Purity and Devotion
Till Death Do We Meet, part 7
This study follows part six of the series, Till Death Do We Meet, titled, “To Love and to Cherish” published May 31st. The next and second to last line in our traditional wedding vows states, ‘Forsaking all others, keeping myself only unto You’. This series has taken traditional wedding vows that had been recited for decades and appropriated them to our relationship with Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.
It’s not always easy to look closely at ourselves, our struggles and weaknesses, and the many times we fall short. Our failures sometimes seem to flash back at us like bright neon signs. However, there is encouragement! God won’t change His mind about the love He has given us and He accepts even our smallest offerings of service. He knows we’re weak. What He desires from us is our heart, our devotion.
Onward to scrutinizing the next line in our vows: ‘Forsaking all others, keeping myself only unto You’. When we forsake someone or something, we withdraw. Forsaking means to leave one thing for another, to give something up. This is an important concept when we consider the sin nature we have. Before understanding of God’s grace was bestowed upon us, we lived for what we thought was best. Living for Christ, our motivation changes to do what God says is best – a giving up of self for God. We need to remove those things that tempt us to set God aside, and replace them with the people and things that draw our devotion toward Him.
Consider. What pulls you from your relationship with Christ? We can easily become distracted by the things around us; we forget that while we may live on this earth, our citizenship is in heaven. The promise of our life with Christ should point our affections towards God and away from the things in this world, as we look forward to our future in God’s kingdom. This truth causes us to have a joy from within as our hearts are drawn to our true treasure!
What transpires when you plan a trip? First, a destination is chosen. Then you might think of the details about how you get there. At one point, you begin to pack the clothing and things you’ll need. Often, maps are looked at, and time schedules are decided upon. All the while, excitement builds as you prepare and you find your thoughts gravitating towards your future plans. Anticipation motivates you as get closer and closer to arriving to your destination. As you eagerly await your trip, more and more of your time, energy and thoughts goes into preparation.
God is already preparing for His children’s arrival! Joh 14:2 "In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. Are we devoted to preparing ourselves for Him, forsaking the things that draw our attention away?
In earlier studies of Till Death Do We Meet, I addressed some of the more difficult times in our lives: times when God allows trials for the purpose of discipline, times of struggling and need and times of physical weakness and illness. In all of these situations as well as when times are good, we are to put God first – in every circumstance, at any cost.
2 Timothy 4:2 tells us to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season…” This scripture says to proclaim Jesus when the opportunity is convenient and likewise when it is inconvenient, even when there are obstructions or hindrances. In fact, if you back up to the first verse of 2 Tim 4, you’ll read that this is a charge to us, not a suggestion!
2Ti 4:1 I solemnly charge [you] in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:
Several years ago, I attended a Sunday service at Heritage Bible Church in Florida. The sermon topic was on witnessing and there was a newsletter included in the bulletin entitled “Glimpses” of people, events, life and faith from the church across the ages. It was published by the Christian History Institute. This pamphlet had an article about George Whitefield, a controversial evangelist born in the 1700’s. He was considered controversial because he “refused to soft-pedal his preaching. His bluntness sometimes offended people”. The article also said that George Whitefield detested lukewarm Christianity. “To him, it was worse than no faith at all … he made every effort to shake churchgoers out of their apathy”. He reminded his listeners of “the church at Laodicea in Revelation 3:16, where Christ said He would spew such congregations out of His mouth. The only kind of faith that pleased God was fervent, heartfelt belief …” Wouldn’t you have loved to have been at one of his sermons!!
Read this quote from Barnes’ Bible Commentary: “A man who is greatly intent on an object will seek every opportunity to promote it. He will not confine himself to stated times and places, but will present it everywhere, and at all times. A man, therefore, who merely confines himself to the stated seasons of preaching the gospel, or who merely reaches when it is convenient to himself, should not consider that he has come up to the requirement of the rule laid down by the apostle (Paul). He should preach in his private conversation, and in the intervals of his public labours, at the side of the sick bed, and wherever there is a prospect of doing good to anyone. If his heart is full of love to the Savior and to souls, he cannot help doing this”. That’s what you call devotion, putting God first, forsaking all else!
In John 4:34, Jesus says “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work”. Job, even in the midst of his sufferings claimed “I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:12).
Did you catch the use of the word food in the above scriptures? Food is necessary for growth! Food sustains our lives. Without it, we would starve. Starvation is a severe form of malnutrition. According to The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, total starvation is fatal in eight to 12 weeks (section 1, chapter 2).
Consider. Are you devoted to a steady diet in God’s word or are you starving, barely taking enough in to keep you alive? An important part of being devoted to Jesus is setting the priority to spend time with Him by reading the Bible and praying, asking God to search your heart, give you understanding, and show you how to apply the truths He so graciously has preserved. If you are saved, God, in His goodness and mercy, has chosen you. Isn’t it reasonable to presume that we would make a deliberate decision to get to know Him by spending concentrated time with Him? It’s not that we put God in a box and check it off, He’s always with us throughout each moment. But it is giving an unhurried and uncluttered heart, mind and soul without distraction just as we would do for anything or anyone we are truly interested in. How else are we going to be prepared in season and out of season to share His glorious truths to those around us? How else are we going to be able to navigate through a difficult and sometimes treacherous climb?
Devotion to God is a constant commitment to Him, a dedication to follow His ways. It is not just grazing when we run out of energy or need encouragement. Or gorging ourselves at one time then starving ourselves at another. To be dedicated to God means we show our allegiance to Him, we are loyal. In a marriage, it is accepted that fidelity to each other will be practiced. Keeping a marriage relationship pure with having only eyes for one another is part of showing your complete devotion and commitment.
The way we use our time speaks of our commitment to God. In Luke 1:75 we read that we are to live “In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days”. All of them, not just some of them or most of them. We don’t seek God on Sunday then claim the rest of the week as our own. If this is our practice, we are in danger of malnutrition! Consider. When you take a vacation, do you vacate God?
Ro 14:6-8 He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. 7 For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; 8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
In whatever we do, we are to be devoted to God, we are remain pure in Him and for Him, we are to bring glory and honor to Him with our lives.
1Co 10:31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Joshua reminds us of the choice we need to make. Jos 24:15 "And if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Ephesians 5:27 tells us that God loves us and is waiting to present us “to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless”.
There was a time when my husband and I would go out to lunch each Sunday after church. One such time, we decided to try a new place that had opened which served mostly barbeque. We ordered our lunch and were enjoying the delicious food. Having six different sauces to try at the table proved to be a fun experiment. I found my favorite and picked up the squeeze bottle full of this sauce called ‘sweet and zesty’. I gave the bottle a hefty squeeze and almost the entire contents exploded out onto the white skirt and lilac colored shirt I was wearing! My hair, face, arm, blouse and skirt were covered in rich red sauce. Get a good mental picture of this and you’ll have the complete opposite of our presentation to Christ without stain or blemish! Because of our union with Him, we are justified, sanctified and will one day be glorified as we are presented to Him pure and undefiled.
The Bible says God looks at our character, our heart. I think we can conclude that the most important characteristic of someone who is godly is their obvious love for the Lord, their devotion to Him. Despite circumstances of our lives on this earth that disappoint us and the heart aches we may experience, we are to remain faithful to God. Our choices and actions should honor His name. Times of uncertainty or when we feel let down by another, should turn us toward God, seeking His perfect instruction, not away from Him. In Joshua 1:16, we read “whatever You have commanded us we will do, and wherever You send us we will go”. May that be the commitment of God’s children.
The devotion to God in the Macedonia church is recorded for us in 2 Corinthians 8:1-5. Now, brethren, we [wish to] make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, 2 that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality. 3 For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability [they gave] of their own accord, 4 begging us with much entreaty for the favor of participation in the support of the saints, 5 and [this,] not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God. Notice that the Macedonian Christians first honored God by the giving of themselves to Him We need to be dedicated to honoring God with our whole lives – our time, efforts, resources, and abilities – anything He requires of us. All we have is from Him and is to be used for Him.
When I first wrote this study as a retreat more than ten years ago, I had struggled with putting God first sometimes, I really had to put effort into forsaking all the things that seemed to scream at me for my attention. I recalled the many times I had been in the middle of reading my Bible and studying when the phone rang and I chose to answer it. Or I allowed the buzzing of my clothes dryer to draw me away from what was truly important. Or, my mind would begin to wander into thinking of all the things that needed to get done that day. The question that begs to be addressed is, “Do we find as much time for God as we do our family and friends”? Most of us wouldn’t consider leaving the house without brushing our teeth but we have left the house without reading and praying, feeding our soul. Perhaps you make time for exercise, which is a good thing, but at the expense of time with God, which is the better choice. Our priorities say a lot about what is most important to us. As I stated, I was convicted by my choices of letting things distract me. I began turning everything off that could be a distraction, and praise God for many years now, I have been able to enjoy a quiet time with no influences pulling me away or causing my attention to be divided.
There used to be a television show called “What Not to Wear”. The hosts basically sabotaged an unsuspecting person to point out all their fashion blunders. At the beginning of the show the person they approach has to agree to give themselves over, “mind, body and clothes”. The key here is the necessity to give everything over, allowing the hosts to sort through all their clothing, throwing out what they don’t like. Then they must follow the guideline set for them by their personal fashion designers in choosing a new wardrobe, including hairstyle and makeup. Once they agree to this, they are handed a visa card with $5,000 on it. (Just a side note, I would most definitely have participated!) Some of the transformations truly are remarkable. The individuals revealed at the end of the program usually look quite different than they did at the beginning. And often, their personality seemed to gain a new sparkle!
Our whole being needs to be devoted to Christ:
Heart – our feelings, intuitions, emotions, character, and affections
Mind – including our ideas, perceptions, intellect, judgments and reasoning
Soul – our core, the embodiment of our consciousness and very being.
When we are completely devoted to Christ, we learn to trust Him as He transforms us. We become less of self and more of Jesus. I’m sure many of you are able to look back several years ago and see change in your thinking and behavior. I seriously don’t even recognize who I was decades ago, I truly am completely changed by God’s grace, and He’s not done with me yet (thankfully)! Keeping ourselves wholly devoted to God requires more than just lip service, it is our life service.
Most of us are fairly good at lip service, sharing what we think should be done. But action needs to follow. The best intentions mean nothing of they aren’t carried out. James 2:17-18 says, “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, [being] by itself. 18 But someone may [well] say, "You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." Read also James 2:26, For just as the body without [the] spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
Lawrence Richards’ Teachers Commentary says, “Knowing the Bible is not the key – applying what God has revealed in our daily lives is what counts. Knowing what we should do is not enough – it is putting what we know into practice to live a life worthy of God”.
Lord, help us to forsake all things contrary to Your truth, keeping ourselves fully committed to You as our Heavenly Father. In purity and devotion, give us eyes and hearts only for You.
