Perfecting Holiness

 Every year I make an effort to choose a concentrated spiritual focus for the year, ( and hopefully for the rest of my life). Our congregation chooses an annual theme and Ned prepares a few lessons and preaches a few sermons to help focus us on a specific area of spiritual growth.  So if I were choosing a "theme" for the year, it would be "Perfecting Holiness" and would be taken from 2 Corinthians 7:1  where the Holy scriptures say this: "Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting Holiness out of reverence for God."

This verse is inspiring and a bit daunting.  I want to be more reverent, more holy, more everything that shows the goodness and righteousness of God.  This is not a new desire...every year I want this,  But, I notice that I am too easily distracted by busyness, by health concerns, by my own selfishness and pride and I lose this focus, in fact, in years past, I have forgotten my focus. I am so ashamed of this!  Spiritual growth cannot be sustained when I give up so easily.  And so, in my pentitent state, I vow to do better.

I love this verse because it tells us exactly HOW to do better. It says we have to PURIFY ourselves.  The word "purify" is described as "the process of removing impurities, contaminates or unwanted elements to make it clean, pure or fit for a specific purpose." Think back to the Old Testament when God gave specific instructions for His priests to serve in His tabernacle.  These specifications included such things as ceremonial washing, sacrifice, avoidance of contaminates and commitment to a purpose. Yes?  See the similarities?

Just as the priests completed a ritual of washing with water, we are washed in the waters of baptism--the ceremony symbolic of the washing of the soul, the cleansing of the mind and heart, the forgiveness and blotting away of sins.  And this happens because of the sacrifice that was Christ Jesus Himself.  Just as the  priests were commanded to offer certain offerings in a effort to restore relationship with God, it is because of the shedding of His blood, we can be pure, white as snow, free from all that might contaminate us and make us impure again. We must avoid, purify, turn away from anything that might "dirty"us . The priests, once cleansed, had a list of contaminates that would threaten their purity, such as blood, sexual relations, and  death.  They HAD to avoid such things in order to remain set apart for God's purpose and effective in His service. These were mostly physical contaminates, but the Old Testament is comprised of  physical pictures of New Testament spiritual truths.  After all, how would the New Testament church be able to comprehend what sacrifice was and why Jesus HAD to die for us, if they didn't have the Old Testament teaching of the necessity of  a BLOOD SACRIFICE of a PURE and UNBLEMISHED offering?   Makes sense!

But, isn't that the hard part?  The verse says "everything that contaminates body or spirit."  Listen, I have been thinking about this.  There are so many things that may not harm our bodies, but have a definite negative impact on our spirit (soul, heart),  Things like pride, envy, lying, inappropriate language, selfishness.  Oh my, there are tons of them and yet, as long as we don't let murder, or theft, or adultery is, we feel that we are still uncontaminated.  And as uncontaminated, we are still pure and still fit for service. (BTW, so many passages say the opposite--both Old Testament and New Testament--see Galatians 5:19-21, Leviticus, Revelation 21:8 etc) Note that it is important enough for God to mention it more than once.  And detrimental enough to disqualify one for service to God and damage our relationship with Him.  

God, being just, pure a loving, maintains relationships with those who are just, pure and loving.  I cannot be prideful and selfish, focused on myself instead of the mission, distracted from the Word and preoccupied with the world, if I am to keep myself contaminate free.  The blood of Jesus purified me and continues to purify me, but I must avoid anything and everything that threatens that status and therefore my relationship with God.  

The verse ends with the "why".  Why do we keep ourselves pure?  Paul says it is out of reverence for God.  Because HE is God, and because I believe by very nature, He is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent AND because I KNOW that He is a promise keeping Father, I long for eternal relationship with Him and service for Him.  Understanding that I need to hold tight to the purity given through Jesus' blood, my goal for 2026 is to put away EVERYTHING that contaminates my body and spirit so that my holiness (given because of His Holiness) may be perfected (mature).   This is the goal and with prayerful conversation and concerted effort, I refuse to be distracted.  

Blessings!

Neva