Holiness: The Heart God Purifies - Chapter 5 – The Pathway to Holiness: “Put off”—Say “No” to Corruption”

 

Holiness:  The Heart God Purifies

By Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Quotes & Summary in White – My thoughts in Red

 

Chapter 5 – The Pathway to Holiness: “Put off”—Say “No” to Corruption”

I’ve been a Christian for 30 years and am actively involved in my church and Bible study.  I keep wondering why my sin nature is the “path of least resistance.”  A sinful mindset (worry, anger, doubt) seems to be my “default” mode—unless I’m making an effort, it’s where my thoughts seem to go.  It seems like as a new creation in Christ, it wouldn’t be such a struggle. 

I think a lot of us feel the same way as this lady.  Even after years and years of walking with the Lord… unless we are consciously making an effort… focused on living a holy life and doing what glorifies the Lord, we seem to default back to a sinful mindset of worry, anger, doubt… I could add more… some of the areas I have struggled with: pleasing others, perfectionism, wanting to be accepted.  Unfortunately, I have found that when I walk with God, I will not always be accepted by others.  I learned this at a young age, but it doesn’t make it easier.  I need to constantly turn my eyes back to Christ and focus on my relationship with Him.

I think deep down we’d like to find a pathway to sanctification that is instant and effortless—no long process, no hard battle.  The fact is, there is no such thing.  According to Hebrews 12:14, the pathway of holiness requires intensity and intentionality. 

          “Make every effort… to be holy” (NIV)

          “Strive for … holiness” (ESV)

          “Pursue… holiness” (NKJV)

Or, as Kenneth Wuest translates it: “Constantly be eagerly seeking after… holiness.”

In other words, we must make it our constant, conscious ambition and aim to be holy. We have to work at it, concentrate on it, as an athlete sets his sights on winning an Olympic gold medal: He focuses on his objective, he trains and strains to achieve his goal, he sacrifices for it, he endures pain for it, and he puts aside other pursuits for the sake of a higher pursuit. 

I went back and read the entire verse.  “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.  See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no ‘root of bitterness’ springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled…” (Hebrews 12:14-15).

Wow, as I do my Bible study looking out at the beauty of the snow, pure white snow, I am reminded that in Psalms 51, when God washes us, we are “Whiter than snow”.  It does not take much to dirty snow… to blemish it… but we have a God that can and will cleanse us if we ask Him to.  We have to be in constant communication and relationship with Him to remain pure and holy.  It is not a striving to do it on our own but a striving to be in relationship with the Holy God that we need.  I believe that as we strive to be intentional about walking with God and obeying Him then holiness with be the natural outcome.  What am I willing to put aside so I can spend time with God? What do I need to put aside so I can spend time with God?

In the same way we are to strive to have peace with everyone.  With the broken relationships I have with my in-laws, I question whether or not I have done everything I can to have peace with everyone.  Am I supposed to do more?  Am I supposed to reach out again, only to have my heart torn in two again?  I don’t know the answer to that question.  Other verses make it clear that we are to have peace as far as it depends on us.  I cannot change how other people think or what they choose to do. I cannot change the fact that they are choosing to believe a reality different from the one that I was living.  I know that God is a God of miracles and that it will take one to restore some relationships.  So, for now I am going to leave it in His hands and if He opens a door and asks me to walk through… then I pray that I have the strength to obey.

As children of God in pursuit of holiness, we must “put off” our old, corrupt, sinful way of life and everything that might fuel its growth. And we must consciously “put on” the holy life that is ours through Christ.

“Flee (put off) youthful passions and pursue (put on) righteousness, faith, love and peace.” – 2 Timothy 2:22

“Put away (put off) all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness (put on) the implanted word, which is able to save your souls” – James 1:21

As a believer I need to make a decision to both; steer clear of anything that is leading me down a path of sin and choose to live a holy life.  Trying to live a holy life while doing things that are sinful or going places that fuel sins growth is counterproductive. Just as removing the sin from my life while not doing anything to walk a righteous life doesn’t draw me any closer to God and the holy life that He has called me to.   

Another word for “putting off” is mortification.  It comes from a Latin word that means “to kill” or “to put to death”.  In a spiritual sense, it relates to how we deal with sin.  It indicates that there is a struggle—a battle—involved in dealing with sin, and that determined, decisive action is required.  It speaks of putting the ax to the root of our sinful inclinations and desires.  It implies intolerance for anything in our lives that is contrary to the holiness of God.

I understand that there is a struggle involved in dealing with sin… I feel the struggle on a daily basis… but so often I give into the struggle instead of taking decisive action to destroy it.  Other times, I try to remove the fruit of sin…. Instead of trying to take it out at the roots and completely destroy it.  Forgive me Lord for not making holiness a higher priority in my life and for giving in to sins in my life. 

Holiness and sin cannot both thrive in our lives.  One or the other must die.  If we allow weeds of sin to grow up unchecked in our hearts and minds and behavior, the holy life of Christ within us will be choked out.

This is something I have been told all my life… Holiness and since cannot live together.  I have to choose one or the other.  Am I going to allow sin to thrive in my life… live unchecked… or even hidden away under the surface or am I going to let holiness thrive in my life… overflowing out of me to others?  Sin will either slowly (or rapidly) kill off the holy life of Christ within me… or Holiness will destroy the sin in my life an uproot it completely.  The choice is mine to make…

Mortification involves more than getting rid of things that are inherently sinful.  It also suggests the willingness to eliminate influences that may not be sinful in and of themselves, but that could fuel unholy thoughts or behavior and thereby lead us into sin.  It means cutting off every possible means to sin.

This process… means not only do I get rid of the things that I know for sure, without a doubt, are sins but also… remove the things that lead me to sin… the temptations in my life.  It isn’t easy… because they are temptations… things that I enjoy… that lead me into sins.  What have I allowed into my life that is leading me away from my love of God?  That is what I need to get rid of…

Some years ago, I discovered that the television had become a weed that was choking out holiness in my life.  It was dulling my spiritual sensitivity and diminishing my love and longing for God.  Slowly, subtly, the world was stealing my affection, altering my appetites, and seeping into the pores of my being.  I found myself being entertained by behavior, speech, attitudes, and philosophies that the world would consider acceptable, but that I knew were unholy.  The longer I held on to and justified my viewing habits, the less motivated I was to change. In my heart, I knew that my spiritual life would be better off without the TV. But for many months, I thought the Spirit was tugging at my heart, I resisted doing anything about it. One day I finally said, “Yes, Lord.” I agreed to mortify my flesh—to take decisive action against that which was competing with righteousness in my life.  For me, that meant making a commitment not to watch TV any time I am alone.  Almost immediately, my love for God was rekindled, my desire for holiness was renewed, and my spirit began to flourish once again. 

It’s a decision I’ve never regretted. On a handful of occasions since, when I have made exceptions to that commitment— to watch news coverage of a major disaster or crisis—I’ve discovered that it’s just too easy for me to drift into making great allowances and to slip back into old patterns.  This is one activity that, for me, needs to stay “mortified” if I am going to keep pursuing holiness!

There are so many things that can draw us away from pursuing holiness… things that we do that just “waste” our time.  When I lived in Argentina, I didn’t have a TV so I only watched movies on my computer on occasion… that sure helped it from drawing me away from God.  I have had to set limits on some of the things that I have done in the past to “unwind”.  I used to play games on my tablet for an hour before bed… now I only allow myself to play two games.  My current distraction is reading news articles… I waste so much time reading news that really has no impact on my life… time I could spend reading the Word of God or praying.  Sometimes I hop from one distraction to another.  Lord, show me if I need to completely remove anything from my life or set limits on it so that I can pursue you more faithfully. 

That approach will sound extreme to some—the word legalistic will probably surface in such a discussion.  We do need to guard against making absolutes out of personal standards that are not specified in Scripture, or assuming that others are sinning if they don’t adopt our standards about issues that may not be traps for them.  But why are we so prone to defend choices that take us right to the edge of sin, and so reluctant to make radical choices to protect our hearts and minds from sin. 

There is such a fine line between making the right choice to live a Holy life for ourselves and living a legalistic and at times judgmental life.  I don’t want to make decisions for myself and then expect others to live up to the same standard and at the same time, I want to make sure I am not doing it to obey a “set of rules” that I have created… but out of a heart that desires to please God and know Him better.

It's no big surprise to me to see how many professing Christians struggle with lust and sexual sin and “fall” into immoral relationships, when I learn about their entertainment choices—the books and magazines they read, the music they listen to, and the movies they watch. A woman whose diet includes mostly romantic novels or popular women’s magazines is setting herself up for moral temptation, if not failure.

I have no doubt that I could get drawn into committing emotional, if not physical, adultery, if I do not continually guard my heart.  I am not (and never will be) so “spiritual” as to be immune to sexual sin.

If we fill ourselves up with unholy things, then naturally that is what will come out eventually.  Just like the more you listen to people swearing, the more likely you are to swear… the more you engage in entertainment that is filled with sexual immorality the more it will start to seep into your own life… even if it only be your thought life.  The sins become so “normal” that we don’t think anything of them as sins… we are no longer repulsed by them… that is a sad place to be in.

I have embarked on an intentional pursuit of holiness.  I don’t want to displease the Lord or bring reproach to His name. Nor do I want to suffer the awful consequences and destructive effects of immorality. So, as part of my “battle plan,” I have resolved not to expose myself to entertainment or other influences that put immorality in a favorable light or could fuel unholy desires. Further, I have determined, by God’s grace, not to allow myself to be in situations where I could be tempted to sin morally—whether emotionally, mentally, or physically. For me, that means no meetings alone behind closed doors with married men, an no traveling or meals alone with married men; it means emails exchanges of a personal nature with men get copied to their wives; it means not cultivating friendships with married men, apart from the presence and participation of their wives… far from being a burden, these “guardrails” have been a huge protection and blessing in my life.

Matthew and I have put many of these guardrails up in or our own marriage.  We have made the decision to not be alone with anyone of the opposite gender.  We are also very careful about how much we communicate with someone of the opposite gender, and both have full access to the other person’s cell phones and technology.  When I felt that another woman was vulnerable and drawing herself too close to Matthew, I would let him know and he would put up even more boundaries around her.  This has been a safeguard in our marriage.

 

In today’s world, such measures seem unrealistic or excessive, even to many Christians.  The problem is that most people in today’s world aren’t in pursuit of holiness, therefore, they think nothing of sin.  Behavior that was once considered unacceptable—even by unbelievers—is now considered normal.

Lord, open my eyes to any area of my life that is a sin… any area that I consider “normal” because it is in the eyes of the world, but to you it is hideous… because it goes against everything You stand for.  May I worry more about how you view my behaviors than other people, even other Christians.  May I seek to obey you above all else.  May my walk with You be the most important thing in my life… my number one priority every day.

 

Ultimately, mortification takes us back to the cross.  It is at the Cross that Jesus died for sin and died to sin so we could be free from sin.  However, we must also make a daily, determined choice to reject sin’s rule in our lives: “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions.”—Romans 6:12

Lord, it is only because of Your sacrifice on the cross that I can even have the power to turn away from the temptations of sin in my own life.  If I try to do it in my own power I will fail every time.  If I try to walk the Christian life on my own, then sin will reign in my mortal body and I will obey its passions.  But… because You died on the cross for me, I don’t have to do it alone.  You are my Salvation, You are my Hope, You are my Strength, My Power, My Overcomer, My Guide… You are everything I need.  I’m not just running away from sin… I’m running into the arms of my Savior. 

 

When faced with circumstances or opportunities to indulge your flesh, don’t stand around and think about it.  Don’t fool yourself into thinking you can handle it.  If you can’t control your eating habits, ask a friend or family member to hold you accountable to what you eat and when… Drunkenness isn’t a temptation I struggle with—but if that is an area where you are vulnerable, mortify those desires by staying away from bars… If computer games are constantly calling your name, consuming your time and causing you to lose your hunger and thirst for righteousness, ask a godly friend to hold you accountable for how much time you spend playing games. Or you may need to give them up altogether, in order to rekindle your love and desire for God. If your being enticed by pornography or lured into unwholesome relationships over the internet, establish parameters for your computer use that will make it difficult to continue sinning… if romantic movies make you discontent with your singleness or dissatisfied with your mate, don’t watch them!  If certain magazines or books plant less-than-holy thoughts, desires or images in your mind, drop your subscription, toss the books.  If you’re tempted to become physically intimate with the person you’re dating, don’t single date… if you’re being drawn into an illegitimate relationship with a co-worker or a counselor your seeing- get out!

I’m not currently struggling with many of those areas, but I do have areas that I struggle with. I think right now my biggest thing is my addiction to a new game on my phone.  It has been consuming a lot of my time… first thing when I wake up, during the day, before bed.  I am constantly playing the game.  I need to stand up right now and delete it from my phone. Now that it is uninstalled, I need to make sure that I don’t re-install it in a moment of weakness.  Previously, I had limited myself to 2 games before bed which was working well for me.  Another area that can get to me is reading news articles.  I’m not sure if I need to limit myself like I did with the games or completely cut it out altogether.  I will try limiting them for a week and see how that works for me. I do desire to grow in my passion for God and to have daily close interactions with Him and want to do whatever it takes to make it happen.

Tough? Yes.  The question is, how serous are you wanting to be pure? If holiness matters to you, you’ll be willing to do whatever you have to do guard your heart and protect yourself- and the other person- from sinning against God… What did Jesus mean when He said, “If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away” (Matthew 5:30), if He wasn’t talking about the willingness to take extreme measures to avoid sinning?

Lord, I want to be serious about being pure.  I want to take extreme measures if that is what it is going to take.  I want to have a vibrant walk with you again.  I want to walk in your presence daily and know without a doubt that I am walking in Your will.  I’m tired of constantly falling and feeling like a failure in my walk with You.  I need You.  I’ve walked with you closely before and I miss it… I miss feeling Your presence and knowing that I am in Your will. 

To continue fueling sin or to hold on to anything that is your means to sin is like pouring fertilizer on weeds and then getting frustrated because you can’t get rid of the weeds!

Lord, open my eyes to what I am holding onto that I need to get rid of.  What are the distractions in my life?  What is the “fertilizer” in my life?  What are the weeds that are blocking me from a fruitful life with You?  Help me to take the small steps of obedience (spending time in Your Word each day, meditating on Your Word, praying, seeking Your wisdom) so that I will be willing to take the bigger steps of obedience. 

At times we enjoy our sin too much to want to let it go.  We think we’ll be miserable if we give it up. But the truth is that those fleshly desires and deeds to which we cling will keep us from enjoying the life for which we were created. 

Not until we mortify—put to death—our sinful flesh can we experience the freedom, forgiveness, and fullness for which our hearts long.  Once we have been cleansed and have experienced the joys and satisfaction of His mercy and grace, we will find we no longer want those things we once craved and felt we couldn’t live without.  To walk in the light with Him will be our greatest treat. 

Lord, help me come to a place that I no longer want to cling to my sins. That I don’t find enjoyment in them anymore.  May I once again experience the freedom that is found in You alone… in Your forgiveness… in walking in obedience to You and living in Your will.  Lord, I don’t want to crave sin… I want to crave You alone.  I want You to be my greatest desire… my first thought in the morning, my last thought at night… and what I constantly go back to throughout the day.  Completely consume me with Your love.