“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” (1 John 3:1-3 NKJV)
What is Pure?
The text
above tells us unequivocally that God is pure, and from other Bible verses we learned
that all that comes from Him is pure; God is the very source of purity:
- His words are pure, very pure; every one (Psalm 12:6, 119:140, Proverbs 30:5-6)
- His commandment is pure (Psalm
19:8)
- His instruction is pure concerning baptism (the
waters of baptism, Hebrews 10:22, consider Jesus’ words in Matthew
3:15 and Mark 16:15-16, it is part of righteousness and necessary for salvation)
- His wisdom (James
3:17)
What Needs to Be Pure?
We learned
that every part of us needs to be pure, because every part is linked – and we
with each other – so we must give constant attention to:
- Ourselves (1 John
3:1-3, Psalm 24:3-5, 51:10, 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8, 1 Timothy 4:12) and our example so we can properly
teach younger women (Titus 2:3-5)
- Our souls (1 Peter 1:22-23,
also read and consider John 3:1-8, 1 John 1:8-10)
- Our religion (how we
put God’s instruction in action, James 1:27, 2 Corinthians 9:8)
- Our conscience (1
Timothy 5:2, 2 Timothy 1:3, Hebrews 10:19-23, 1 John)
- Our hearts (Acts
15:9, and consider Hebrews 11:6, Matthew 5:8, 2 Timothy 2:22)
- Our words (Luke
6:43-45, Proverbs 15:26, Ephesians 4:29-32, Proverbs 25:11-12)
- Our minds (2 Peter
3:1, Proverbs 16:2, 30:11-14, John 8:43-45, Matthew 7:15, 2 Timothy 4:3-4, Galatians
1:6-10, and Philippians 4:8)
- Our eyes (Luke
11:34, read and consider Psalm 101:3-4)
- Our bodies (1
Corinthians 6:18-20, Romans 12:1-2, consider Matthew 5:27-30, Ephesians 5:1-7, Hebrews
13:4, 1 Corinthians 6:13-18, also read and consider Colossians 3:1-17 and 1
Thessalonians 4:3-5)
Why do we purify
ourselves?
…we were purchased with Jesus’ blood;
we are not our own, we belong to God,
and anything belonging to God is to be pure.
Without Jesus’ sacrifice we would still be held helpless in bondage to sin (Ephesians 2:11-13, Romans 6). Jesus died to redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people – Christians – who are zealous for good works ---> people using their purified hearts, minds, eyes, words, and bodies for good (Matthew 25:34-46, Titus 3:1, 8, 14)! God has told us what practices cause impurities (with command to remove them) and has graciously told us what good and pure things we must practice instead – He has provided all we need to maintain our purity – it’s up to us to make proper use of His provision of both time and instruction!
Denying self, taking up our crosses, and following Jesus (Matthew 16:24, 1 John 2:3-6) won't always be easy, but it sure will be worth it! When
we consider what awaits us, what God holds out for us in both blessings and in hope
for eternity, what He asks of us is small (Romans
8:18-19) – it is worth our every effort and our every sacrifice!
Are you ready to love God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind (Matthew 22:37)? Are you preparing yourself to flourish even more in 2024 in purity?
You can do it! So can I!!
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