Pursuit of Purity

Being one minded

To be of one mind v. double minded

One will v. multiple wills

One desire v. multiple conflicting desires

Progress v. being stalled

James 4:8 NKJV

8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Purity of heart v. double minded

Purity of heart is freedom from wicked motivations and sinful intentions

The churches pursuit of purity

Historically, the one universal and Holy apostolic church fought for onesness / purity of belief.

Council of Jerusalem Acts 15 :4-5

Acts 15:4–5 NKJV

4 And when they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders; and they reported all things that God had done with them. 5 But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”

Peter, and later in the chapter Paul and Barnabas, would speak of all the works of God among the gentiles

Acts 15:8–9 (NKJV)

8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, 9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

The work of the HS inside all of us focused on purifying our hearts. Bring a oneness to our beliefs, motivations, aspirations and desires.

Why the effort for purity?

Because division is an fatal position

Matthew 12:25 NASB95

25 And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand.

Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers 1.10: Saint Chrysostom: Homilies on the Gospel of Saint Matthew Homily XLI

For the wars from without are not so ruinous as the civil ones. Yea, and this is the case in bodies too

Pursuit of Purity is a Journey

Pursuing purity of heart, mind, and body is a worth while endeavor because it puts us on a path to see God

Just like hiking…there is a path…its tempting to deviate, but the path is the way to the end!

Matthew 5:8 NKJV

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.