82. Sanctified Saints
1 Corinthians 1:2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours.
God promises to sanctify us in Christ and call us to be saints. Sanctify = make holy; saint = holy person. I am one of those people who call upon the name of Jesus Christ my Lord; I am called to be a holy person and I am made holy. This is quite an impossible promise for a sinner like me, most certainly not holy and a long way from being a holy person. Yet it is true for the church in Corinth and for the church in every place.
Sanctification is both a one-time event and at the same time it is an ongoing process. Once I believe in Jesus I am suddenly declared holy and called to be a saint. This is suddenly true and real for God declares it to be so on account of what Christ has done for me and because He granted me the faith to believe it. However, in actual life it is progressive as holiness is built up slowly, little bit by little bit, over time. That ongoing process will not be complete until I die and am transformed in the resurrection of the body. Then God will finish what He started.
But until That Day comes it is true to say that God is not finished with me yet, and every day He has a lot of work to do. I can say truthfully that I am already sanctified (made holy) and not yet sanctified. I am a work in progress, and I can be sure that the work is continuing based on the already declared sanctification that has taken place. “Already and not yet” is the tension that we live with every day: I am at the same time and all the time “saint and sinner.” I don’t look like and I don’t act like a saint, but that is what God sees. Other Christians don’t look like saints, but by faith that is how I can see them. My fellow Christians are called to be saints, and I will treat them differently if I see them that way. What would life be like if we could see the halo on other people? Or even on myself?