Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of Scripture, but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.
Each day many people will spend time cleaning their homes, from vacuuming the living room, or sweeping the kitchen floor. They will purge their homes of garbage by bagging it all up and throwing it outside in the dumpster. They will purge the dirt from their clothes by throwing them in the washing machine. Sometimes people even install special filters in their home to purge the dust and other pollutants from the air.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
To purge means to rid someone or something of an unwanted quality, condition or feeling. In order to obtain eternal life, we must do the same type of thing inside of our hearts. Each of us are sinners who have come short of the glory of God, but through Christ Jesus we have a fresh opportunity to become a brand new creature. But like washing dirty dishes, we must cleanse our hearts from everything that is displeasing to God. We must faithfully and obediently apply the teachings of Christ to our daily lives, purifying our hearts by faith.
“Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” James 4:8
It is only through genuine faith that we will purge our hearts from sin, so that we can become pleasing unto God in everything.
“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
God has given us the teachings of scripture so that we can know the truth and turn away from sinful living. Those who continue to live in sin will not inherit eternal life. True freedom is learning to go and sin no more, and overcoming any bondage to the flesh.
John 8 ³¹ Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; ³² And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. ³³ They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? ³⁴ Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. ³⁵ And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. ³⁶ If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
In order to be purified, we must be transformed by completely submitting to the truth of God’s Holy Word.
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” John 17:17
In the Old Testament, leaven symbolically represented evil and sin, something that needs to be eradicated from our lives.
1 Corinthians 5 ⁷ Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: ⁸ Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Sometimes people partake of Holy Communion unto damnation, simply because it is done in an insincere and impenitent manner. Rather than examining their own hearts, and repenting of what they have done wrong, they refuse to reconcile with both the teachings of Christ, or a brother they have wronged in the church. It’s clear that some people will partake of Holy Communion and won’t make it to heaven, simply because they refuse to judge themselves. They won’t accept the error of their way, and do what is required on their part to correct the matter. Unless they repent, they will perish, even if they had communion. Judas did the same thing.
1 Corinthians 11 ²⁷ Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
²⁸ But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. ²⁹ For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. ³⁰ For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. ³¹ For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
³² But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
Like baptism, Holy Communion is required in order to obtain eternal life, but it must be done in the proper manner. We must be filled with Godly sorrow and purge ourselves from any filthiness of the flesh.
“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
Anybody who professes to follow Christ must actively renounce and depart from sin. We must also purge ourselves from those who refuse to submit themselves to the will of God, gathering together with others who call on the name of the Lord out of a pure heart.
2 Timothy 2 ¹⁹ Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. ²⁰ But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. ²¹ If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.
We must purge ourselves by keeping separate from sin, and those who choose to actively live like that.
2 Corinthians 6 ¹⁴ Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? ¹⁵ And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
¹⁶ And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ¹⁷ Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, ¹⁸ And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
As I said many times, God will afflict and punish those who rebel against His will. He will even send plagues upon them, rewarding them according to their works. This is why we must keep away from the false Christianity that is so prevalent in the world today.
“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Revelation 18:4
When we begin the Christian Life, it is our responsibility through faith to rid ourselves of sin. We must become sanctified through the teachings of scripture, and keep separate from those who choose to live lives of open disobedience to God. This is all His handiwork, as He gathers His wheat into His barn, and burns up the chaff with unquenchable fire. Just as there was a great flood in the days of Noah, these are the days of…
….. The Great Purge
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious goups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.❤️
tlkjbc.com
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 