Most Christians accept that we are justified/saved by grace through faith in Jesus through His blood and not works (Romans 3) because we cannot be perfect like Jesus in our works.

But then they say that they are sanctified/holy by works in following Jesus by doing good deeds and avoiding bad deeds.
The problem is if we use works to define sanctification/holiness then what standard are we using?
If a person is not righteous by works, the standard used is the law .
Therefore we can only use the law to define sanctification by works and then nobody can be sanctified by works!
Only Jesus fully obeyed the law – to follow Jesus by works is to say that you are trying to be holy by the law!
The truth is that most believers will say that they will NEVER be perfectly holy like Jesus in this life.
They agree that Jesus has to return to give us brand new bodies that will be perfect in behavior like Jesus.

So then you agree that you can never be holy by your works!!!
You need Jesus to do something to make you holy!
Just like you needed Jesus to do something to justify you!

This is the Gospel. That in this life on earth we already have every spiritual blessing in Christ by faith in Jesus and not works.

EPHESIANS 1 “3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight….. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,”

We are FORGIVEN all sins and HOLY by His blood.
You cannot be any more HOLY in this life by your works!

HEBREWS 10 “The law…can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. …..9 Then JESUS said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made HOLY through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all… 14 For by one sacrifice he has made PERFECT forever those who are made holy….. these have been FORGIVEN,”

You see the law was all about works. Nobody could be holy by works. They always sinned and blood of animals could not forgive them.
But by the BLOOD of Jesus, He made us PERFECT and HOLY, FORGIVEN ALL SINS.

You see why a believer cannot be holy by works!
Both unbelievers and believers do good deeds but nobody is perfect in their behavior. Therefore nobody is holy by their works!

Holiness is only by Faith through the death of Jesus.

COLOSSIANS 1 “22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you HOLY in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23 if you continue in your faith,”

So you see there is no difference between JUSTIFICATION and HOLINESS. We have BOTH by FAITH in Jesus.

1 CORINTHIANS 1 “5 For in CHRIST you have been ENRICHED (Spiritually) in EVERY way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— 6 God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. 7 Therefore you DO NOT LACK any SPIRITUAL gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be BLAMELESS / HOLY on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful,”

Why is the believer having everything and not lacking spiritually but BLAMELESS and HOLY ?
It is because of the CROSS of JESUS.

1 CORINTHIANS 1-2 “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified…..For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God……

28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our RIGHTEOUSNESS, HOLINESS and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.””

Jesus is our Righteousness AND HOLINESS. We boast in Him.
He did ALL the work on the CROSS.

If you have to do works to be holy then you can boast in it.

You see that you can never be “holy/sanctified” by works just like you were never “justified” by works.

To say that Righteousness is by faith but Holiness is by works is a MIXED GOSPEL…..it is nullifying the cross.

On the Cross, Jesus made you HOLY and RIGHTEOUS. He sanctified you by His blood.

1 CORINTHIANS 6 “But you were WASHED, you WERE SANCTIFIED, you were JUSTIFIED in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

When you believe in Jesus, you RECEIVE EVERYTHING by the blood:
– you WERE WASHED, FORGIVEN, CLEANSED, JUSTIFIED/RIGHTEOUS, SANCTIFIED (HOLY) by faith through His blood.

Sanctification is not a process of works. It is received by faith in Christ’s finished work.

Salvation = Forgiveness of sins = Holiness = Justification = Sanctification = Righteousness = EVERYTHING received ONCE by Faith in Jesus through His finished work by Grace and not our works !!