Purity
Deu 7:1-5, John 17:1-2, Act 2:17, Gal 6:10, Titus 1:13 - 16, Matt 9:10-14, 1 Tim 1:15-16
John 13:34-35, Gal 6:10
October 2, 2004
(Deu 7:1-5 NIV) When the LORD your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations--the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you--and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you. This is what you are to do to them: Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols in the fire.
I. Those verses seem harsh. How could a God of love tell His people to show no mercy, and kill a whole nation of people.
A. How could God tell them to wipe out men, women and children?
B. The answer is simple. Purity! God did not want his people to be drug away from their commitment to Him by people who worshiped false Gods, and did not worship the true God.
C. God knew that if those people were allowed to live among his people that they would corrupt the purity of his nation.
D. God had a plan for the world and His plan was, that his people be holy and separated from the rest of the world, and devoted completely to Him.
E. There have been people through the years who have abused this in many ways.
F. There are people who still try to live in the Old Testament instead of living in the New Testament.
G. Now, when I say that, I don’t mean that the main principles that God laid down in the Old Testament are not true, and should not be followed, but we should pay close attention to the changes that Jesus’ death on the Cross made where those principles are concerned.
II. Before I go into that I want to make sure that I cover a couple of the ways that well meaning people have misrepresented God’s intentions.
A. The first way is people have used those verses that I read wrongly to belittle other races and promote bigotry.
B. When God told His people to destroy the other nations and not intermarry with them it had nothing to do with racial purity, and everything to do spiritual purity.
C. God did not have anything against people with a different skin color. God wanted his people to live in spiritual purity, in their relationship with Him.
D. He did not want the people of other nations mixing with His people not because of race, but because of spiritual issues.
E. God knew that the people who lived in the land worshiped other Gods and that they would drag his people into the worship of other God’s.
F. And the New Testament also lets us see that the idea of a relationship with God being only for one nation or race is no longer valid.
(John 17:1-2 NIV) After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over ALL people that he might give eternal life to ALL those you have given him.
(Acts 2:17 NIV) "’In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on ALL people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.
(Gal 6:10 NIV) Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to ALL people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
G. When Jesus died on the Cross things changed, God’s people were no longer just a particular nation, they were all people who would separate themselves to Him regardless of what race they were.
H. The grace of God that was shown at the Cross was shown to all people and ALL those who believe were are of the family of God, and anyone who says that they have the right to look as someone differently because of there race, and attempt to justly it by God’s command to the Children of Israel is just plain wrong.
I. God did not tell his people not to associate with people of other nations because of racial purity, but because of spiritual purity.
(Titus 1:13 - 16 NIV) This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith and will pay no attention to JEWISH MYTHS or to the commands of those who reject the truth. To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
J. Years after Jesus died on the Cross one of the main issues in the new church was how being a Christian was connected to be a Jew, and following Jewish laws.
K. Paul tells Titus plain and simple, do not pay attention to Jewish Myths. Included in what Paul was saying was a statement, even though it is not said in these exact words it’s clear that it was a part of what Paul was saying. Being one of God’s children is not about a nationality or a race, it is about accepting through faith that Jesus’s death on the Cross is what it takes to be right with God
L. The only way for us to be pure is to have faith in Jesus, and to those that are pure all things are pure, and to those who are not pure because they don’t believe nothing is pure.
M. Which brings us to another wrong thing that people have used those first verses that we read to try to substantiate, and that is that people who are Christians are suppose to shun and have nothing to do with people that are not Christians.
N. There are some people that seem to believe that being a Christian makes them better than those who are not, when it only makes them more forgiven.
O. As Christians we are to try to help those who don’t know God understand what it means to know God. We are suppose to show them the love of God, and we can’t do that if we have nothing to do with them.
(Mat 9:10 - 14 NIV) While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ’sinners’?" On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ’I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
(1 Tim 1:15-16 NIV) Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.
P. As Christians we are not suppose to shun those who are not Christians, but we are suppose to be an example through our contact with them, of what the love and grace of God can do to change lives, but that is not going to happen if we consider ourselves better than any body else because we are Christians or because of our race.
Q. Our purpose as a church is to try to go out and find more Christians who look and act like us, to be a part of our church.
R. We are to show the love of God to all people of all races, whether they are Christians or not, so that through the example that we live all people can have the opportunity to know God.
S. People look at current events and the state of morality in our world, and say "Jesus is gonna come back soon." Or they ask me don’t you think that Jesus is gonna come back soon, or when do you think Jesus is gonna come back?
T. I think that maybe we are the thing that is holding it up. I think that maybe when Christians get off of their high horse, long enough, and finally love people of all races, whether or not they are Christians in the way that God intends us to love them, so that the love of God can be shown to all people of one single generation enough that they have the opportunity to know what God is like, that Jesus will come back.
U. When we started this church that was the one thing that I knew that we were suppose to do, and we have done a pretty good job of it.
V. No matter who you are, what your socio-economic background is, regardless of your income level, your race, your spiritual condition, or any other factor, you can feel accepted and loved here.
W. But it has got to spread to the community, and the world before the mission is fulfilled. And, if it is going to spread we have to take it outside those doors.
III. And when we look at the things that happened in the Old Testament it gives us insight into what is happening in the Middle East now.
A. When we see that through out history there have been times that nation of people were conquered and killed, because of what race they were. When we see that battles have been fought because one family laid claim to a pieces of land that another claimed, it is easier to see why the people in Iraq are so fanatical, and take life as if it means nothing.
B. And we sit here and go I just don’t understand how they can be that way, when at the same time we withhold the love of God and eternal life from people because they don’t look like us, or act like us, have the same income level as us, or live in as nice a house as us, or because we simply don’t take being a witness seriously enough.
C. And, I ask you, what is the difference?
D. How are we better for not taking a life that is temporary, because of race and nationality or belief, when at the same time we withhold eternal life that is not temporary, because of race, nationality, or belief.
(John 13:34-35 NIV) "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
E. If loving is the way that we show people that we are God’s disciples and we refuse to show love for petty reasons then tell me how are we any different than anyone else?
IV. Now let me answer the question that at least one person has asked themselves? What is the difference between then and now? Why would God tell his people then to not have anything to do with people that were not His nation, and then it be ok for those who are His people now to do differently.
A. Well, there is a reason. At that time God had an external relationship with his people. God was on the outside looking in, and it was much easier for His people to get drawn away from Him, because the relationship that they had with Him was external.
B. It was through another man, it was through a high priest, it was through external things. But, after Jesus died on the Cross, God was able to live inside his people.
C. After Jesus died on the Cross, God was able to not just be around us, but to live inside us, and when he lives inside us through His Spirit then He is apart of us, and as a part of us he wants us to let others see Him through us.
D. But that can’t happen unless we love those that he loves, and who does it say He loves, who does it say that he wants to reach through us?
(Gal 6:10 NIV) Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to ALL people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
E. I hope that you will take a long look at how you relate to others, and what things there are in your life that keep you from showing the love of God to people around you.
F. Because God says that were are to show the love of God to all People.
G. But there is one thing that has not changed from Deuteronomy until now, your spiritual purity is important to God, and if spiritual purity is that important to God, then we should take our spiritual purity seriously.
H. There were a lot of people who lost their lives because spiritual purity is important, maybe that should make us take a longer look at giving our lives day by day for the sake of spiritual purity.
I. Maybe that should cause us to look at our actions seriously, and devote our lives to God through our actions.
J. Maybe that should make us take our obedience to God more seriously, because our spiritual purity is important enough to God that He would go to any length to help us be spiritually pure, not only sacrificing the lives of nations, but more importantly sacrificing the life of His Son.
K. If spiritual Purity is that important to God then maybe it should be more important to us.
