Purity.. Part 4
So we had a great discussion last night in the church van about this topic, and the state of many Christians in general, after our See You After the Pole rally. Each of the previous posts will come in here too, but this could almost stand on its own as we finish up this discussion today.
When we speak about purity, the important thing to remember is that it encompasses so much more than sex. Leviticus told us that we should (MUST) "be holy, because I, your God, am holy." It's not a bummer of a rule, instead its the best thing that we can imagine. Think about the person you are closest to in this world. Do you tend to think alike and do most of the same things? If not, do you wish you did more where you were of one heart/mind? The simplest way to explain God's requirement that we be holy, comes down to our relationship with Him. Sin creates distance in that relationship and divides us. God, who loves us so incredibly, hates that and so should we.
Most times, we sin then ask for forgiveness and simply go on. But, let's take a look at a biblical model: David sins (adultery/murder), is called on the carpet for it and is wracked with guilt, he radically changes what he does, then goes on in newness of life to never do that again. We tend to ignore the "radically changing our lives" part. Instead of Jesus', "Go and sin no more," we've altered it to be, "Go and sin less frequently, if you can. If not it's okay because God still loves you." While it's true, God does love us radically, we don't want to think that we cannot escape sin. That thinking is the very chain that we are supposed to escape because of Christ's death that we instead embrace!
John Wesley, founder of Methodism and on whom the Wesleyan church comes from, spoke of "Christian Perfection" (meaning complete freedom from willful sin in this lifetime) because of all the texts he read in Scripture that said we could/should. His thought was that if God expects something of us, we can do it! And honestly, that's true. As a father, I'm not going to expect my son to lift as much weight as I can at 30 while he is 10 (maybe when they're closer to 20, but that's another topic altogether!). If God is the perfect Father, would he be expecting something of us we are incapable of? Heck no!
Thus, Paul's reminder to Timothy to, "Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity." He wasn't telling him to do something radical, he was merely telling him to be who he was supposed to be. If we set the example in purity in our words, actions, lifestyle, and sexual choices this world would be a radically different place. I mean, seriously, think about your high school or junior high and the things that people do while proclaiming that they are a "Christian." Does it set an example in what they say, the way they live, their love, their faith, and their purity or does it show the same standard that everyone else adheres to?
More pointedly, let's think about our church. Does what we say, do, and love show us to be a church full of people who love Jesus (note: this doesn't mean there's not a place for jokes and fun, it means that our humor and thoughts need to be in lien with what Jesus would want, not what "Jesus wouldn't want you to say...") or just another place full of people? Ouch. That kind of hurts to think about because our job, annoying/irritating or not, is to radically love people and model Jesus Christ for them. Are we doing that? Why not?
Things like that are what keep me awake some nights, because I hurt for the people in our city who don't know who Jesus is simply because a bunch of idiots won't act like the church! They've been burned by someone before or they've been condemned out of hand or they've seen what we "church people" look like and found us worse off or any number of other things, but they need Jesus just as much. This whole series can be condensed into one idea: be Jesus. It's the working out of that idea that is a whole lot harder!
Tomorrow I'll get personal and give you the closer to this series with some thoughts gleaned form my life and hopefully we can life this life together as God meant us to.
When we speak about purity, the important thing to remember is that it encompasses so much more than sex. Leviticus told us that we should (MUST) "be holy, because I, your God, am holy." It's not a bummer of a rule, instead its the best thing that we can imagine. Think about the person you are closest to in this world. Do you tend to think alike and do most of the same things? If not, do you wish you did more where you were of one heart/mind? The simplest way to explain God's requirement that we be holy, comes down to our relationship with Him. Sin creates distance in that relationship and divides us. God, who loves us so incredibly, hates that and so should we.
Most times, we sin then ask for forgiveness and simply go on. But, let's take a look at a biblical model: David sins (adultery/murder), is called on the carpet for it and is wracked with guilt, he radically changes what he does, then goes on in newness of life to never do that again. We tend to ignore the "radically changing our lives" part. Instead of Jesus', "Go and sin no more," we've altered it to be, "Go and sin less frequently, if you can. If not it's okay because God still loves you." While it's true, God does love us radically, we don't want to think that we cannot escape sin. That thinking is the very chain that we are supposed to escape because of Christ's death that we instead embrace!
John Wesley, founder of Methodism and on whom the Wesleyan church comes from, spoke of "Christian Perfection" (meaning complete freedom from willful sin in this lifetime) because of all the texts he read in Scripture that said we could/should. His thought was that if God expects something of us, we can do it! And honestly, that's true. As a father, I'm not going to expect my son to lift as much weight as I can at 30 while he is 10 (maybe when they're closer to 20, but that's another topic altogether!). If God is the perfect Father, would he be expecting something of us we are incapable of? Heck no!
Thus, Paul's reminder to Timothy to, "Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity." He wasn't telling him to do something radical, he was merely telling him to be who he was supposed to be. If we set the example in purity in our words, actions, lifestyle, and sexual choices this world would be a radically different place. I mean, seriously, think about your high school or junior high and the things that people do while proclaiming that they are a "Christian." Does it set an example in what they say, the way they live, their love, their faith, and their purity or does it show the same standard that everyone else adheres to?
More pointedly, let's think about our church. Does what we say, do, and love show us to be a church full of people who love Jesus (note: this doesn't mean there's not a place for jokes and fun, it means that our humor and thoughts need to be in lien with what Jesus would want, not what "Jesus wouldn't want you to say...") or just another place full of people? Ouch. That kind of hurts to think about because our job, annoying/irritating or not, is to radically love people and model Jesus Christ for them. Are we doing that? Why not?
Things like that are what keep me awake some nights, because I hurt for the people in our city who don't know who Jesus is simply because a bunch of idiots won't act like the church! They've been burned by someone before or they've been condemned out of hand or they've seen what we "church people" look like and found us worse off or any number of other things, but they need Jesus just as much. This whole series can be condensed into one idea: be Jesus. It's the working out of that idea that is a whole lot harder!
Tomorrow I'll get personal and give you the closer to this series with some thoughts gleaned form my life and hopefully we can life this life together as God meant us to.
Comments
Post a Comment