TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY SEPTEMBER 5, 2016.
PURGE
To rid of impurities; to cleanse or purify.
As for our transgressions, thou shall purge them away. Psalm 65:3
Purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover was sacrificed for us. I Corinthians 5:7.
Many Chinese families several days before their New Year celebration give their home a thorough cleaning. They practice this tradition because they believe the cleaning sweeps away the bad luck of the preceding year and will make their homes ready for good luck for the New Year.
In the verse above from I Corinthians the Apostle Paul was writing to the church at Corinth asking them to give their lives a thorough cleansing, not for good luck but to please God. He told them to purge out the old leaven. Paul was using the Jewish feasts of Passover and Unleavened bread that everyone understood, as a backdrop for his teaching (Exodus 12). Leaven (yeast) was a symbol of sin and corruption and was to be removed from the Jewish homes in preparation for celebrating these festivals.
When Paul was saying to be a new lump he was saying for us to start acting like we truly are a new creation in Jesus. As a new creation we have a new standing with God and we can have victory over all sin because of the cross and our relationship with Christ.
Jesus is our Passover Lamb who cleanses us from sin and corruption which is what separates us from God. The blood of the Passover Lamb saved the Israelites from the plague of death sent by God to cause the Egyptians to free the Israelites from slavery. Jesus became our Passover Lamb when He shed His blood on the cross to free us from slavery to sin and save us from death which is the penalty for sin.
The Corinthian church had acknowledged that Jesus was their Passover Lamb, but they had not gotten rid of their old sinful ways. Paul wrote them and admonished them that they must purge out (get rid of) the old leaven (sin).
The Corinthian’s were told by Paul to scour their hearts and remove all evil and sexual immorality, malice, and wickedness from their lives in order to separate from their old life. Out of gratitude to Jesus for His sacrifice, let us separate from our old life and purge out the sin in our lives and celebrate the Holiness that comes from God when we accept Jesus as our Passover Lamb.
David wrote in Psalms 65:3 (NIV), “When we were overwhelmed by sins, You forgave our transgressions.” David was acknowledging that he was a sinner and knew where to go when sin overwhelmed him. He knew that no matter how great our sin, there is no sin God will not forgive and will not help enable us to purge from our life.
Our faith now looks to Calvary where we were purged of our sin and our iniquities. Our salvation is made possible by Jesus’ death on the cross of Calvary and guaranteed by His resurrection from the dead. When we go home to meet our Savior face to face in heaven what a glorious time that will be for all of us who believe in Him as our Savior and Lord.
Our memory verse for this week is found in Psalms 16:11.
You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
I pray that You will give me a heart that is pure from within, purged from sin and evil. Help me to understand that sin’s contamination in my life requires Your cleansing.
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