Throughout the Scriptures, we find our salvation being described to us on three fronts: past, present, and future. We have been saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved. These aspects of salvation are what the terms justification, sanctification, and glorification are naming. Romans 8:30’s golden chain of salvation (“And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”) gives us a glimpse of how these ideas are inseparably bound together in salvation, while still needing to be distinguished from one another.

Our question focuses particularly on justification and sanctification. Although this question may appear to be nothing more than defining two dry terms of theology, understanding the meaning and distinctions of justification and sanctification is crucial for properly understanding how our salvation in Christ works. Particularly, justification and sanctification are the keys for understanding what role doing good works plays in our salvation, which will be the subject of the following two questions.

Justification means our declared righteousness before God, made possible by Christ’s death and resurrection for us. Justification refers to the one-time, once-for-all work of Christ by which sin is forgiven and we are declared righteous before God. Justification for the Christian, therefore, is a past event that occurs by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Most commonly, the Bible uses legal language to describe justification (justification itself being a legal term), since by it our sin is declared to be forgiven and we are adopted as children of God.

Sanctification, however, is not a one-time event; instead, it is the continual process of being made holy. It is our gradual, growing righteousness, made possible by the Spirit’s work in us. In fact, sanctify, sacred, and consecrate all stem from the same Latin word for holy. Holiness, of course, in the Christian life means being conformed to the image of Christ, walking in imitation of Him. Through sanctification, we continuously grow to be more and more like Jesus, which is what it means to be righteous. Sanctification is, therefore, a lifelong and gradual process, and it is only complete whenever Christ returns or calls us home.

Again, while these two doctrines are inherently tied to one another, we must also recognize them as distinct. Being justified in Christ, condemnation no longer exists for the Christian, defeating the guilt of sin. Yet the pollution of sin must still be fought. The legal consequences might be erased forever, but the offenses themselves do not cease. On the cross, the war for both individual and cosmic redemption was won. The cross was the decisive battle, yet the war continues still. Much like after the fall of Berlin during World War II, the Pacific Theater continued on, even though victory was guaranteed. Still, for the soldiers in the final stage of the war, the bullets and casualties were no less real. Similarly, the cross has sealed the final victory, yet the war must continue on for a time of God’s choosing. Sanctification is that continual war against our flesh and the kingdom of darkness.

Of course, while justification is explicitly by the grace of God, sanctification is no less dependent upon God’s grace. Paul explains how God’s grace powers our sanctification in Philippians 2:12-13:

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.

Paul attributes our work and will to the work of God within us. When the strength to work comes from God, He gets the glory for the work done because He is the supplier. Every good work falls under this category. We are each required to do good works; however, they have no merit to earn salvation since we can only achieve them by the strength that God supplies.

Yet God is not merely the supplier of strength for our actions but also of our intentions. Our work derives from the work of God in us, as does our will. The desire to obey is, therefore, also the gift of God. Through Ezekiel, God prophesies how through the work of Christ He would change the will of His people: “And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules” (Ezekiel 36:27). God would cause His people to obey His commandments by putting His Spirit within them. This indwelling Spirit is the great Comforter of the Christian life. By the Spirit, we are given confidence of our being made children of God, while also being the Agent by whom we cry to God as our Father (Romans 8:15-16). Both our will and work for God are enabled by God through His Spirit. Sanctification, therefore, is a work of the Spirit and is non-existent if the Spirit is not present.

Praise the Lord for His working in us to work for Him!