The Role of the Holy Spirit in Sanctification
What role does the Holy Spirit play in our sanctification? Explore how being filled with the Spirit can transform you into becoming more like Jesus. Just as our bodies need nourishment, we need constant refilling of the Holy Spirit as a pattern of life. Learn how the Holy Spirit wants to work through you to make you more like Jesus.
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15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,
What is Sanctification?
Sanctification is the process of becoming like Jesus.
Sanctification is the gift of the fullness of your salvation. It’s not works righteousness because holiness is not the way to Christ; Christ is the way to holiness. And sanctification is the gift of being perfected in love. John Wesley understood it to be the continual process of being made perfect in our love of God and removing our desire to sin. [READ MORE: What is Sanctification?]
God’s Word is essential to our sanctification. The goal of spending time in the Word of God is not to make you a smarter sinner but to make you like the Savior. [READ MORE: How Does God’s Word Transform Us?]
What Is The Role of The Holy Spirit in Sanctification?
“According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.” 1 Peter 1:2
Peter understood the relationship between the Holy Spirit and sanctification. He knew that it was God’s will for His people. But notice that he says sanctification “is a work of the Holy Spirit.” So sanctification comes from God working in us, not from our strength.
“It is the Spirit that sheds the love of God abroad in their hearts, and the love of all mankind, thereby purifying their hearts from the love of the world, from the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. It is by Him they are delivered from anger and pride, from all vile and inordinate affections.”
Do you know why John Wesley said that? He read his Bible! As he began to read Scripture and understand the way of God, he began to realize what was possible in his own life. Then, as he grew in the grace of God, out of love for people, he couldn’t keep that to himself.
“You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:11
Notice that he’s affirming that justification and sanctification happened by the power of the Holy Spirit. In justification, God sets us apart in Christ so His blood may cleanse us. But in sanctification, He works in us so that we can be obedient to being conformed to the image of Christ.
[READ MORE: Who is the Holy Spirit?]
The Holy Spirit: A Christian Requirement
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” Ephesians 1:3-4
Paul declares that all of heaven and God is available to you as we’ve been blessed in Christ. He notes that believers in Christ should be developed into being holy and blameless four times in the book of Ephesians, and in chapter five, he then instructs us on how to be developed as a holy people.
“Look carefully how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:15-18 (emphasis added)
This was written in the imperative mood, so “be filled with the Holy Spirit” is a command. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is not an option for a Christian. It’s not only important to God but also to you because it’s how we bloom into our eternal power as believers.
Holy Spirit: A Pattern of Life
“…Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her; that He might sanctify her, having washed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless.” Ephesians 5:25-27
“To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be filled with the immediate presence of God Himself. It will result in feeling what God feels, desiring what God desires, doing what God wants, speaking by God’s power, praying and ministering in God’s strength, and praying with the knowledge that God is.”
Obedience to this command is essential in God’s eternal purpose for every believer. We are instructed to “Be filled with the Holy Spirit.” The verb tense of this command in Greek denotes continuous action, which means, “Be filled with the Holy Spirit as a pattern of life.” Be continually filled with the Spirit. It’s a continuous action; Keep on being filled with the Spirit.
[READ MORE: How To Be Filled With the Holy Spirit]
If you were filled with the Spirit at one time in the past, you need refilling with the Holy Spirit. So likewise, our bodies continuously and repeatedly need nourishment to be refueled, and our spiritual lives are no different.
But that’s easy to forget sometimes.
You may have experienced a mountain top experience in your life. A retreat, a mission trip, or some worship experience where you felt an intimate closeness to God. You joined Jesus in something He cares about and sensed His manifest presence. You could feel the nearness of the Holy Spirit, which is a joy in His peace. You could feel the Holy Spirit cleaning out impurities in your heart.
However, a day can come when these feelings become static. If we’re living that way, you may question what happened. Here are a few reasons we can feel separated:
Maybe you grieved the Holy Spirit with sin.
Maybe, subtly, we just fell back into old patterns of simply not relying on God.
Even more subtle, you weren’t regularly being filled with the Holy Spirit.
“Trying to do the Lord’s work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, and tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, then the ministry of Jesus just flows out of you.”
That slide has happened to me before, but I’m a better pastor for it. Because the weakness in me can identify with the weakness in you, the fallenness in me can identify with the fallenness in you. But I can also say with conviction that there’s hope for you for God to do a renewal in your heart.
Luke 11:13 reminds us, “If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts to your own children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”
The Holy Spirit wants to see the priesthood of all believers awakened in your gifts and the empowerment of Christ in you. Through that, you will be placed on a holy mission as you walk in your city, nation, and beyond. We want to move with the Holy Spirit as we move into our sanctification. So, allow Him to begin a renewal in your heart.
[READ MORE: Turning Desperation into Revival]
TL;DR
Sanctification is the process of becoming like Jesus, a gift of the fullness of salvation.
The Holy Spirit is essential to sanctification, and it is a continuous process of being made perfect in the love of God and removing the desire to sin.
Scripture is essential to sanctification, and spending time in the Word of God is not to make us smarter sinners but to make us more like the Savior.
To be filled with the Holy Spirit is a command, a pattern of life; it is how we bloom into our eternal power as believers.
Being filled with the Holy Spirit is continuous action, and refilling is necessary, especially after experiencing a mountaintop experience or any time when one feels an intimate closeness to God.
Related Reading
How Does God’s Word Transform Us? by Rev. Paul Lawler
What is Sanctification by Rev. Paul Lawler
Discover 5 Ways the Holy Spirit Helps Us by Bro. Chris Carter
How to Be Filled with the Holy Spirit by Rev. Paul Lawler
