Sanctification

The Hebrew root qadhash and the Greek hagiazō share a basic sense — “set apart” — and the same range. Objects can be sanctified (the sabbath, the temple vessels, the firstborn), and so can people (priests, prophets, the nation as a whole). The New Testament keeps this positional sense — believers are called “saints,” hagioi, “called to be holy” (Rom.1.7, 1Co.1.2) — and develops an experiential sense in parallel: sanctification as a process of becoming what one already is. Paul commands and prays for ongoing transformation (1Th.4.3, 1Th.5.23), names the Spirit as the agent (2Th.2.13, 1Pe.1.2), and gives the means as the Word (Joh.17.17), the sacraments, suffering, and obedience. Hebrews holds the two together: “by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Heb.10.14). Christian tradition has divided on whether sanctification can be “entire” or completed in this life (Wesleyan holiness), or remains incomplete until glorification (Reformed and Lutheran).