I love taking the time to drill down into the many different names for God and see the heart of the Father.  He loves us so deeply. His many names show us different aspects of his character and how he relates to us. Through one of his names we learn that God provides a way of life we never knew was possible, it is the path to joy.

Today I want to consider the Hebrew name for God,  Jehovah M’Kaddesh.  This name means Jehovah Sanctifies. The Hebrew word kaddesh means sanctify, consecrate, to set apart as holy.  The New Testament Greek equivalent word is hagiazo and means to cleanse, purify, separate from the profane and dedicate to God. This word is almost identical to the words that mean holy and saint.

The name Jehovah M’Kaddesh was first given by God to Moses in Exodus 31:12-18.  Moses had been on Mount Sinai receiving the Law and instructions for the Tabernacle from the Lord for the past forty days.  The last thing the Lord discussed with him was the observation of the Sabbath. Observing the Sabbath would be a sign between God and His people throughout the generations.  It could be compared to wearing a wedding ring,  an outward sign of a relationship that is set apart from all others.
The Jews were to keep the Sabbath “that you may know that I Am the Lord who sanctifies you, Jehovah M’Kaddesh” Exodus 31:13.

What Is Sanctification?

Sanctification is a big religious sounding word that is actually a simple concept taught all over the Bible.  It is the process of becoming holy, or set apart. Once we come into a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus,  Jehovah M’Kaddesh starts cleaning us up.  I remember years ago a woman starting attending our Bible study and really turning to the Lord.  After a couple of weeks she pulled me aside and with a worried look asked me,  “What’s up with my language?  I mean I used to be known for cussing like a sailor and now I just can’t.  I can force it, but things are different with me. I seem to be changing?”  Bingo. This is sanctification.  Jehovah M’Kaddesh was beginning his lifelong process of sanctification or consecration in this new believer.  He was starting to clean her up. She was beginning to be set apart unto the Lord, in a word, she was becoming holy.

“Be holy for I am holy.” I Peter 1:16

As soon as some of us hear the word holy we may think “How in the world can I be holy? I am so far from holy.  I don’t even know if I want to be holy, that doesn’t sound like any fun!”  I hope you can learn from my experience. I have learned that trying to live for myself while trying to live for the Lord just doesn’t work.  You have to choose.  Either we live for our selves, trying to make ourselves happy (the happiness only lasts so long and then the sense of emptiness creeps back in), or we live for the Lord and sense His pleasure on our lives. When we follow him and turn from sin we find that we are filled with His joy.  The world’s attractions are like tinsel, they are alluring but in reality they can never bring true joy and satisfaction. It turns out walking on the path of holiness or sanctification is the path of joy and true fulfillment. This  is where we find the abundant life.

Who Does the Sanctifying?

So who does the sanctifying?  Is it God or is it us?  Some of the verses say God or the Holy Spirit is the one who sanctifies, other verses say we are to consecrate ourselves.  Is it God or do we have a part in it?  The answer is unequivocally  yes.  Sanctification is up to God and we have a part in it.

A friend of mine used to smoke cigarettes.  She had been an occasional smoker for years.  After she came to the Lord she felt like he was asking her to give up smoking.  She prayed about this and much to her amazement her desire for cigarettes. just disappeared. In her case she didn’t have to struggle and she was grateful.  But she said that she knew at any point in time she could pick up a cigarette and get right back into that habit.  She had to choose not to light that first cigarette.  The Lord was Jehovah M’Kaddesh to her but she had to make the choice to stand firm in her new freedom.

Our Part in Sanctification

In the amazing prayer of Jesus in John 17 Jesus takes some of the last few moments of his earthly life and prays for his disciples and those who will come after them, you and me. He explains that he does not ask the Father to take us out of the world but to sanctify us in the truth.  Then he adds, Thy word is truth.  From this we learn that the Lord is not calling all of us to remove ourselves from the temptations of sin by living out our lives in some place like a monastery, but to be sanctified by the word of God right where we are in life. Ephesians 5:26 elaborates on how this is done: by the washing of the water of His word.

Sanctification through the word of God is not a passive proposition.  We come to the Scriptures and listen and read with an open heart, asking the Lord to show us any thing that we need to change in our lives, to convict us of any sin and to bring correction where it is needed. James tells us when we read the word of God it is like looking into a mirror. Who of us would look into a mirror, see a bit of spinach wrapped around our front tooth and just walk away, not taking the first opportunity to remove the spinach? In the same way, when the Holy Spirit shows you some area of your life that needs cleaning up, be sure to act on it.  Recently a friend was asked what sin should we repent of?  He answered, “The one the Lord is dealing with today.”  The Lord does not overwhelm us, he doesn’t slam us with every sin in our lives so that we feel condemned and want to throw in the towel.  He deals with one sin at a time. It is a process, a lifelong process.  He knows what he wants to deal with today. All you have do to is take the spinach off our tooth when he points it out!

I remember a time when I committed a clear cut sin.  I am not going to share the details but I stretched the truth with Harry.  I told him a lie.  I did it because it was basically convenient for me and kept him from being irritated with me.  The next morning as I was just waking up I could sense the conviction of the Holy Spirit about telling the lie, and the grieving of the Spirit over my sin.  I repented before the Lord and went to Harry and told him what I had done.  He was fine but appreciated me clearing things up.  I was so grateful for the Lord’s sweet conviction of sin in my life.  I did not want to keep going in that direction. I was so thankful to have cooperated with Jehovah M’Kaddesh.

Another time, things were not so black and white in the Scripture.  It was about something where the Scripture is silent, something that may actually be fine with the Lord for someone to do, but very gently the Lord had been whispering to me that this is not right for me.  I tried to muster up the resolve to obey.  I tried my hardest.  It didn’t work.  I ending up failing in my obedience and frustrated and disappointed with myself.  It became a continuing pattern.  Finally I came to the end of myself and said, Lord I want to obey you in this area of my life, but I have tried and failed. I cannot do it.  Only by your grace, by your strength can I follow you.  And this is what I learned, His grace is sufficient.  I had to depend on him moment by moment but He showed up.  He is Jehovah M’Kaddesh.

And do you know what happens when you start to get cleaned up?  You start walking on the highway of holiness.  And do you know what happens then? Joy, and then more joy become the hallmark of your life.  

Jesus prayed for our sanctification and said, “These things I speak that they may have My joy made full in themselves.”  John 17:13

Jehovah M’Kaddesh loves us deeply and provides not just our salvation but our sanctification. He provides a way of life we never knew was possible, it is the path to joy.