But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. James 3:17
In this world of sexual explosions and the pressures of looking sexy instead of wholesome, it’s tough. Nearly every television program promotes casual sex and nearly ever TV commercial tries to convince you that purchasing their product will guarantee absolute “sexiness”. Movies not only indicate that casual sex is acceptable, but that “everyone” does it, AND they show you how it’s done – in living explicit color. Secular music not only encourages sexiness and casual sex, but violence to go with it. In this culture of 2010, purity takes on a whole new meaning, if you follow the cultural mores. But, being bombarded with cultural “rights and wrongs” isn’t the hardest part of purity.
Purity is a state of mind. Purity is recognizing what is Biblically acceptable and building up from there. Purity not only involves the sexual area of our lives, but the mental and spiritual areas of our lives. Purity is how we perceive everything.
I believe thoughts are the most difficult area of our live to draw into purity. We watch the impoverished and judge . . . “if they would only” . . . they wouldn’t be in that mess. We see the rich . . . “if they would only” . . . other people could have a chance. Race prejudice, wealth/poverty prejudice, religious prejudice, regional prejudice, birth defect prejudice, hair color prejudice – prejudice for prejudice sake. Impure thoughts toward a person or group of people we don’t even know, yet we judge them and call it righteous.
Then there are the spiritual impurities. We feel it is okay for us to judge, banish, and ridicule those who have faith in areas that are not the same as ours. We feel that it’s okay to judge people with our same faith and beliefs, but who aren’t part of “our” church, so they must be less spiritual, less valuable, and perhaps they aren’t “saved” because they aren’t “US”, AND they are making the same comments about us and our church.
How do we get to the point that Mother Theresa was at, where she saw Jesus in the eyes of every person; no matter that the state of their life was? How do we get to the point that Billy Graham was at when he went into the prison and hugged Jim Bakker, when the entire world was condemning him for using God’s people to build his own kingdom? I think of the pictures of soldiers in Iraq who are rocking dead children covered in blood. How do we see past the “enemy” to the child God made; past the outside that is filthy and drug ridden; past the hooker walking the streets, aged well past their years. How do we step into their lives, for just a moment, and see the pain in their lives that caused them to make the choices they have. How do we see past the outside? Purity.
Purity allows us to see through the eyes of Jesus.
Purity allows us to love for the sake of the broken.
Purity allows us to give people chance after chance, even after they have failed many, many times.
Purity is HOPE.
Purity is LOVE.
Purity is Jesus inside of us.
I pray daily for Purity.
Written by Linda J Humes
Written on 3-19-2010
Linda J. Humes 