Daffodils and tulip blossoms and Aspen leaves and carpets of grass will not make us think the millennium has come. The war rages on right through the summer. Every new, fresh, beautiful leaf is an offer of love from God to a rebellious world. The deep blue sky and the warm sun and the cumulus clouds are a merciful call to repentance before the final storm gathers. Every softball game, every fishing trip, every hour in the garden, every day at the lake is a field of conflict.
Sanctification is a war-time word.
A sanctified person has unswerving commitment to his cause. A sanctified person has uncompromising loyalty to the Commander and to his comrades in arms. If we go back now to Romans 15 we can see how sanctification comes about. Let's start again at the end of verse 15. The first and highest foundation of sanctification is the grace of God .