1 Corinthians 7: 1 Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God. The church in Corinth needed to clean out some closets and yes, also clean out some messes in their homes. They had apparently become "spiritual hoarders" and what they were hoarding was affecting their spiritual growth. Paul was writing to ask them to repent and "get right" in their relationship with the Lord. He mentioned cleansing and this cleansing had two parts to it. First, turning away from sin, and second, turning toward God. They needed to make a "clean break' from the world around them and commit their lives fresh and new to God. They were born again but they were compromised in their walk because of sin being allowed back into their lives and living in that sin was drawing them away from God and they needed to come back to their initial faith experience and start fresh. They had not lost their salvation, but they were dead in their carnality and in that deadness, the things of the old nature crept back in.
I walked by my desk at home the other day and decided I needed to clean it out and organize it and I was amazed at how much "junk" I had collected. I was a mini hoarder!! As hard as it was, I threw out some stuff that was not needed, and even though it was difficult I knew it was needed. Some of the stuff I discovered caused me to say "Where did this stuff come from?" Maybe this is what we all need to do from time to time. Clean out those unnecessary things in our life closet. Some things to clean out might be Overeating, impulse buying of clothes, buying home trinkets (gotta fill an empty space on that shelf), bad influences in media, friends that compromise our Christian walk, and musical instruments (that was mentioned for my wife). Whatever has come between us and Jesus needs to be cleaned out and the cleansing begins today!
Paul was talking about very important things that needed to be cleaned out that can defile the body or spirit. These things keep the sanctification work of the Holy Spirit from happening as God intended. Paul goes on to tell the Corinthians to work toward holiness because they fear God. Then in verse 2 Paul tells them to open their hearts to his teachings and he assured them no one had been led astray by him or his companions. In other words, Paul was saying "Trust us." Then Paul goes on and calls them to repentance and that would mean life change and getting back on track. Those Corinthians did not need to "get saved again" because they did not lose their initial salvation. Their faith was just "dead!"
When I was a junior in high school we lived across the street from neighbors who were "into" hot rods and I loved going over there and watching them make old dead engines come to life. They would take an engine that had been dormant for years change some peripheral parts and make it come to life. One thing they always wanted to make sure of was the "engine block" was in good condition and if that was good, then all the others could be added to that secure "block" which is the foundation of the engine. They would meticulously add the heads, carburetor, spark plugs, and many other parts, and then add the fuel, and those old dead engines would crank up and run like new. If the block was good they didn't need to throw out the whole engine, but just replace the other parts to make it all come together and then run like new again.
Jesus is our block and when we received Him we were born-again and even some of the other parts need to be updated, if we received Him our foundation to get the engine running again is there and ready for an update. When Jesus is our block, He is the rock He always said He was and the main thing was taken care of when we received Him by faith, the faith of a child. Perhaps all that needs to be done now is to clean out the old carnal ways that have crept into our lives and let Him rebuild our faith and walk the walk as He has laid that path out for each of us. When Jesus is our foundation and we clean out all that is not good for us that holiness takes place a lot quicker and it is more lasting. Paul said to do this house cleaning because "we have these promises." God's promises are real and part of those promises is that we are firm in our faith because of what He did for us and we live the rest of our lives because of the wonderful promise, or gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. Just let that experience remain "real" to you and add the other parts of your walk with Jesus like Bible Study, Prayer, Service, and Holy Living and the realization and freshness of your walk will grow every day. Today is the day to stop hoarding the wrong things. Get those out of your life and begin to grow in the right way and that is in God's Word and in the Holy Spirit. Don't just look at that mess. Clean it up and see what God will do through you!
The Pilgrimage Continues
David Warren
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