Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Living clean in a dirty world

II Cor. 7:1-2: “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
2 Open your hearts to us. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have cheated no one.”

We sometimes fail to realize that we serve a holy God. God is everything good, true, pure, and righteous. The life that God called us out of was a life of sin. Sin is everything that God is not. Sin is rebellion from God’s law. We as humans tend to think that God is some bully that has to impose His will on us. That He wants to punish us with these rules that no one can live up to. These rules are not meant to punish us or limit us in anyway. These rules were set up for our benefit; that if we live by them our lives will be better.

We as Christ-followers should strive to live a pure life, honoring the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross. Living a life free from filthiness is a life that seeks to honor God and the Gift of salvation. How do we know what filthiness looks like? We know by reading God’s word. Psalm 119 says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.10 I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”

If you have had a true repentance experience and have turned from a sinful lifestyle you will want to strive to please your Lord. Your lifestyle should start to change, and those things you thought was acceptable will turn out to be something alien to you. Living a life of excellence takes discipline and commitment. These are words that are foreign to our culture today. The thought is that I can behave and act anyway I want. That is why marriages fail, addictions are rampant, lawlessness is widespread, and why bad things happen in this world. Living a life that is striving and pursuing holiness is what we as Christ-followers are called to do. The grace that God give us is not cheap. Blood was shed so that I may live. Why should I live the same way that God found me?

Application
– We are called to live a higher standard then the world around us. We are not perfect however we strive to live as God would have us to live.

Challenge – Find an area in your life that you can “clean up”, pray about it, ask God to help you and find a friend that can help you with accountability.

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