Errors in the Christian life often begin when people confuse what God declares about the believer with the holy life He produces in the believer. Justification and sanctification belong together, but they are not the same gift.
READ THE KEY PASSAGES
Begin with what
Scripture says.
Romans 3:24Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:4That like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
1 Corinthians 6:11But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
01
Justification concerns standing
Romans 5:1Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
To justify is to declare righteous. Romans says believers are justified freely by grace through Christ’s redemption. This verdict does not rest on moral improvement. Christ’s righteousness and atoning work give the believer peace with God.
The question answered by justification is not, ‘How much have I changed?’ but, ‘On what ground may a guilty sinner stand before a holy God?’ The answer is Christ. His work, not human merit, is the ground of the believer’s acceptance and peace.
02
Sanctification concerns holy life
Romans 6:11Reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Sanctification speaks of being set apart to God and of the believer’s growing holiness. Romans 6 does not tell Christians to earn acceptance. It calls them to live in light of union with the crucified and risen Christ.
Because the believer belongs to Christ, sin cannot be treated as a harmless private choice. It opposes the God who saved him. Sanctification therefore includes both a decisive belonging to God and an ongoing work in which the Spirit teaches the believer to put sin away and to walk in obedience.
03
Do not make holiness the price
Galatians 2:16A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ.
Works cannot become the basis on which God accepts a sinner. If they do, grace is no longer received as grace. A believer is justified by faith in Christ, not by reaching a chosen level of victory or religious performance.
This distinction gives comfort to a conscience that sees remaining sin honestly. The believer does not come to God only after he has improved himself. He comes through Christ, and from that secure standing he learns to fight sin rather than hiding it or making peace with it.
04
Do not separate grace from holiness
1 Thessalonians 4:3For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication.
Grace does not give a license to remain content with sin. The Spirit sets believers apart and produces real fruit. Christians may struggle and grow unevenly, yet Scripture does not allow a profession of faith to become an excuse for lawlessness.
Neither legalism nor lawlessness has room to rule here. The first makes the believer’s conduct the basis of acceptance. The second claims acceptance while refusing Christ’s authority. Scripture directs the Christian to the same Savior who justifies freely and makes His people holy.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Questions for further reading.
- 01
On what basis is a sinner justified?
- 02
What new direction does Romans 6 describe?
- 03
How does confusing these doctrines lead to legalism or lawlessness?
Read patiently. Let God’s Word speak.
Justification gives the believer peace with God through Christ. Sanctification gives the believer a new direction under the Spirit’s work. They must be distinguished so grace remains grace, and joined so salvation is not reduced to an empty profession.
