set apart unto himself, sanctified. Why?

That we should show forth the praises of him who had called us out of darkness. And to the marvelous light of his salvation. Before you were saved, here's how you were defined fornicators idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, mean violent, extortioners, who were separated from God and his kingdom. Before we came to Jesus Christ, these were the type of terms that defined us in sin. Separated from God by it but he says here now, you are washed.

Washed in the blood of the lamb. Now, you are sanctified. You have been set apart and justified which we talked about a couple weeks ago, declared guiltless. In the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God. Now, in Christ Jesus, our standing before God has been drastically and forever altered.

We are no longer defined by the previous terms. We are now defined by the terms in verse 11. Washed, sanctified, justified in Christ Jesus. We are defined by the terms up here on the screen. Chosen of God, royal priesthood of God, a holy nation, a peculiar people.

We who are in Christ Jesus are different people than we were before. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. All things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. We are now said to be in Christ Jesus, a phrase used 40 times in the New Testament.

Specifically, the words in Christ Jesus and in most cases, speaking particularly of Christians who have been set apart and sanctified by Jesus Christ. Having been saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus, we have been born again into a new life in Christ. We have been robed in his righteousness, justified by his sacrifice, redeemed by his blood, our sins have been washed away, and now, in Christ, we stand before God as a holy people, as a sanctified people, as a righteous people, set apart from the rest of the world to the praise and the glory of the Lord who has made it so by his grace and by his mercy. As such, we have been declared to be saints and are addressed as such by Paul and other New Testament writers. First Corinthians one two, Paul writes, under the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, who are they?

That would be believers in Christ. The children of God who've been saved by his grace through faith in his son. To them that are sanctified in greed, Jesus called to be what? Called to be saints. Now, equates the two.

Those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus are called what? They're called saints. With all that in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ our Lord both theirs and ours. Not only the saints, not only believers in Corinth, but all believers are called saints. Now, what does the word saint mean?

Well, it comes from the same word as sanctified. It comes from the same root as the word holy. To be a saint means to be a holy one or a sanctified one. One who has been set apart through the cleansing of the blood of Jesus Christ to his service. We have been sanctified and declared to be saints.

Now, the world defines saint a little bit differently. You hear people say, well, he's a saint, okay? Well, that doesn't necessarily mean that they're a Christian. What they mean is, well, that person just seems to be kind of better than everybody else or they have they have high moral standards. They're a saint or they have a a righteous character.

They they seem to to be a a spiritually minded. Sometimes, it's meant as a compliment. Sometimes, by the world, it's meant as an insult, as though you're think you're better than everybody else. That's how the world defines saint is a goody goody. The Catholic church defines saint a little differently.

They venerate Catholics, certain people to what they call sainthood. They do not believe all Christians to be identified as saints. There are just certain people that they recognize as saints. These are Catholics who are on a a higher plane than than all others. These are Catholics who who do some great deed in life or who make some great sacrifice, who who live a life of such sterling character and service to the church as to attain this designation.

Catholics who according to the church escape the turmoil, torments of a place they call purgatory to go straight to heaven. According to Catholic church, when you die here, you don't go straight to heaven to buy the body. The Bible says to be absent from the body is to be what? Present. Present with the Lord but many of them still believe in a place called purgatory where you go to have the remnant of your sins, you know, burned off in in torment before you're able to go into the presence of of the Lord.

But saints, they're so good, they don't need that. And so the Catholic church designates certain people, they believe, to have just skipped over purgatory because of their goodness, their goodness. Catholics, these are Catholics who can finally hear and answer the prayers of Christians here on Earth after their death and are therefore worshiped and bowed down to in statues as one would also bow down to the Lord. Now, Jesus said there is only one. We're to bow down to and worship.

There is only one to whom we pray and that's God. Not to any other. When we talk about saints, we're not talking about people to whom you pray that have died. We're not talking about people that have skipped a place called purgatory that doesn't exist. We're not talking about people who are better than everybody else.

We're talking about those according to scripture who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, who have been set apart from the world unto the Lord and God has called us what? He has called us saints. Now, he desires that we live a life that testifies to what he has made us to be in Christ Jesus. And we're gonna talk more about that next week. But he has called us saints.

He has made us his children. We have been sanctified and set apart from the world. Set apart in Christ Jesus through the new birth to walk with Christ in newness of life. Titus three five says, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his what? Mercy, he saved us.

By the washing of regeneration, renewing of the Holy Ghost. We have been sanctified, set apart, accepted in the beloved according to his mercy by the washing of regeneration, that's the new birth through the washing of the blood of Jesus Christ, and by the renewing of the holy spirit. We have been set apart in Christ Jesus. We have been set apart by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. What that means is when you got saved, the Holy Spirit came to live inside of you and has placed you into the family of God, the body of Christ.

By his mercy, we have been set apart by Christ's sacrifice, by his spirit that has come to live in us, by his blood on Calvary's cross that was shed for us. It says in first Peter one two, elect, speaking of Christians, according to the foreknowledge of God the father, through sanctification of the spirit, there it is, the holy spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the what? Of the blood of Jesus Christ. We have been sprinkled in the blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ shed his blood on Calvary's cross that through faith in his shed blood, we might be redeemed.

By the sinless son of God who sacrificed himself there for us and by it, we have been sanctified, we have been washed, we have been cleansed, we have been purified, and consecrated in the service of our king. Not by any works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his what and to his mercy. You see, this this harkens back to Exodus. Exodus chapter twelve and thirteen. To a time in Israel's history where they were held captive in Egypt and God sent 10 plagues to convince pharaoh to let them go.

And the tenth plague was the death of the what? Firstborn. The death of the firstborn. And just because they were Jews, just because they were Israelites, did not mean that their firstborn were exempt. Being an Israelite, being a Hebrew was not enough.

No, God told them. He said, this is what you do. You take a first lien of the flock without spot and without blemish and you sacrifice that lamb and you take the blood of the lamb and you put it on the what? On the doorpost and the lintel. Of the home in which you live.

And he says, when the death angel comes, it will what? Passover. Passover you. Passover your house and the firstborn of your house will live. The firstborn in the homes of those who put the blood on the door post and the blood on the lintel were sanctified by the blood of the lamb.

They were consecrated, they were set apart unto God by the blood of the lamb sacrificed for them. We who are in Christ Jesus have been set apart, consecrated, sanctified, cleansed by the blood of the lamb Jesus Christ, whose blood has been given in account for us that we might be saved, that the judgment of God might pass over us who have been consecrated as the children of Almighty God. We have been sanctified. In the Tabernacle, in the Old Testament, there were utensils used in the worship of God. There were furnishings built.

The golden candlestick, the table of showbread, the altar of incense, the the brazen altar, the laver, ark of the covenant and mercy seat. Built to be used in the worship of God in Israel. There were clothing specially made for the high priest and the priest to wear as they served in the tabernacle of the Lord. These utensils, these clothes, these furnishings that were were created for one purpose and one purpose only and that was to be used in the worship of almighty God in the tabernacle. These utensils were then consecrated or sanctified for use in the tabernacle.

They were sanctified in two ways. Hebrews nine twenty one says this, and as you can see, I don't have it on the screen, because when I clicked it, it went blank. Hebrews nine twenty one, moreover, he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry. The tabernacle itself and all the vessels of the ministry, the clothes that the high priest wore and the priest, the furnishings of the tabernacle and the utensils, it tells us here, were sprinkled in the blood of the sacrifice as they were consecrated to be used in the service and the worship of the Lord. Not only were they consecrated by the sprinkling of blood, but Exodus chapter 30 tells us they were also consecrated by anointing with a specific kind of oil and Exodus 30 gives a detailed listing of what went into that special oil that was only used to consecrate the items used in the tabernacle and so these things were consecrated, were sanctified, were set apart, were purified through the sprinkling of the blood of the innocent lamb, the sacrifice, and the oil.

The oil often in the Old Testament represents who? The Holy Spirit and the blood of the lamb, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. These utensils were created for a specific purpose. These utensils were consecrated for use in the tabernacle and these utensils were used in the service and worship.

Of God. Only. They were to be used only for that purpose. That is what they were set apart for when they were created. That's what they were set apart for when they were consecrated and that is what they were used for.

To bring glory to God. First Peter one two, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the father through the sanctification of the spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, graced unto you and peace be multiplied. What is Peter saying? Peter is saying this, folks, you are those utensils. You are those furnishings.

You are those clothes made special for the priest. We were created for a specific purpose. We were created to bring glory to the Lord, our creator, and our king. God says in first Corinthians ten thirty one, whether there before you eat or drink or whatsoever you do, do all to the what? To the glory of God.

We were created to bring glory as God's peculiar people. Unto him and we have been consecrated and washed and purified unto that service and set apart by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary's Cross. By the sprinkling of blood, by his sacrifice that we have received by faith. God has set us apart. Not only that but also by the sanctification of the what?

Of the spirit symbolized by the oil. Jesus said to his disciples, don't worry, don't fret, don't let it bother you that I'm going back to heaven. To my father, because it is for your benefit that I go, because when I go, I will send you who? I will send you the comforter, the Holy Spirit, who will not just be with you, but he will be what? In And in the Holy Spirit, we have been sealed.

In Christ Jesus. We have received the earnest of our inheritance in heaven. We have been empowered. We have a guide who is with us day and night who teaches us the things of Jesus Christ, who leads us in our service to the king, and who has sanctified and set us apart as the children of the king, and of the Lord. To his service.

We have been sanctified. Created for by and for the Lord, consecrated for his service and used in his service for the worship of God. Look if you would in Ephesians chapter two and verses eight through 10. Ephesians two and verses eight through 10. Brother Rick's not going to know what to do in children's church back there because my sermon is almost finished and I'm early and that never happens if you're visiting.

Ephesians chapter two verse eight. For by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Now, that's where usually where we stop because we use that verse often times evangelistically. To help people to understand, to help you to understand if you're here today and you don't know Jesus Christ as savior, that you can't get to heaven by doing good works.

You can't get to heaven by coming to church. You can't get to heaven through the waters of baptism. You can't get to heaven by your own merit because you're sinners and there's nothing good that we have to offer him. It is only he that has something good to offer us. Therefore, salvation is not by works.

It is a gift of God unto us who will receive it in repentance and in faith. For by grace are you saved through faith. But this passage does not conclude with verse nine. We go on to verse 10 this morning. For we are his workmanship.

We are the workmanship of God almighty particularly the Lord Jesus Christ created in Christ Jesus. Notice that phrase again, 40 times in the New Testament, specifically in Christ Jesus, created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. He has saved us by his grace. He has sanctified us, called us holy, called us saint, set us apart, as his creation. Not only a physical creation but a spiritual creation in who?

In Christ Jesus. Through the sprinkling of his blood. And the sanctification of his spirit. Unto good works, unto a life that brings glory to the God who made us, the God who saved us, and the God who will never leave us nor forsake us. Who today is conforming us more into the image of his son, Jesus Christ, that others might see our good works and glorify our father, which is in heaven.

God does not save you by good works, but God saves you in order that you might do good works, to the glory and praise of him who hath called you out of darkness, and to his marvelous light, who has sanctified you, by his blood, and by his spirit. You are a saint in Christ Jesus. Now, God declares, we need to live like the saints that he has declared us to be. This morning, we're talking about what theologically we call positional sanctification. That is we've been set apart in Christ Jesus as we've seen from these passages.

Next Sunday morning, we're going to look at what we call progressive sanctification and that is now that we have been set apart to Christ, now that we have been set apart to God in Christ Jesus, God is changing us every day to be more like him. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, we thank you Lord for your word today. For the privilege to be called saints in Jesus Christ, holy ones, sanctified by your spirit, and by your blood, washed of our sins, Forgiven forever. And placed into the service of the king.

Into the family of God. Lord, what treasure we have in Jesus Christ and what position we stand now before the throne of God in Christ Jesus which we could never have earned of our own That has been given to us by your grace. Lord, I pray if there's one here today that's never trusted in Jesus Christ as savior, that today they would recognize that and come As we give this hymn of invitation and be saved. Lord and I pray for us that know you as savior. Lord, that we would recall, that we would recognize this morning.

We have been bought with a precious price. We have been declared guiltless before the throne of God. We have been redeemed by your blood. Lord, we have been called out of all of the peoples of this world to glorify the name of our savior here. And Lord may we this be week be reminded of the purpose that we have.

Of what we were created and consecrated for. That we might be. Bright lights in a dark world. For Jesus Christ, our savior. In Jesus name, we do pray.

Amen.