APPLICATION ARTICLE | Tim McPherson | Marion, Indiana
www.LumoProject.com
Purity is a wonderful study. In a Canadian illustration that William Stewart is aware – I’ve witnessed the making of maple syrup, right from the sap of the maple trees, immediately to the giant vat with a wood burning fire lit underneath. That 100% sap is boiled down and without any additives, without any pollutants, the sap becomes 100% maple syrup. Sweet and tasty in its own pure way. That’s pureness! There are no contaminants. Now you can put that on your pancakes! That’s good.
CHRIST’S EXAMPLE:
1 John 3:3, And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
1 John 3:5, And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.
APPLICATION OF CHRIST TO OUR LIFE:
The pureness and spotlessness of our savior is without question in scripture. He was as a lamb without blemish and without spot (1 Peter 1:19). The word purity means cleanliness. Thayer defines purity as: 2a) pure from carnality, chaste, modest 2b) pure from every fault, immaculate 2c) clean. It is an adjective! It describes Christ and those who live Christlike. To live pure is to live as Christ lived. I’m not going to discuss the fact that Christians might stumble, or fall, or sin at times. We do, but such sin is never approved by God, and must be repented of, confessed, and Christ’s blood cleanses us to return to the way of Christlike purity. Such failure is an exception to the rule, not the rule of life. As a rule of life, we practice purity. God has set forth purity as the way and method of life for a Christian. And we are to imitate the purity of Jesus and not excusing that pure life because of failure at times. To excuse sin, because we sin, would be to impose an impure life, the very opposite of God’s desire and will for Christians.
PURITY MAKES SENSE:
To become a Christian, I have been made clean. One of the grandest themes of the Bible is that a filthy sinner, a wretched man, a person guilty of vile sins and ungodliness can be made pure again. 1 Peter 1: 22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart. 1 Corinthians 6:11 states, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.” The plea is to live holy because we have been made holy and purified. A Christian is washed, justified, and sanctified. I’ve heard it said that a Christian is never pure. Who can believe it? Don’t let anyone rob you of the peace of mind that comes from being cleansed and made pure through Christ. Yes, you have your sins “washed away” (Acts 22:16), to arise to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4). That is the motivation to live righteous and holy, and that is the motivation to continue with Christ until the end. We are made righteous and holy. 1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him. Your argument is with God if you advocate a continual state of defilement. Don’t let Satan deceive you into thinking a pure life is impossible to live or maintain. God would not be calling us to purity if we are unable to remain pure in our thoughts and actions (Philippians 4:8). The will of God will not take us where the grace of God cannot keep us. 1 Peter 1:15-16 “but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY.” Christ’s holy life calls us to imitate holiness. Titus 2:14 states: “who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.”
THE WILL OF GOD:
I love the following passage: 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4 3 “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor…” Once again, commentators try to wrestle away the clear teaching of the Bible by stating that the will of God simply means God’s part of sanctification, but the passage includes both God’s part and man’s part. Obviously, we are studying that God’s part leads us to our part, God’s holiness leads us to our holy way of life and living. Although the word purity is not used, a parallel word is, that being sanctification. It is the Greek word, hagiasmos, meaning sanctification, moral purity, sanctity. Strongs states: (hagiasmos) properly purification, that is, (the state) purity; concretely (by Hebraism) a purifier: – holiness, sanctification. Did you notice, “This is the will of God”? “Your holiness”, your purity. The choice of Greek words used was specific by the apostolic writer. In contrast to the ungodly world and its view. The world does not make any demand concerning holiness or purity. How different we are from the world.
Quoting from Robertson word picture commentary: “Your sanctification (ho hagiasmos humōn). Found only in the Greek Bible and ecclesiastical writers from hagiazō and both to take the place of the old words hagizō, hagismos with their technical ideas of consecration to a god or goddess that did not include holiness in life. So, Paul makes a sharp and pointed stand here for the Christian idea of sanctification as being “the will of God” (apposition) and as further explained by the epexegetic infinitive that ye abstain from fornication (apechesthai humas apo tēs porneias). Pagan religion did not demand sexual purity of its devotees, the gods and goddesses being grossly immoral. Priestesses were in the temples for the service of the men who came.”
Wonderfully worded, God’s sanctification through Christ, being His will, includes His will for our sanctification as we live for that purity of life in Christ. So, in that one verse we see that God’s sanctification through Christ’s purity, that provides our salvation, then leads us to walk in that same holiness or purity.
MAKE APPLICATION
Purity in heart (Matthew 5:8) (2 Timothy 2:22) and mind (Titus 1:15) (2 Peter 3:1) and thoughts (Proverbs 15:26)
Purity in conduct (1 Peter 3:11) (1 Peter 1:15) (Ephesians 5:27)
Purity in words (Job 33:3) (Proverbs 15:26)
PRAISE BE TO GOD:
How wonderful it is to be God’s people. What makes us special is our pure way of life. We are following our savior. I encourage you to embrace that life! The pure life of our savior.
1 John 2:6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
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July 2025 | GROW magazine
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