Are you experiencing life as God intended? We have a tendency to settle for less than God’s best for our lives because we are keenly aware of our failures and foibles. We may think that life on a higher plane is reserved for God’s special saints, but that doesn’t include me. That’s a lie from the enemy. God’s desire is that we would be set apart for Him. The Apostle Paul earnestly prayed for his fellow believers:

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1Thessalonians 5:23)

The phrase, God of peace, refers to God as the source and provider of our peace. Paul’s desire was that his fellow believers would be completely set apart for God. The word sanctify conveys the idea of separation from and consecration to God. This is commonly referred to as progressive sanctification, we are in the process of becoming more like Jesus. Paul was not content with partial Christianity. Too many people are satisfied with the shadow of God when they could be experiencing the fullness of God. The word entirely literally means to bring to a consummation. Paul is asking that God would sanctify His people completely and that nothing in their lives would escape the sanctifying power God’s word and Spirit.

Paul identified three areas of our lives in need of the sanctifying power of God – our spirit, soul and body. These comprise the immaterial and material parts of man. Paul is not necessarily defining the constituent parts of man, but he is using these terms to represent the totality of a person.

The spirit and soul relate to the immaterial part of a person. The spirit is the life principle imparted to man by God. In the fall, man became spiritually separated from God and spiritual death was the result. Those who have been born again have a new spiritual nature so that one can have communion with God. The soul is a multivalent word that often refers to one’s personality. It is often used to encompass the seat of thoughts, feelings, desires, and affections. The word psychology is literally the study of the soul.

The body refers to one’s physical body. Considering the context of the Greek culture, it is significant that Paul included the body in his verse. The Greek culture emphasized a philosophical dualism which taught that man’s spirit is inherently good, but the body was inherently evil. Such a mindset could provide a convenient rationale for dismissing the importance of viewing one’s body as a temple of the Holy Spirit.

Sanctification extends to every part of a person, including the body, which acts in response to the holiness of the inner person. The result is a life of purity in which there is no fault and one’s moral rectitude is evident to others.

Rick Higgins

Associate Pastor – Discipleship.  The Church at LifePark