Appointed To Bear Fruit: A 90 Day JourneySample

Commissioned

The third prayer request that Jesus offered on behalf of His disciples was sanctification. Often, we misinterpret the word ‘sanctification’ in this verse to mean personal holiness. Sanctification here means to be set apart or separate. Jesus was asking the Father to set the disciples apart to spread the gospel. Jesus’ prayer was really a prayer of commissioning. Now that Jesus was completing the Father’s plan, the torch needed to be passed to the disciples. Jesus’ prayer revealed that the disciples’ commission was a divine decision born through the Son’s prayer to the Father.

Jesus was sanctified or set apart to fulfill the Father’s plan of salvation. He was the Lamb of God that took away the sins of the world. In the Temple, unblemished lambs were set apart for sacrifice on the altar. They were to be dedicated and offered to God. Jesus had also prayed consecrating Himself as the Lamb of God. After His death on the Cross, no other lambs would need to be sacrificed. All the sacrificial lambs in the Temple were symbols for the Israelites to remember that God would one day permanently take away their sins. Jesus became our sacrifice on the Cross by submitting to the Father’s will and humbling Himself to the point of death.

Because Christ was set apart as our ultimate sacrifice, the disciples were to also be set apart. Our sanctification is different from Jesus’ sacrifice. Jesus was the Lamb that was dedicated for sacrifice. The disciples were not dedicated to be a sacrifice for sin. Instead, they were set apart for a special mission. In the Old Testament, God often set apart prophets (Jer. 1:5) and priests (Exo. 40:13; Lev, 8:30) for special purposes. These people no longer lived their lives as they did before. Instead they stopped what they were doing to focus all their energy on their new assignment. For example, Elisha was sanctified or set apart as a prophet when he was out plowing his field. Immediately, he stopped his career as a farmer, sacrificed his oxen, and served the Lord. 

Jesus prayed so that His disciples would be set apart by the Father for the task of witnessing to the sacrifice of the Lamb of God. If they isolated themselves from the world, there would be no testimony. If they lived worldly lives, they would not be able to exhibit the power of the gospel and call people to repentance. They needed to be set apart to engage the world with the Good News. By doing so, the gospel would be clearly heard as people were warned of the judgment to come (I Pet. 4:1-6). Therefore, Jesus’ disciples and all disciples after them, need to be sanctified in the renewing of their minds. In other words, Christ’s disciples need to stop becoming like the world, and abide in Christ instead. As we do so, we will understand His will for our lives and we’ll make the changes necessary in our lives to bear fruit for His glory.

We are sanctified by the truth. This truth is not some general principle for living or a code of ethics. It’s God’s Word or revelation, the revelation that is supremely seen in the Father’s plan of salvation. The truth that sanctifies us is the Cross of Christ. The Cross reveals the model for doing God’s will: Jesus humbled Himself and obediently died on the cross. In the same way, His disciples are to deny themselves and abide in Christ through humility. We are to die to ourselves and the world, and we are to strive to fill the world with God’s glory. This mission is what sets us apart.

Application:  Are you willing to be set apart from the world to fulfill this mission?