What is the Sanctification of the Spirit in 1 Peter 1:2?

   Have you ever thought about sanctification?  Does it sound like a word that only belongs in theology books?  Several years ago after listening to messages and reading Life Studies, the lights came on for me!  

I took this picture last week when I was out in the country.

This week I started reading the Life-Study of 1 Peter, and in chapter five Witness Lee spoke about two aspects of sanctification. (Did you even know there were two aspects?)  I've heard about this before, but I enjoyed hearing it again!  Here’s the verse in 1 Peter on sanctification that I read about:

 According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto the obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus.  1 Peter 1:2

On page 32-33  in chapter 4 of the Life-Study of 1 Peter brother Lee gives a clear explanation of what he learned under the Spirit’s enlightenment concerning this verse:

But in 1:2 Peter says that sanctification comes after the Father’s selection and before Christ’s redemption.  According to this verse the sanctification of the Spirit is unto the obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Christ.  Surely this indicates that the sanctification of the Spirit precedes the redemption of Christ.  As I prayed over this verse and studied it, I was enlightened  to see that not only Christ’s redemption needs to be applied by the Spirit, but the Father’s selection also needs to be applied by the Spirit….in eternity past God selected us, but how could this selection be applied to us? …We all can testify of this from our experience. We were wandering on earth perhaps as those who never had a thought concerning God. But one day the “wind” of the Spirit “blew” us to a place where we heard the preaching of the gospel. While we were listening to the preaching of the gospel, faith was infused into us. In this way, God’s selection was applied to us (Lee. Witness. Life-Study of 1 Peter. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry.1982, Print).

    As I was thinking about this first aspect of sanctification that occurs before we're even saved, I thought back on a  Life-Study of Luke that likened the Spirit’s sanctifying work to a woman sweeping a house until she finds one lost coin (Luke 15). This parable illustrates the fact that the Spirit of God works tirelessly to arrange environments to bring people to the point where they receive the Lord as their Savior. My husband and I will often pray this way for ones on our hearts that the Spirit  would sweep in their hearts to prepare them for salvation.  

   But when a person finally prays and becomes a son of God (John 1:12), they begin a life-long process of sanctification. And this is the second aspect of sanctification that we mostly hear and read about. In these chapters he makes it so clear that the goal of sanctification is to conform us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18). And we need to see that the Spirit everything in our lives to carry out this process of sanctification.  And then he connects this process to John 17:17--Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. So not matter what keep coming to the word each day! 

I like to listen to the Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee while I'm cooking or typing. You can listen to live excerpts of these messages that were given in 1982 along with some outstanding commentary. 

Other Posts on 1 & 2 Peter:

What is the Sanctification of the Spirit in 1 Peter 1:2?
What is Obedience to the Truth in 1 Peter 1:22?
How Do Believers Grow According to 1 Peter 2:2?
How Does God Get the Living Stones in 1 Peter 2:5?
What Does 1 Peter 4:1-2 Say About Sufferings?
Why Does 1 Peter 4:17 Talk About God's Judgment?
What Does Partaking of the Divine Nature Mean in 2 Peter 1:4?
How Does the Prophetic Word in 2 Peter 1:19 Prepare Us For the Lord's Coming?

Other Posts on Sanctification: 

From the Life-Study of Romans:
What is Sanctification in the Book of Romans?

From the Life-Study of Ephesians:
How Does God Get a Glorious Church in Ephesians 5:27?

From the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Thessalonians:
How Does God Preserve Us Complete in 1 Thessalonians 5:23?
What Does Salvation in Sanctification of the Spirit Mean in 2 Thessalonians 2:13?

From the Life-Study of Hebrews:
How Does the Lord Sanctify us in Hebrews 2:11?