A mistaken understanding of purification has distorted the principle of salvation in Jesus Christ. Therefore, this concept must be understood correctly and faithfully according to the testimony of Scripture. The sacrifice of the Lord Jesus was not primarily intended to cleanse human beings from “stains of sin,” as if sin were merely a moral blemish attached to a person. The essence of the problem of sin is far more serious: sin is human rebellion against a holy and just God, which arouses God’s wrath. This dimension must be seen as central in understanding salvation.
No religion in the world has a concept of salvation like that revealed in the Gospel. This is not surprising, for salvation indeed comes from the Jews, through God’s progressive revelation, brought to completion in Christ. The Gospel does not speak of human efforts to improve themselves so that God may accept them, but of God’s own action to restore a relationship ruined by human rebellion.
In Isaiah 1:18, the Lord says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” This statement is often understood superficially as the mere removal of sin without further implications. Yet this verse is meant to affirm that God no longer counts the sins of His people who have repented. However, this removal of sin does not in any way cancel the demand for genuine repentance. On the contrary, God’s act of not remembering sin gives rise to responsibility and a calling for human beings to be transformed into the people God desires.
If forgiveness is centered only on the human condition—that is, on the removal of guilt symbolized by stains of sin—then such forgiveness is anthropocentric. True forgiveness must be theocentric—centered on God—which means its primary focus is not the guilty condition of human beings, but the heart of God that His creation has betrayed. Through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, God’s wrath against humanity is fully appeased. This is where human beings experience sanctification. Yet this sanctification is still at the stage of passive sanctification.
Sanctification by the blood of the Lord Jesus must not be imagined as though, once a person is “sanctified,” all issues of sin are automatically finished. Many teachings implicitly suggest that Christ’s sacrifice provides an “all-in” salvation package: once someone believes, they are considered holy, pleasing to God, and certainly going to heaven without any further struggle. Such an understanding has caused many Christians to lose the drive to grow and to live in absolute holiness.
The Bible does acknowledge the presence of a sinful nature that still clings to human beings. The blood of the Lord Jesus does not automatically transform this nature into a divine nature. This passive cleansing or sanctification does not instantly change the sinful nature into a divine one; it does not automatically make a person truly pleasing to God. When the Bible says that the blood of Jesus cleanses, it means a change in status: human beings who were previously guilty are now regarded as not guilty before God. This status is given because the Lord Jesus has borne the punishment that should have fallen on humanity.
Thus, God’s justice is upheld. The offense is still punished, but Christ bears the punishment as the substitute for human beings. This is the true meaning of redemption: not the abolition of God’s law, but the fulfillment of that law through the sacrifice of the Son of God. In this divine order, there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood. God’s justice is satisfied, and human beings receive a new status before Him.
Sanctification by the blood of Christ—which changes the status of a sinner into that of one who is justified—is passive. In this, human beings are entirely passive. There is no merit, effort, or contribution from them at all. The Lord Jesus accomplishes everything. Therefore, no one can boast of being holy based on their own deeds. Human salvation is not the result of human effort or goodness, but purely the grace of God.
Yet precisely because this passive sanctification is given freely, human beings are called to respond to it with a changed life. Passive sanctification is not the final goal, but the doorway into active sanctification—the process in which believers consciously, obediently, and persistently work out their salvation. Here is where human responsibility begins: a life that has been redeemed must be directed to please God truly.