What of Hebrews 10:14 and sanctification?

14 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. (Heb 10:14)

There's a lot packed into that one verse but by the one offering of Christ and its sanctifying of the Spirit blood washing effect on us we are set aside and sanctified forever and when God sees us perhaps He doesn't see someone struggling for sanctification as they know it but rather He sees us as forever set aside and perfected forever in Christ. Are we trying to sanctify ourselves when God has already done it foever through the absolute superiority of the one offering made in complete sanctified and pure obedience on the cross? Do we struggle and discipline ourselves, good and necessary as they are, only to think than when we achieve a certain amount of discipline (more prayer time and Bible reading and less TV etc.) then we will be sanctified? Does that contradict the spiritual reality that God sees us as perfected forever and set aside in Christ? How can we achieve what God has already done?

9 then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Thy will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second.

10 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Heb 10:9-10)

2 according to the foreknowledger of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood. May grace and peace be yours in fullest measure (I Peter 1:2)

Maybe sanctification is just trying to learn how to walk in something that is already done for us. I've caught myself many times thinking that if I do certain things right for a while and perhpas pray more etc. then I will be sanctified. Yet God has already set us aside and sanctified us forever. So is sanctification just learning to walk in something aready done or do we think our efforts can end us making us sanctified? I'm becoming more and more convinced that God doesn't see us as foul sinners who foul up their spiritual walk just because they are still rotten etc. He sees us and relates to us as pleasing to Him because we are in Christ and complte. He relates top the new manin Christ who is new because His body of sin was destroyed and killed at the cross. Our struggles are in learning to cast off the old man and walk in the new creation. The same with sanctification perhaps? God doesn't see us as struggling to achieve sanctification but sees us as truggling to learn to walk in something already done for us. If we are sanctified forever then we need to learn to act like it but not to try and achieve it. He wants us to relaize that we are already set aside and sanctified forever in Christ. That is who He relates to.

I don't know all the answers but personally I have the feeling that somewhere in me I think I can sanctify myself. Comments welcome.

Thank you.

Brother David,

Hoping I'm understanding what you're getting at and if not please forgive me-

It appears (from scripture) that you are correct in that God Himself is the one who "sets apart" those whom are given to His son, however while He is the one who sanctifies we are expected, based on the fact we have been set apart, to utilize His grace to "keep ourselves" as such.

For example we are charged with certain commands which, if we utilize the grace given us, to keep ourselves from idols, purify ourselves, not love the world nor the things therein, do good works, etc... Basically grace enables us to obey where before we could not-

Having said this the scriptures do say we can reject or not utilize said grace properly and instead count it as a license to sin which results in a grevious punishment.
Hebrews 10:29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

So in my understanding... Yes Jesus has finished the work on His end and His work is a "forever work" meaning nothing we do or don't do can effect His part,.. But we are (according to scripture) judged based on how we appropriate (by faith) His finished work by the proper utilization of the grace afforded us thru His sacrifice on the cross. For we can, after having received it, draw back into perdition-

Hebrews 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

From these scriptures it appears that God sees us exactly as we are and while He definitely sees our potential, He also sees our unbelief, lack of comitment, lust for the world, and not only our actions but the intent of our hearts. At the end of the day I honestly believe it comes down to a "willingness" to obey Him, His revealed will in our lives... tho we may stumble in it I believe He accepts us so long as we are willing to continue/persevere but if we draw back and go back to the world wether thru disobedience or deception we miss the mark entirely.

If we are already sanctified then why is Hebrews 12:11 asking us to pursue it?

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.

Pursue means "continue or proceed along ". If we are already sanctified then why should we still continue in sanctification? Which means sanctification is still inprogress in our life.

Hebrews 10:14 is talking about the positional sanctification or justification. In Jesus I am totally sanctified, God looks at me as if I have not sinned.

But apart from being in Christ, there is also my reality. For example it is like a rich man's son is already rich because he is son of the rich man. But the son should still study and learn to run the father's business himself. If he is not learning from his father, he can easily become a prodigal son who wasted all this father's wealth.

So in my personal walk with Jesus, I am also daily sanctified, saved from sin and being conformed to his image.

We are positionally there but the reality needs to be expressed in our lives so we are to seek it until it is, when we enter into His rest.

The problem is that many think that the positional can be taken as a reality when they have never come to Christ again, in brokeness and humility, knowing that they have put Christ back on the cross with their lack of conformity to His image and utter failures as a holy people.

I agree completely with you. Well written.

But the beauty is we take no glory for pursuing this sanctification. It is because of brokenness, we know that without his work in us, we cannot have completed the race. I believe all the 12 elders in Revelation were so broken and that is why they cast their crown at the feet of Jesus.