Is Purity more precious than life?

"Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives" 2 Peter 3:11

Holiness is an important subject of the Bible. Bible clearly tells that our God is holy and He expects us to be holy. God says that “Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy” (Lev 19: 2). Many times God asked his people to consecrate themselves before He did wonders among them.

When we read about the revivals which took place, one common thing we see is that people where confessing their sins and turning back to God and had a deep desire to lead a holy life. Some of the fiery preachers of yesteryear's where known for their preaching against sin. Exposing the lie of enemy and encouraging people to lead a holy life in the sight of God was one of the main subjects. But times have changed. Nowadays mostly we hear compromising messages. Preachers are concerned and focused about preaching what people want to listen. The attempt is mostly made to make people comfortable and make them feel that everything is going good and fine. Changing the word of God to suit people’s lifestyle is a big deception. The result of such practice is that disciples are losing their saltiness. Christians are no longer able to make an impact since there is not much difference between a believer and non-believer. Everything a worldly person does is done by people who claim to be Christians. Somehow we have gone so much into the world that world has got into us. That's why we don't feel any regret or feel anything when we are leading a sinful life. As long as we go to church once or twice a week we feel that everything is ok. Many Churches makes people comfortable. For some people spirituality has become a weekend activity. I want to put down a provoking statement here. If you are leading a sinful life and still feels very comfortable attending your church then its time you think twice. A church service and the sermon should lead you closer to God and for that to happen, your sinful life style has to go away. You can never get close to God if you continue in your sinful life.

God has called us to be holy. In everything we have to reflect the character of Jesus Christ through our life and holiness is an important area. You may ask why there is so much emphasis in our church on this. We are called to live holy and godly lives. Again 1 peter 1:15 says that "But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;”

Few days ago I read some facts about Ermine which was taken from Our Daily Bread. I want to share it with you

“In the forests of northern Europe and Asia lives little animal called the ermine, known for his snow-white fur in winter. He instinctively protects his white coat against anything that would soil it. “Fur hunters take advantage of this unusual trait of the ermine. They don't set a snare to catch him, but instead they find his home, which is usually a cleft in a rock or a hollow in an old tree. They smear the entrance and interior with grime. Then the hunters set their dogs loose to find and chase the ermine. The frightened animal flees toward home but doesn't enter because of the filth. Rather than soil his white coat, he is trapped by the dogs and captured while preserving his purity. For the ermine, purity is more precious than life”.

We are called to preserve our purity in the sight of God. In this world we are called to lead a holy life. We have a short time in this world when we compare it with eternity. Make sure that we are not compromising and missing the blessings of God in our life.
So be Holy since our God is a Holy God.

Yours in Christ,

Tinku Thompson