By Oscar Pimentel, General Overseer
Several weeks ago, I read a quote down in Texas that said, “If it’s going to be…it must be me.” Whoever said that caught a glimpse of what can be, and understood that if a goal is to be achieved, they personally have a stake in its success. This is the attitude of a person who will do everything in their power to advance toward the mark no matter what others are doing or what things look like. That’s a good attitude to have when it comes to a glorious Church “not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing” (Eph. 5:27).
Jude referred to some Church members as “spots” (Jude 1:4-12). Of course, these were folks who were not acting, speaking, or behaving in a way that was pleasing to God. Their spirit and conduct were not beneficial or respectful to the Church. Self-examination in the light of the Bible will keep us from being spots. We must all willingly submit ourselves to the washing and purifying process of God’s Word in these last days or we run the danger of being removed (chiseled off).
There is a difference between Church perfection and individual perfection, but the two seem to go hand in hand. After all, the Church is comprised of flesh and blood members and, as individuals, we have a stake in the spiritual success of the Church in this world and in her being made ready to go. God doesn’t want anyone to be lost. There is none that is moved with more compassion about our souls than the One who died to redeem them. However, His Church will be presented unto Christ as a “chaste virgin” (2 Cor. 11:2) and anyone unclean, impure, or unholy will be missing on that day. But thanks be to God “that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies” can serve Him “without fear, In holiness and righteousness… all the days of our life” (Luke 1:74, 75). It is because we have come into a relationship with Christ, and because of His grace in us, that we can gladly put aside every weight and sin that would so easily beset us as we continue to look forward to meeting our Saviour. Do you plan on seeing God? Listen to what the Bible says: “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). Hebrews tells us to, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). It is apparent that purity of heart and holiness of life are indispensable in the sight of God. I once heard Sister Bettie Marlowe say, “No one has to live holy; only those who want to see God.” If we plan on seeing Him face to face, we will be concerned with holiness.
2 Corinthians 7:1 says, “…dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God,” and Paul told Timothy to, “keep thyself pure” (1 Tim. 5:22). These verses make it plain that the responsibility for purity of heart and holiness of life rests upon the individual. Biblical holiness is to be pure and free from sin and consecrated to God’s service in this present world, conformed in all things to His will, and obeying Him in everything.
Cleanliness of heart and life begins at salvation when a man or woman repents of committed sins and is made a new creature in Christ. However, the sinful nature (the old man) that causes people to sin is still present, and while he is carried around, it is impossible to follow the example of Jesus and live a holy life. That old man wants to stick around so he can continue his evil deeds, causing conflict and disobedience, but he can be driven out, crucified, and destroyed by the power of the blood of Jesus. That’s right! The power of Christ can do more than merely suppress the sin nature. His blood can break its power and cast it out from the heart entirely. This experience, known as sanctification, is a real experience! If you haven’t got it, you really need to get it. I’d like to encourage and insist on every member of the Church getting this experience for themselves—I mean really get it. As a matter of fact, “this is the will of God, even your sanctification…” (1 Thess. 4:3).
Sometimes a person will think they have this experience, and the old man is dead, only to realize that he was just “playing possum” and had faked his death. I remember one evening after we had gone to sleep that my wife and I were awakened in the middle of the night by the annoying sound of a cricket chirping. When I got out of bed and switched on the light, the chirping stopped. I headed in the direction I thought the sound was coming from, but I could not see the cricket. With the lights on and me moving around, he knew he was in danger. He made no movements and no sounds so I couldn’t rid us of his annoyance. This went on for what felt like an eternity that night. Each time the light would go off and things would settle down, the cricket would start chirping again. He wore me out that night until finally, after having risen out of bed what seemed to be 1,000 times, I said to my wife, “I’m leaving the light on and staying up until he moves and chirps, otherwise we will never rest, then I will destroy it.” I stayed up, eyes opened, waiting for any movement and sign of life. Finally, he moved and came out of hiding, and I took care of business. After that, we had a night of peaceful rest.
Similarly, the old man often lies low when the lights of revival are on and the presence of the Lord is near. He is afraid for his life so he sits still and makes no sudden moves in our services, hoping that he will not be found. Sometimes at the sound of a powerful prayer or a touching testimony, you may see signs of godly sorrow in him, but he will not repent, he cannot repent! When a touching song is sung, because of his sin, it may cause tears to roll from his eyes and down his cheeks. Sometimes, when a convicting message is preached, he will act like he is converted, but he can’t be converted, he must die! The old man is bitter, he is a faultfinder, he likes to gossip, he’s a busybody, he is cold, he only thinks of himself, he sows to the flesh, he’s easily offended, he steals, he communicates corrupt things, he is full of malice, he has wrath and anger problems, and he gives place to the devil (see Eph. 4:22-31). If you carry him around you will never be able to rest, you will not know peace and quiet, only the sounds of a constant conflict. Do what you must do. Get the revival fires burning in your heart, turn the light on, and stay up with God until the power of Christ’s blood falls upon the old man and destroys him.
Born-again Christians who exercise their faith in Jesus can be delivered of the sin nature when they denounce everything ungodly and devote themselves to everything that is righteous. We are made holy by sanctification, the second definite work of grace, which destroys the old nature that causes people to commit sin. It is sanctification that produces purity of the heart and makes a life of holiness possible. Once the old man has been destroyed, the new Spirit life in Christ can really begin to grow and develop unto the measure of the stature of Christ.
Regrettably, once sanctification has been received, some become satisfied and fail to seek more of God’s blessings, but there is more of Him to gain! To as many as obey Him, He gives the Holy Ghost, the enduement of power for service! The Spirit of Truth, who is sent to guide us in all things and bring them to our remembrance, teaches us “that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:12). If Holy Ghost baptism alone brought us to our final destination in spirituality and personal holiness, why would we need a Guide? We wouldn’t. But we do because there is more. Salvation, sanctification, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost are not destinations, but rather initial blessed experiences at the start of a life-long journey with God to move us away from the borderline of the world and everything that is unclean. Like Ezekiel, we move farther away from the shore and go deeper into the spiritual waters of God’s will and presence, until all we can do is swim in the river of His Spirit. Like Paul, we shed off all the things of the former life, counting them as useless, and move on to win Christ and know Him more and more.
Paul wrote to The Church of God at Corinth to, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 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. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (2 Cor. 6:14-18). Doesn’t that sound good, God dwelling in us and walking with us? The living God is our God and we are His people. He is our Father and we are His sons and daughters. Is there anything we would not be willing to obey, is there a price too high to pay for such an honor?
It seems that some of the Corinthian saints, instead of moving far from the world, wanted to stay close and have fellowship with it. Fellowship is defined as a friendly association, especially with people who share one’s interests. It is possible many of us have an associate who is unsaved that we consider a friend. That isn’t so much the issue. The issue is in sharing or having the same interests or aims as the unsaved person. Then, one could wonder what good is benefited when children of God form too close of friendships with worldly outsiders (who are indifferent about Christ) and rarely if at all, bring the Lord into their social lives. We are living in “perilous times” (2 Tim. 3:1). Our aim must be to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and reflect Christ in all that we do “to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).
James brings it in pretty close: “…know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). What about, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:15-17). We must be very cautious and prayerfully consider our fellowships. To have fellowship with a thing is to set our approval on it. It is hard to expect that we can make a difference in the world or our community if we yield to the ways of it. Especially in this time of sinful fashion and pride, we must be careful as to what we are doing and how we are living, our forms of entertainment, who our friends are, what we view with our eyes, and what our conversations and conduct are like everywhere we go. Without a doubt, whatever sacrifices we make to have the favor and blessings of God now will be repaid a thousand-fold when we see Jesus.
As I have mentioned, we are living in a time when what was once considered wrong and impure is no longer, and society now says, “Everything goes.” And though it is not my intention to define every little thing, I will say that God’s holiness is opposed to the ways and things of this world. So, this is not about a list of “dos” and “don’ts,” it is about following hard after the Lord and allowing the Spirit of God to do His work in us. It’s about loving Him totally and wanting to please Him in every way. As we grow in spiritual understanding and power, we will come to find that lists of “dos” and “don’ts” are not necessary, not because we have fallen below them, but because we have risen above them through a clearer vision of God’s holiness and a deeper, closer, and truer relationship with Him.
I can’t say that I will ever completely understand or be able to explain the holiness of God while down here. I feel that it is one of those things that is better “felt than telt.” Only by personally and corporately encountering and experiencing it, will we know more perfectly what it is and, perhaps, find that there are areas in our lives where we need to come up. When God reveals His holiness to us, it is not simply to increase our knowledge of Him but rather to change us.
As children of God and members of the Church, let us resolve to live above the reproach of this world and its shameful impurities. Let us ask ourselves, “Is my conduct honorable? Could my conversation be considered that of a true man or woman of God? If I should do this, or go there, or put this on, would a good report go out on me? Will I still pass as a pure child of God if I should do this thing?” It is my belief that if men and women of God’s Church will remember to govern themselves according to the Word of God, honor their covenant, and respect the authority and Advice of the multitude of counselors, there would be less trouble as far as worldly living is concerned, and far fewer heartaches because of being overcome by Satan. Let us do our very best to show that we love the Lord!