Wash and Purify
Prayer: Praying the Psalms is one of the most powerful devotional tools you can learn. Today’s opening prayer is from Psalm 24 and deals with the text from James that will be the source of our meditation today. Try and pray these words in the first person, using them as a springboard for your own prayerful thoughts. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up His soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” (Psalm 24:1-5)
Read: James 4:6-10
Think about It: Without knowledge of the New Testament, we would never know that Jesus is our Savior and that He died for us. But – without knowledge of the Old Testament, we cannot know God for it is there that He reveals who He is. In order to truly understand this New Testament reading you need some understanding of the Old Testament.
As we read this list of 10 commands in James for the Christian life, a little fear can set it. It sounds pretty difficult. God has set a high standard for wholehearted love and devotion on the part of His people, but He gives grace that is greater than the rigorous demands He has made.
James issues a series of ten commands in vs. 7–10. In each instance the Greek calls for immediate response. It is a pointed and forceful way to demand action. What James seems to know about us is that we tend to seek after pleasure. Well, of course we do! We would much rather go to the movie than to the dentist! But pursuit of pleasure drags us away from God. Now please don’t misunderstand. Loving God is indeed a pleasure. But our flesh can see that as binding and difficult. We would much rather serve our own selfish desires and flesh than to serve God and others. The call to “wash your hands” is a command to make one’s conduct pure. Similarly, the call to “purify your hearts” insists on purity of thoughts and motives.
During this week we have been thinking about what it means to be “cleansed” by God. We see Jesus cleanse the temple, Naaman cleansed in the river, and now a deeper cleansing is being examined; a cleansing of the heart. This is not as easy as the outward cleansing of disease or even the temple. This happens on an individual level and must be accomplished by God Himself. David addresses this issue in Psalm 24 as he asks, “Who may stand in His holy place?” The answer is “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up His soul to an idol.” This is the answer! Stay clear of idols. That takes us back to the admonition to pay attention to the Old Testament for it is filled with story after story where God makes it clear that idolatry can be identified as the root of most evil. If we are constantly turning away from idols, that means we are constantly turning away from the pursuit of our own pleasure. And in turning away from idols, we are turning toward God! In His mercy He will grant cleanness and purity as only He is able to do!
Prayer: Dear Father God, I acknowledge that You alone have granted my forgiveness in the blood of Jesus. I know that I daily go out and continue to sin. But I ask You to empower me through Your Spirit to live a life that is worthy of You. Help me to live so that others may see You exhibited in my actions and heard through my words. While You are the One who gives the clean hands and creates a pure heart within me, I get to be the one who holds it. Please make me a worthy vessels of Your love and forgiveness. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.
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