Purity

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior. ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24:3-5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Psalms‬ ‭51:7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Lord detests the thoughts of the wicked, but gracious words are pure in His sight. Proverbs‬ ‭15:26‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin’?  ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭20:9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The way of the guilty is devious, but the conduct of the innocent is upright. ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭21:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Those who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not cleansed of their filth. ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭30:12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭1:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I will turn my hand against you; I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities. ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭1:25‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”  ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭6:5-7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.  ‭‭Daniel‬ ‭12:10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Has not the one God made you? You belong to Him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.  So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth. Malachi 2:15 NIV

But who can endure the day of His coming? Who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, ‭‭Malachi‬ ‭3:2-3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.”  Matthew 5:8 NLT

“He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in Me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.”  ‭‭John‬ ‭15:2-4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to Him as an instrument of righteousness. ‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV

‬‬I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. ‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭7‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:8-9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

 It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; 1 Thessalonians 4:3

The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭3:9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Timothy‬ ‭4:12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, and do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure. 1 Timothy‬ ‭5:22‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. ‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭1:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.  ‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭2:20-23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.  ‭‭Titus‬ ‭1:15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!  ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭9:13-14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  ‭‭James‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭1:22‬ ‭NIV‬‬

All who have this hope in Him purify themselves, just as He is pure. ‭‭1 John‬ ‭3:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

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Devotionals

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8 NKJV. Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity By Oswald Chambers. Purity is not innocence— it is much more than that. Purity is the result of continued spiritual harmony with God. We have to grow in purity. Our life with God may be right and our inner purity unblemished, yet occasionally our outer life may become spotted and stained. God intentionally does not protect us from this possibility, because this is the way we recognize the necessity of maintaining our spiritual vision through personal purity. If the outer level of our spiritual life with God is impaired to the slightest degree, we must put everything else aside until we make it right. Remember that spiritual vision depends on our character— it is “the pure in heart” who “see God.” God makes us pure by an act of His sovereign grace, but we still have something that we must carefully watch. It is through our bodily life coming in contact with other people and other points of view that we tend to become tarnished. Not only must our “inner sanctuary” be kept right with God, but also the “outer courts” must be brought into perfect harmony with the purity God gives us through His grace. Our spiritual vision and understanding is immediately blurred when our “outer court” is stained. If we want to maintain personal intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ, it will mean refusing to do or even think certain things. And some things that are acceptable for others will become unacceptable for us. A practical help in keeping your personal purity unblemished in your relations with other people is to begin to see them as God does. Say to yourself, “That man or that woman is perfect in Christ Jesus! That friend or that relative is perfect in Christ Jesus!”

“Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.”  ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭23:26‬ ‭NKJV‬‬. Our Daily Bread, commentary by Julie Ackerman Link. “Your hair is really healthy,” said my hairdresser after giving me a haircut. “I hope it’s because you use our products.” “No. I’m sorry,” I said. “I just use whatever product is cheap and smells good.” But then I added, “I also try to eat well. I think that makes a big difference.” When I think about the things we do to make ourselves look good, I’m reminded of some of the things we do to make ourselves look good spiritually. Jesus addressed this issue with the religious leaders in Jerusalem (Matt. 23). They followed an elaborate set of religious rules that went well beyond the ones God had given them. They worked hard to look good to their peers, to prove that they were better than others. But their hard work didn’t impress God. Jesus said to them, “You cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside [you] are full of extortion and self-indulgence” (v.25). What the Pharisees did to make themselves look good to others actually revealed that they were not good at all. Every culture values different religious behaviors and traditions, but God’s values transcend cultures. And what He values isn’t measured by what others see. God values a clean heart and pure motives. Spiritual health is expressed from the inside out. You know me, Lord, for who I am. My motives and heart are open before You. Cleanse me from the inside out. And help me to live as Jesus did—with pure and true motives. We might look good on the outside without really being good on the inside.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1 NIV. Commentary by Joyce Meyer. Purity Leads to Power. In order to live in victory, it’s important that we make up our minds to live for God no matter what. Hebrews 12:1 tells us to throw off every sin that entangles us. It is virtually impossible to be a spiritual success with known, willful sin in our lives. I don’t mean to say that we must be absolutely perfect in order for God to use us, but I am saying that we must have an aggressive attitude about keeping sin out of our lives. When God says something is wrong, then it is wrong. We don’t need to discuss, theorize, blame, make excuses, or feel sorry for ourselves—we need to agree with God, thank Him for showing us, ask for forgiveness, and work with the Holy Spirit to get whatever it is out of our lives forever. Purity leads to power, and with God’s help, we can live abundant, powerful lives. Prayer of Thanks: Father, I thank You that You point out sin in my life so that I can move past that sin and live in victory. Today, I want to set aside any sin that entangles me and live a pure and holy life for You. Thank You that You will help me every step of the way.

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Quotes

“The man whose blood is pure has nothing to fear. So he whose spirit is purified and sweetened becomes proof against these germs of sin. ‘Anger, wrath, malice and railing’ in such a soil can find no root.” – Henry Drummond

“God would not rub so hard if it were not to fetch out the dirt that is ingrained in our natures. God loves purity so well He had rather see a hole than a spot in His child’s garments.” – William Gurnall

“He that loves the Word and the purity of its precepts cannot turn traitor.” – William Gurnall

“The way to preserve the peace of the church is to preserve its purity.” – Matthew Henry

“Purity and simplicity are the two wings with which man soars above the earth and all temporary nature. Simplicity is in the intention, purity in the affection; simplicity turns to God; purity unites with and enjoys Him.”  – Thomas a Kempis

“You must keep your memory clean and pure, as it were a wedlock chamber, from all strange thoughts, fancies and imaginations, and it must be trimmed and adorned with holy meditations and virtues of Christ’s holy crucified life and passion: That God may continually and ever rest therein.” – Robert Leighton

“I would sooner be holy than happy if the two things could be divorced. Were it possible for a man always to sorrow and yet to be pure, I would choose the sorrow if I might win the purity, for to be free from the power of sin, to be made to love holiness, is true happiness.” – Charles Spurgeon

“There is no faithfulness like that which ought to be between a guide of souls and the person directed by him. They ought continually to regard each other in God, and closely to examine themselves, whether all their thoughts are pure, and all their words directed with Christian discretion. Other affairs are only the things of men; but these are peculiarly the things of God.” – John Wesley

“When the saint ceases to seek after holiness, purity, righteousness, truth; when he ceases to pray, stops reading the Word and gives way to carnal appetites, then it is that Satan comes.”  – Smith Wigglesworth

“The proof of spiritual maturity is not how pure you are but awareness of your impurity. That very awareness opens the door to grace.”  – Philip Yancey

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