In my pastoral ministries classes, I have been given the task of finding something wrong with me, and making it right. The process is what Dr. Ayers calls, "character contract." This semester, I have decided to focus on purity. Now, purity does not simply mean sexual purity. Purity means freedom from sin's contamination. But for me, I do want the emphasis of my purity to be in the sexual area, because I am engaged, and would like to get married without bringing baggage into our new life. The first assignment I chose for myself was to write three-point sermon on the topic of purity. Enjoy.
One day, I decided I was going to read the Bible. I quickly flipped to the Psalms, because I often overlook them. I generally avoid them, because I enjoy logical arguments--something for which Psalms is not exactly known. Ironically on many levels, my Bible flipped open to Psalms 119:9, which is the section of Beth, the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The section starts out with a question, "How can a young man keep his way pure?"
I recognized a three-step process presented by the Psalmist.
In verses 9-11, David instructs the young man to learn scripture; to seek after the truth in it with all force and diligence.
In verses 12-14, David speaks of praise. The praise is done by simply singing God's grace, or even teaching others the amazing love in the Law. If David can rejoice reading Leviticus, what excuse do we have for not praising?
Finally he concludes with verses 15-16. These verses speak of meditation. It is meditation on the Word that truly uploads the livability into our lives.
When the steps are completed, the result is purity.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment