3 Day Bible Reading Plan - “Gift of Sanctification”
In John 17, we see Christ's humility captured. It's that Jesus is slowing down Himself and rejoicing, committing to the task ahead (The Mission). You see, Christ's consecration was Him leaving where He belonged. It was leaving the throne of heaven. It was Him going to Earth to be born in a manger. It was leaving Heaven to be the Son of a carpenter. He fully accepted the mission before Him, God's desire before Him to set Himself apart for a holy use or a sanctified use, which is the cross. - Pastor John C. Hughes, 12/14/25
Day 1
Featured Verse: John 17:17 - “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”
How does Jesus' prayer for sanctification "by the truth" reveal the relationship between God's Word and the process of becoming more like Christ in daily life?
In what ways does understanding "your Word is truth" shape our view of Scripture's authority and role in distinguishing truth from falsehood in a world full of lies and half-truths?
If God's Word is inherently truth, how should this affect the way Christians approach doubts, cultural pressures, or personal experiences that seem to challenge biblical teachings?
Pause and Reflect: Since Jesus declares that God's Word is truth, how are you actively guarding your heart and mind against lies or half-truths in culture, media, or personal doubts by rooting yourself in the Bible?
“The truth is the sanctifier, and if we do not hear or read the truth, we shall not grow in sanctification. We only progress in sound living as we progress in sound understanding. ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.’” - Charles Spurgeon
Day 2
Featured Verse: John 17:18 - “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.”
How does the parallel Jesus draws between His own sending by the Father and the disciples' sending into the world reveal the nature and purpose of Christian mission?
What implications does the phrase "as you sent me" have for understanding the cost, authority, and dependence of being a disciple of Christ?
Given that Jesus prays this just after asking for sanctification by truth (John 17:17), how does being set apart by God's Word equip and empower believers for their sent role in the world?
Pause and Reflect: In what specific spheres of your life do you sense Jesus sending you right now, and what steps could you take to live more intentionally as one who is "sent" rather than merely drifting through those environments?
“The principle that lies here is that Christian men are sent into the world on the same errand for which Christ came into the world. He was 'sent' that He might be the Light of the world; that He might be the great Teacher of mankind; that He might be the Bearer of the one sacrifice for the world's sins, by which the world's sins might be taken away. And just in the measure in which we are united to Jesus Christ by simple faith in Him, in that measure does there flow into our hearts and lives the same spirit which moved Him, and we, too, are sent into the world that we may bring light to men who sit in darkness, that we may speak the words of Jesus Christ, and that by our lives, and if need be by our deaths, we may lay the foundation on which is built the city of God, the New Jerusalem.” - Alexander Maclaren
Day 3
Featured Verse: John 17:19 - “And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”
If Jesus sanctifies Himself “for their sake” (on behalf of the disciples), how does this emphasize the vicarious aspect of His life and death, and what implications does it have for the doctrine of union with Christ?
How does the purpose clause “that they too may be truly sanctified” link Christ’s self-sanctification to the ongoing process of sanctification in believers’ lives today?
Given the progression from truth as the means (v. 17), mission as the context (v. 18), and Christ’s self-sanctification as the source (v. 19), how might this verse reshape our understanding of the relationship between Christ’s finished work and the believer’s progressive holiness?
Pause and Reflect: Jesus sanctified Himself with a clear purpose—“for their sake”—to enable you to be set apart for God’s purposes in the world: how could a deeper grasp of your sanctification being anchored in His finished sacrifice liberate and empower you to step out more confidently as His sent representative?
“And for their sakes I sanctify myself. By these words he explains more clearly from what source that sanctification flows, which is completed in us by the doctrine of the Gospel. It is, because he consecrated himself to the Father, that his holiness might come to us; for as the blessing of God flows from the Head to the members, so the holiness of Christ is conveyed to us, from him as the beginning and the cause.” - John Calvin