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The Necessity of Cleansing
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.”
Psalm 24:3–6
The Pharisees of Jesus’ day made a great show of outward compliance with the requirements of the law. In fact they specialized in adding to the law through their traditions, and going beyond what God had required. The problem was that they used their outward conformity as a way to cover what was going on inside. It is vital that we be right both without and within, but holiness and cleansing begins on the inside. Jesus condemned the Pharisees for their hypocrisy in strong terms, pronouncing judgment on them: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess” (Matthew 23:25).
The reality is that all of us sin and need God’s cleansing. While some of these sins are visible to others, the majority are internal and not easy to detect, at least in the beginning. And those hidden sins, if they are allowed to linger, will do far greater damage in the end to our spiritual lives and those around us than immediately visible sins ever will. The devil tries to convince us that as long we are maintaining appearances on the outside, it is okay to harbor sin in our hearts. But God sees the heart, and He calls us to confess and forsake even those sins that only we know exist. We must abandon sin in all areas of life if we want to walk in God’s presence.
Psalm 24:3–6
The Pharisees of Jesus’ day made a great show of outward compliance with the requirements of the law. In fact they specialized in adding to the law through their traditions, and going beyond what God had required. The problem was that they used their outward conformity as a way to cover what was going on inside. It is vital that we be right both without and within, but holiness and cleansing begins on the inside. Jesus condemned the Pharisees for their hypocrisy in strong terms, pronouncing judgment on them: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess” (Matthew 23:25).
The reality is that all of us sin and need God’s cleansing. While some of these sins are visible to others, the majority are internal and not easy to detect, at least in the beginning. And those hidden sins, if they are allowed to linger, will do far greater damage in the end to our spiritual lives and those around us than immediately visible sins ever will. The devil tries to convince us that as long we are maintaining appearances on the outside, it is okay to harbor sin in our hearts. But God sees the heart, and He calls us to confess and forsake even those sins that only we know exist. We must abandon sin in all areas of life if we want to walk in God’s presence.
Today’s Growth Principle:
We cannot expect a close relationship and fellowship with God unless our lives are clean inside and out.
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