Once More on God's Faithfulness and His Promises

July 26

Bob Hoekstra

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.  (1Th_5:23-24)
This magnificent benedictory prayer closes with another proclamation of God's faithfulness, coupled with a strategic promise from the Lord. "He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." What has our faithful God called us to, and what is He promising to do?
The Lord has called us to sanctification and blamelessness (that is, a life of increasing personal righteousness). "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor" (1Th_4:3-4). It is the will of God that His children grow in a sanctified life (that is, be set apart increasingly for the glory, honor, and use of God). The particular issue in view here was sexual purity: "that you should abstain from sexual immorality."
Another term for this godly goal is blamelessness. "May your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." As we live unto the Lord day by day (awaiting His return), He wants us to develop in Christlikeness. He desires that there be less and less reason for people to point a finger of blame at us: "That you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world" (Phi_2:15).
How is this desire of the Lord to be accomplished? It is to be done by the work of our faithful God, who promises to do such. "He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." What is the Lord's means in advancing this process? It is His word. Jesus revealed this in His prayer for us as He approached the cross. "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth" (Joh_17:17). Our Lord wants to unleash in our lives the power of His word, changing the way we think and act. He wants to use His word to set our lives apart for Himself. The Apostle Paul wrote of this powerful spiritual process in referring to Jesus' intentions for His church:  "that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Eph_5:26). Will we humbly and dependently cooperate with our Lord in this desire of His heart for us?
Lord God of holiness, I long to be set apart  more and more for Your glory, honor, and use. I yearn for more godliness in my daily life. I humbly ask You to transform my heart and mind by the power of Your holy word. You are faithful! Please do it, Lord!