The Pure Way

"How can a young person stay on the path of purity?

By living according to your word."

Psalm 119:9

I rush through my morning rituals, standing before the mirror as a thousand thoughts cross my mind. I've got to remember to pick up the light bulbs for Dad.  I wonder if my sister is feeling okay today.  Lord, help my friend in her time of greatest need.  I apply moisturizer as more thoughts flow.  How will Dad take the news of this disease that ravages his mind?  Will he comprehend?  I wonder if I should follow up with the furnace repairmen?  It seems a week is ample time to order and receive the needed part.  As if on auto-pilot, the brush comes out, makeup applied, scarf tied around neck.  I walk out of the bathroom without the slightest clue as to how I looked.  I could have toothpaste smeared on my chin and food stuck in my teeth.  I stood before the mirror but didn't even see myself, so distracted was I.

This is often the same as it is for me when I read God's Word.  I go through the motions, skimming the words on the page but not letting them sink in, resisting the nudge of the Holy Spirit as He points out a passage here, a word there.  What does it mean?  What message is God speaking to me?  How does He want me to respond?   I don't take the time to discover because I'm ready to move on to the next thing.  I'm not paying attention, so distracted am I (James 1:22-25, 2 Timothy 3:16-17).  

Yet this Book that I hold in my hands is the key to pure living.  I may think it is impossible in such an age as this, to live purely in a corrupt world, but in Christ, there is a way.

Intentional.  One of my favorite memories of growing up is inner-tubing down the river during the summer time.  It felt like such an adventure as my friends and I floated downstream, letting the current take us.  But if we only floated along, not paying attention to the eddies drawing us into a maddening whirlpool, or the fast-moving flow that seemed the safe way yet battered our heads under unyielding branches every time, we often got into trouble.

It's the same with my faith-life.  If I just float along, letting the current of public opinion, or common beliefs, or popular thinking carry me along, I'll soon find myself in a vortex of meaninglessness or swept away on a dangerous-yet-common route.  If I am to live in a way that honors the sacrifice Christ made for me, I must deliberately live purposefully to do as He says.  As I study God's Word, then, I must listen to the still, small voice of His Spirit and heed His warnings, yield to His guidance, and let Him have His way instead of me stubbornly insisting on mine.  As I sensitively walk with Him, I will not break His law as I find my desires have been supernaturally brought into alliance with His (Galatians 5:16-18).

In order to resist the drift into worldly mindsets that corrupt God's best for me, I will need to live intentionally.

Wholehearted.  It's easy to hold out on Jesus.  I love Him and want to follow Him, but there are areas of my heart that I make off-limits to Him.  I think I'm dedicated wholly to Him, until He points out the fact that I crave the affirmation of man, or that I still cling to my desire for comfort above commitment, or that there is still that issue of fear of exposure that I expertly hide in my heart.

I can trust Jesus with my entire heart.  He will not hurt me, use me or exploit my pain.  Instead, He has my best interest at heart and will lead me along as a good shepherd does, with God's glory coupled with my welfare in mind.  It boils down to me dedicating myself to the person of Jesus Christ.  Nothing more.  Is He my greatest desire?  Do I realize He is all that I need?  Am I content with Him alone?  If I were to be stranded on a desert island, do I really get it that making Him my one possession would guarantee me complete happiness?

In order to live purely in a dark and sinful world, I will need to completely give myself over to Jesus.

Guarded. "Truth is for our protection."  The words pierced like a beacon through the darkness.  My friend's wisdom resonated deeply.  In order to stand firm in His best for me instead of giving in to what seems better, I must be rooted in the truth of God's Word.  To keep from being swept away by the words that sound good to my itching ears, I must be able to discern the deceptive teaching are not from my Father (2 Timothy 4:3).  If I want to stay on the rocky path that leads to life, I will need to know the fallacies of the tempting wide, smooth, well-traveled road (Matthew 7:13-14). 

God's Word can serve as my weapon against the deceitful attacks of the Enemy (Ephesians 6:13-18) .  As he pelts my armor with lies and temptations, I can fight back with the truth that does damage to his wily schemes.  If I don't know the truth found in scripture, however, I'll be taken over by the relentless assaults of Satan.

In order to stand firm in such a topsy-turvy world against an enemy that constantly tries to trip me up, I will need to use my sword to guard my faith.

It may seem impossible to live virtuously in such a dark world, but it is possible.  Through faith in Jesus Christ, it is vital that I live intentionally  in order to resist the drift, to avoid the temptation to hold out on Jesus, and to use God's Word to protect me from attack.  In these ways I'll be able to walk the pure way!

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can live on purpose instead of just letting life happen.

When do I hold part of me back from Jesus, attempting to restrict His access to my heart?

How am I afraid of letting Him fully in?  How is this fear a kind of stronghold that guards me from the loving approach of my Father?           

Holiness of God

"The LORD gave these instructions to Moses:

'Command the people of Israel to remove from the camp

anyone who has a skin disease or a discharge,

or who has become ceremonially unclean by 

touching a dead person.

This command applies to men and women alike.

Remove them so they will not defile the camp in which

I live among them.'"

Numbers 5:1-3

Completely conquer the inhabiting peoples.

Make no treaties with these nations.

Show no mercy to these people groups.

Don't intermarry with these foreigners.

Destroy religious artifacts and altars of these nations.

God gave this list of instructions to His people before they entered into the land He had promised them but which was inhabited by seven powerful and mighty nations.  When God gave these commands, it was with the intention that His chosen people were to remain pure and true to Him, not because they were special in and of themselves.  Instead, they were only considered to be exceptional because the Lord had chosen them.  (Deuteronomy 7:1-6)

I'm sure the Israelites were not so different from me, sometimes thinking there was something special in themselves that stood out, grabbing God's attention and motivating Him to choose them as His own.  To make it perfectly clear, though, God reminded His people that He had chosen them simply because He loved them and that He had promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that He would. (Deuteronomy 7:7-11)

Getting back to God's insistence on purity, I have to ask, Why was it so important that God's people be pure?  He didn't want them to be contaminated by disease, foreign gods or anything unclean.  Adherence to such rules could easily make them think they were better than all other peoples.  This, however, was not the intention.  Instead, God wanted His people to practice purity because He as their God, and now as mine, is holy.

Higher

They thought they had God all figured out.  They told Job all about the One who created them from nothing.  Job's friends put the suffering man on trial, treating him like a criminal and trying to force a confession out of him.  Instead of comforting him, they found themselves defending God and lecturing Job on the reasons for what they saw as punishment.

It wasn't long before God responded.  When He did, there was no doubt as to Who was supreme and sovereign.  He asked such questions as, "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?" (Job 38:4) and "Have you visited the storehouses of snow or seen the storehouses of hail?" (v 22)  The Lord drilled Job with queries like, "Is it your wisdom that makes the hawks soar or spread its wings toward the South?" (Job 39:26)  Job and his friends were definitely put in their rightful place and they came away humbled.

God's ways are much higher than mine.  (Isaiah 55:8-9)  I cannot expect to understand or even fathom His purposes.  Therefore, I must trust Him with my life, knowing that His plan is best yet realizing that I may not comprehend why He is leading me down a certain path.  Instead, it is my job to follow, leaving the "why" and the "how" up to Him.  

So when I am stricken by illness after illness, leaving me feeling like a useless shell of what I used to be, I can look to the One who directs my footsteps and know that He has a plan for the pain.  Or when I go through times of want, struggling to make ends meet, I can look for the lessons He is teaching me in the middle of the desert.  Or when I feel like I am all alone, ceasing to sense His presence despite my searching, I can remember that I stand in the shadow of His Almighty.

The holiness of God reminds me that His ways are much higher than mine and can never be fully understood.

Worthy

"I just want you to know that you deserve the best.  You are beautiful." Lil Wayne

"Timidity keeps people from their good.  They are afraid to say, 'Yes, I deserve it.'" Maya Angelou

"You deserve to be happy.  You deserve delight."  Hannah Arendt

Is it any wonder that we live in an age of entitlement?  We are constantly bombarded by such self-absorbed messages which appeal to our sinful natures.  After all, who doesn't want to be the center of attention and receive the best out of life?

The problem is, however, that God did not create me to get all the things I think I deserve.  Instead, He created me for His own purposes, and He is the only one who deserves anything at all.  In fact, since this is His creation, I would even go so far as to say that I should learn to be thankful that He even gives me my next breath.

Instead, I often adopt the attitude that I've worked hard and I deserve a break.  Other times, I justify my sinful ways by listing all the things that I think I do right.  Sometimes, I even find myself thinking I have earned some kind of benefit or reward due to my effort or attitude.

These are the times when I must remember that only God is worthy to be praised and exalted. (Revelation 4:11)  Even though I want recognition for a job well done, the Lord is the one who deserves all the credit.  Without Him, I would not even have the tools or even the life to accomplish anything.

Even though I think my sin is not a big deal in the scheme of things, God is the only One who can judge my heart.  Even though I've decided that my endeavors have earned me something good, only God is righteous enough to offer blessing or curse.

Instead of focusing on my own value, then, I would be wise to consider the worthiness of God to be praised and exalted above all things.  It is easy to either lift myself up too high, or not see any merit in myself at all.  In the place of putting myself on the scale in the first place, I can keep my attention on the One who created me in His image, knowing that He is the only One who is worthy to be praised. (Psalm 145:3)

The holiness of God reminds me that He is the only One who is worthy to receive praise and honor, keeping my attention fully on Him.

Majestic

The mighty mountain peak towered above the surrounding land, reigning over the plains and valleys.  Everyone who visited the Puget Sound area marveled at the beauty and majesty of Mount Rainier.  

Like a snow-covered mountain peak that can take my breath away, God is similarly majestic in power and authority.  There is nothing God cannot do and no place where He cannot visit.  As Moses and Miriam sang after God delivered them on dry land through the Red Sea, rescuing them from the persistent and powerful Egyptians, "Your right hand, O LORD, is glorious in power.  Your right hand, O LORD, smashes the enemy.  In the greatness of your majesty, you overthrow those who rise against you.  You unleash your blazing fury; it consumes them like straw."  (Exodus 15:6-7)

Since God is for me through faith in Jesus Christ, who can be against me? (Romans 8:31)  Who can thwart the plans of the Almighty?  Who can trip up His purposes for my life?  Therefore, I can trust Him to do what is right, to lead me on the path that is best for me, and to protect me from those who want to harm me.  

The holiness of God reminds me that He has power and authority over all things making Him the only One who can be trusted to lead me into the unknown of tomorrow.

God wants me to live a life of purity because of His holiness.  This means that He is a God whose ways are higher than mine, who is the only One who is worthy to be praised, and who is majestic in power and authority.  When I dedicate myself to living a life set aside for Him, I end up glorifying these attributes of my holy God.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can worship the holy God in the way I live my life.

When do I take His holiness lightly?

How do I lower God's status in order for Him to meet my own standards?