"Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."
2 Corinthians 7:1
The promises spoken of here I am guessing are the ones that are in the verses before this at the end of chapter 6: "... I will receive you, / And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."
The promise of becoming part of God's family is an amazing one, and has outrageous amounts of potential and possibility for us... and that is what we are asked to consider as we enter into chapter 7.
Here, we are asked to cleanse ourselves from the filthiness of the flesh and spirit, which is interesting because we often think of the division between the two as good (spirit) and bad (flesh), and that the only reason we have any problems is that we have bodies. Clearly though, as we learn even from the war in heaven, that is not the case. There are, unfortunately, a myriad of ways that we can be filthy, both internally (spiritually), and externally (physically).
I think humility is the key here, as it is in so many other areas. We have to trust in God's law and his instruction in the gospel to help us know the boundaries of our own behavior, and learn of him the reasons why as we go... because frankly we just can't trust ourselves (or society) to judge what is right all the time. As we learn more and understand more, we'll do better, but until then, trusting that our desires are good and a part of who we are gets us into unbelievable trouble, as we start putting our own interpretations before God's laws. ... And this is true despite society's view of unacceptable or frequently-accepted sins. For instance, God says that fornication *and* racism are both sins, but society has been quite tolerant of one or the other throughout history.
I think that idea of putting God's opinions before our own is what is meant by the fear of or the profound respect for God. When we recognize who God is, and we understand that we are working under the promise of being part of his family, that can change our perspective. We understand that God doesn't want to be a boss or an overseer, but that he wants to help us as a father, and on our side we are entering into the agreement as children, recognizing that we need guidance and instruction, but that being part of that relationship and that family means that someday we will be able to be much better and stronger (and less filthy) than we are now. :)
Today, let's work on "perfecting holiness" by cleaning out the dirt and cobwebs in our spirits as well as our bodies. Let's trust God in a real way by valuing his opinion above our own, and learn from him as we work toward being worthy members of God's family.
2 Corinthians 7:1
The promises spoken of here I am guessing are the ones that are in the verses before this at the end of chapter 6: "... I will receive you, / And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."
The promise of becoming part of God's family is an amazing one, and has outrageous amounts of potential and possibility for us... and that is what we are asked to consider as we enter into chapter 7.
Here, we are asked to cleanse ourselves from the filthiness of the flesh and spirit, which is interesting because we often think of the division between the two as good (spirit) and bad (flesh), and that the only reason we have any problems is that we have bodies. Clearly though, as we learn even from the war in heaven, that is not the case. There are, unfortunately, a myriad of ways that we can be filthy, both internally (spiritually), and externally (physically).
I think humility is the key here, as it is in so many other areas. We have to trust in God's law and his instruction in the gospel to help us know the boundaries of our own behavior, and learn of him the reasons why as we go... because frankly we just can't trust ourselves (or society) to judge what is right all the time. As we learn more and understand more, we'll do better, but until then, trusting that our desires are good and a part of who we are gets us into unbelievable trouble, as we start putting our own interpretations before God's laws. ... And this is true despite society's view of unacceptable or frequently-accepted sins. For instance, God says that fornication *and* racism are both sins, but society has been quite tolerant of one or the other throughout history.
I think that idea of putting God's opinions before our own is what is meant by the fear of or the profound respect for God. When we recognize who God is, and we understand that we are working under the promise of being part of his family, that can change our perspective. We understand that God doesn't want to be a boss or an overseer, but that he wants to help us as a father, and on our side we are entering into the agreement as children, recognizing that we need guidance and instruction, but that being part of that relationship and that family means that someday we will be able to be much better and stronger (and less filthy) than we are now. :)
Today, let's work on "perfecting holiness" by cleaning out the dirt and cobwebs in our spirits as well as our bodies. Let's trust God in a real way by valuing his opinion above our own, and learn from him as we work toward being worthy members of God's family.
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