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The Church’s Purity
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will witness God.”
(Matthew 5:8)
What does it mean that the pure in heart will “see” or “witness” God? Does it mean that they will visibly witness God in this life as Moses did from behind (Exodus 34:5-7) or as Manoah did when the birth of Samson was announced (Judges 13:22)? Does it mean that we will “dream dreams and see visions”? A better understanding of what Jesus is speaking, that applies not only to believers across the ages but also to the church across the age, is that they will see the hand of God at work. While God has appeared before people at specific times and places in human history, such theophanies should not be understood as a normative experience. What is normative, though, is the believer’s capacity to see the providential work of God unfolding in his life as well as in his church.
If we wish to see (with understanding) God’s hand at work, Jesus tells us that we must be pure in heart. Yet, what is this purity? Indeed, we are all sinners, every last one of us, so how can we ever be truly clean in this context? For the Christian, our cleanliness is not our own, but is an alien cleanliness as we stand before God clothed in the righteousness of Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21) and eternally, our robes will be washed in the blood of the Lamb (Revelation 7:14). Yet, what of the corporate church? How does it establish and maintain its purity?
The word that is translated here as “pure” is the Greek word καθαρός (katharos). As a term it can refer to that which is pure or, more narrowly, that which is free from contaminants. One of the easiest illustrations of purity and contamination is something that we all use on a daily basis: water. Sometimes, when water is contaminated, the contamination is easily detected. There might be dirt, bits of plant material, etc… that are visible within the water itself. At other times, contamination is a little more difficult to detect. The water may look clear but smell a little funny or it may have unhealthy bacteria that is invisible to the eye but also harmful to the body. In such cases, things like charcoal filtration or distillation may be necessary to make the water healthy.
When applying this kind of analogy to the church, it should be obvious how easily contamination can enter into the life and worship of the body. Sometimes it is obvious and visible, for instance, when churches establish imagery of God, breaking the second commandment or when they harbor adulterous sins amongst their membership. Some are more subtle, like preaching “self-help” sermons that teach you how to “live your best life now” or practice worship with man-made songs instead of with the psalms that the Lord has given to His people for the purpose of worship. The Westminster Confession, chapter 21 speaks of those elements that are Biblically commanded of God’s people: prayer, reading of the Scriptures with godly fear, sound preaching of those Scriptures as well as hearing with application to the soul, singing psalms with grace in your heart, offering and receiving sacraments as instituted by Christ, and other oaths, vows, fastings, and thanksgivings upon special occasions. The Belgic Confession, Article 29 narrows this down to three marks: the pure doctrine of the Gospel is preached, the sacraments as instituted by Christ are maintained, and that church discipline is exercised to constrain sin.
When we start adding in “other things” based on our preferences, we see the purity of the church contaminated. When the church pursues preference, feelings, or personal agendas, it ceases to be the True Church and its worship is something akin to that of Nadab and Abihu. They may seem to have fire, but it is an alien fire that God will not bless. And, in turn, such churches will no longer witness God and His power, but they will become witnesses of themselves and promoters of their own power and influence over men. Purity, dear Christian, in worship and practice, is important to God according to His Word.
Holiness
“The last thing, brothers, is that whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is upright, whatever is holy, whatever is lovely, whatever is praiseworthy, if there is virtue and if there is praise, think on these things.”
(Philippians 4:8)
The word aJgno/ß (hagnos) belongs to a word group that derives from the root word, a¢gioß (hagios), a word that we typically translate as “holy.” These refer to things that have been set apart for divine use and preserved from blemish or being defiled by worldly things. God is the example of holiness par excellence, but he also calls his people holy (Deuteronomy 7:6; 14:2; 26:19; Ephesians 1:4) because he has set us apart for his own purposes and he calls us to strive toward holiness in lifestyle (Leviticus 11:44-45; 19:2; 1 Peter 1:15-16).
Like the vessels used in the temple worship, everything they did was dedicated to needs of the Temple and could be used in no other context, we are described in the same way. Thus, all we do, we do in the name of Christ for the glory of God (Colossians 3:17) and all that is not done in faith is sin (Romans 14:23). If we live, we are to live to Christ; if we die, we die to the glory of Christ — everything for the believer revolves around Christ (Philippians 1:21).
Does that mean that Christians are only able to pursue sacred professions? Yes! But every profession that is given by God to man is a sacred profession when done to the glory of Christ. So, whether you are a farmer, a lawyer, a mechanic, a carpenter, a secretary, a banker, an engineer, a pilot, a soldier, or a minister…or any other moral profession…you are called and gifted by God for that task so that you may do that task to His glory.
So we are holy because of God calling us to his Son, Jesus. Yet, as we are fallen and yet imperfect, we must strive towards a life that reflects our holy calling. This, Paul says, we should set our minds upon that we might live it out. The question we must all be asking ourselves is what patterns of behavior, what habits, what practices, and what things in our lives take away from the holiness to which God has called us? It is my suggestion that the deeper and more honestly you look, the more you will find. Such is indeed my own experience.
A Pure Spring in our Lives
“The last thing, brothers, is that whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is upright, whatever is holy, whatever is lovely, whatever is praiseworthy, if there is virtue and if there is praise, think on these things.”
(Philippians 4:8)
If we were ever to want advice on a way to live out the Christian life, resisting the distractions of this world, here it is. If there was ever a piece of worthy advice that was ignored by professing Christians, here it is. As a young man I used to canoe along stretches of the Patomic River with my Boy Scout troop. At one point along the river is a natural spring that comes up from its source with so much force, that the spring holds back the water of the river from filling it. If one canoes into the well of the spring, an area that was probably 12’ in diameter at the time. one can look back and see what looks like a vertical wall coming up from the riverbed where the muddy, brown Patomic river flows across the opening to the spring without coming in due to the spring’s force.
What Paul is saying is to allow those things that are good and pure…those things of God…to act like that spring in your life, holding at bay the filth of this world and remaining incorruptible.
While we all know that Christians will stumble into sin and disobedience, what is sad is how rarely many Christians actively seek to live this out. And further, when Christians seek to live this out, it is sadder still that other Christians often seek to mock them as being over-zealous in their faith. Beloved, if you are mocked in your faith for seeking to live this out, do not be discouraged from doing so; it is a sign that you are doing the right thing…remember our Lord’s words about acceptance by the world.
It would be a sad thing were that spring to fill up with mud and simply be absorbed by the river…it has been several decades since I have been on that stretch of the river, it may have already filled up, I do not know. But it is a thing, sadder still, when Christians succumb to the pressures of the world around them and fill their minds and hearts with that which defiles instead of that which edifies. Loved ones, hear the words of the Apostle Paul and heed them. Set your minds on these things and allow the force of these things cleanse your life from the muck and the mire of this world.
Purify Me with Hyssop: Psalm 51 (part 8)
“Purify me with hyssop and I will be clean;
deep clean me, and I will be made whiter than snow.”
(Psalm 51:9 {Psalm 51:7 in English Bibles})
David understands well one of the most important lessons that any human can learn: it is only God and God alone who can cleanse from sin. No amount of good deeds or sacrifice on our part can atone for our sin—certainly, by human effort we can satisfy our human judges and often placate the other humans we have offended—that is all well and good—but dealing with God is an entirely different matter. God is not impressed by even our greatest feats—has not the skill to perform such feats come from God to begin with? God is not impressed by all the wealth in the world—does not all the wealth of the universe come from His creative hand? Oh, beloved, as we have spoken earlier, though our offense may be against another human being, our sin is against God, and our efforts fall woefully short of being able to satisfy his justice.
You might say, ‘were there not sacrifices made by the priests to atone for sin throughout the history of ancient Israel?’ Indeed, there were many sacrifices. On the Day of Atonement and on the Day of Passover, blood poured out of the temple and onto the streets of Jerusalem from the hundreds of thousands of animals slaughtered. Yet, friends, these sacrifices were not only temporary sacrifices, they also pointed to a far greater sacrifice that would come, when Jesus Christ, the Son of God himself, allowed himself to be sacrificed on the day of Passover for our sins—your sins, if you are a born again believer in Jesus Christ, and my sins. Loved ones, the only reason that ancient sacrifices were of any value was because of what would come; their only power and effectiveness came from the reality and the potency of what they pointed to—namely the death of God’s divine Son on the cross.
Thus, forgiveness is God’s to give, not man’s to earn. How often we seek to do things to atone for our own sins, as if these things will impress God. How often we punish ourselves by depriving ourselves of God’s good blessings, thinking that God will be pleased by our actions. Dear friends, remember, God is the one who gives out and who takes away all good blessings—if he desires to strip you of blessings as a means of chastising you and rebuking you, he will do so. If God desires to chastise you in other ways, he will do so, for he chastises those he loves (Hebrews 12:6) just like a father chastises his children. At the same time, if we repent with a broken and a contrite heart and God desires to show mercy upon us, why do we shun such affection? Indeed, we are unworthy of such blessing in the wake of our sin, but are we not always unworthy of the blessings of God? Are we not deserving only of wrath and judgment even on our best days? Beloved, it is God’s to forgive, and it is God’s to wash you clean.
The Hebrew word that David uses in the second line is the word sb;k’ (kabas), which normally is the verb that means “to wash” or “to clean.” Yet, David uses it in the Piel stem, which is a grammatical form that adds not only intensity, but a sense that it is repeated over and over. In Hebrew, when this verb is used in the Piel, it refers to a deep cleansing that is done, much like you may scrub a stain over and over again to make sure every last remnant of the stain has been removed. Forgiveness is a deep cleansing from God, one that not only removes the surface stain, but one that cleanses even to the core of our being.
One other note of importance: hyssop was an important element in ancient purification rituals. It was a small, bushy plant in ancient times that the priests would pluck small branches from, dip the bushy end into either water or blood (depending on the ritual), and then sprinkle the water or blood onto the person as a sign of their cleansing (some have argued that it was likely a hyssop branch that John the Baptist was using, dipped into the Jordan river and sprinkling on those who came for baptism rather than immersing them into the river—for a great discussion on this, read Edmund Fairfield’s “Letters on Baptism”). This sprinkling was meant as a visible sign of the forgiveness that the repentant person sought. In seeking forgiveness from God, David is placing before him the request that the forgiveness be both visible and on the surface (the hyssop), but also deep down and to the very depth of his being (sb;k’). Oh, how we need such total forgiveness in the wake of our manifold sins!
Beloved, hear these words of David and apply them to your own lives. Is this how you repent, falling on the mercy of God and recognizing it is only in God’s hands that forgiveness can be given? Or do you seek to “earn” forgiveness by doing certain things that you perceive as being noteworthy before God? Loved ones, let grace be grace. Come to Christ with nothing in your hands and do not despise it when he fills your hands with mercy and grace. Come to him with a broken and contrite heart and let him heal you—let him deep clean you to the deepest recesses of your soul. The hyssop is good and important, but it is the deep cleaning we need and it can only be given by God in his abundant grace and mercy. Come to Jesus, beloved, come to Jesus and live!
Weak and wounded sinner, lost and left to die,
O raise your head for Love is passing by.
Come to Jesus, Come to Jesus,
Come to Jesus and live.
Now your burden is lifted, carried far away,
And precious blood has washed away the stain,
So, sing to Jesus, sing to Jesus,
Sing to Jesus and live.
-Chris Rice
The Preacher's Study 