¶610.6 Consecration
God calls His people to set themselves apart to His will and purpose (Romans 6:13; 12:1-2). Anything thus set apart is said to be consecrated.
All Christians are called to be holy and without blame before God in love (I Thessalonians 3: 12-13; 5:23-24). If Christians are to witness effectively in the world, they must be distinguished by righteousness, peace, joy, faith, hope, and love (John 13:34-35; Ephesians 5:8-10). God wants a people who are fully committed and surrendered to His Lordship to do His work (Matthew 7:21; 16:24). When Christians sincerely follow Christ and listen to the Holy Spirit as He speaks in the Scriptures, they should sense this need of cleansing from inward sin. They should desire earnestly to be filled with the love of God and long for a relationship with Christ which will satisfy their deepest inward need and empower them to serve and obey the Lord (Ephesians 5:1-2; II Peter 1:3-8) .
Christians, therefore, must consecrate themselves to God and surrender their wills to the will of the Heavenly Father (Philippians 2:12-13; Hebrews 13:20-21). Those who desire inward sanctification must deny themselves, bear the cross, and follow Christ (Luke 9:23). Devotion to self is idolatry. A Christian who is divided in loyalty cannot serve God victoriously and steadfastly. Christ must be given the pre-eminence. He must be the Lord of the Christian’s life.
Therefore, to open themselves to the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, believers must give themselves without reservation to God. They freely yield all to the purposes of God and devote every desire and ambition to the service of Christ rather than to self (Colossians 3:8-13, 17). Christians cannot be delivered from the dominion of sin if they permit self to reign in their lives. They cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24).
