TODAY’S DEVOTION (MONDAY 23RD JANUARY 2023)
“The LORD has made bare His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; And all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
Depart! Depart! Go out from there, touch no unclean thing; Go out from the midst of her, Be clean, You who bear the vessels of the LORD.
For you shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight; For the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.” Isaiah 52:10-12 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 23RD DAY OF OUR YEAR OF SIGNS AND WONDERS!
It is a sign from the LORD that we are awake this day. It is a sign of His love, mercies and compassion towards us that we have already seen 23 days of the year. The workings of His wonders made all that happen.
Indeed, it is, and will continue to be, our year of Signs and wonders, springing from the fountain of God’s amazing grace. Whatever has its source in God’s amazing grace reaches even the vilest sinner and turns them into the most gracious saints. That is the power of God’s unchanging love that changes the lives of those who are willing.
If God had not been steadfast, and unmovable, our un-steadfastness and inconsistencies would have ruined us. Everyone of us have the marks of His love, mercies, Fatherly care, and unmatched compassion in our lives.
Compassion is sympathy and concern for the sufferings and misfortune of others. That is what God has for you and I. It is His compassion that makes Him not to deal with us according to our sins, but seek to purge them away from our lives so that we would not be destroyed by them.
Sin destroys! Persistent sins ruins. But most times before we are destroyed by them, God as Christ will, out of His concern and sympathy for us, move in to propel us to repentance, then use that to purge us of the sins as the purifier of the sons of Levi, and neutralize their consequences as the Judge of all.
The Bible says;
“He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness.” Malachi 3:3 NKJV
The Sons of Levi belonged to the lineage of the priesthood in the days of the Bible. They were the ones who carried the vessels of the LORD from place to place when Israel was moving from Egypt to the promised land.
YOU CANNOT CARRY THE VESSELS OF THE LORD IN FILTHINESS.
You can only carry them in purity. But God does not choose the qualified, God qualifies the chosen. In other words, God will not choose the clean or pure because no one is clean or pure by default. God will purify and purge the unclean and filthy, after choosing them, to qualify them to do His work.
So, to qualify the Sons of Levi, He had to sit as a refiner and a purifier over their lives after choosing them for the work. He had to purify them, and purge them as gold and silver by giving them rules to keep, codes of conduct to guide their conduct in life, commands and instructions to obey, and knowledge to be a light on their path.
Now, like the Sons of Levi were in Bible days, so are those who carry the visions of the LORD today. If the LORD gives you a vision to live for, a mandate to execute for Him, or a purpose to fulfil, you are carrying His vessel. You become a bearer of His vessel. That is why today we will be looking at another important law of visionary living called the law of visionary purity.
In God’s kingdom, Purity of heart and life are sacrosanct to visionary living. As we have learned, visionary living has a lot to do with running with the visions of the LORD, pursuing His mandates upon your life, and living according to His purpose. None of that can be done without purity.
Purity in the Bible is related to guiltless, blameless, or innocent behavior called clean hands. Purity involves consecration and sanctification. It is a righteous standard of the law that the grace of GOD helps us to fulfill in Christ.
YOU FIND THAT IN ALL THE LAW COMMANDED THE LEVITES, THE NAZARENE, THE PRIEST AND THE REST TO DO.
All they did was ritual purity. Under the law they had ritual purity but under grace we have moral purity, chastity, uprightness and purification. The Bible says,
“Nevertheless, the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.
Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.” 2 Timothy 2:19-21 NKJV
This scripture is a clarion call to moral purity, uprightness, chastity and purification. The Bible says anyone who heeds the call will sanctify himself and be useful for the Master, and prepared for every good work. It is a call to depart from iniquity, and lead a morally pure life by the enabling grace and work of the Holy Spirit, our present purifier.
There are different areas of our lives that needs to be moral pure and upright as a requirement for successful visionary living. The first is our hearts. The Bible says;
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:7-8 NKJV
This scripture makes it clear that if you want to obtain mercy from God you do not need to always pray. You only need to be always merciful. But if you want to see God, you must be pure at heart.
These words came from Jesus Himself our LORD and Savior.
Visionary living involves seeing the invisible GOD, leading you through and through until you get to the finish of your life. That is what makes purity of heart sacrosanct to visionary living.
You will never be able to see or sense God if your heart is not pure. And if you cannot sense Him, you will not be able to lead a visionary life. That is why those who want to lead successful visionary lives must be pure in heart as the LORD says.
GOD MUST PURIFY THEIR HEARTS AND MAKE SURE THEY ARE PURE AT HEART ENOUGH TO WALK WITH HIM.
What is purity of heart? Purity of the heart involves freedom from evil thoughts, words, and deeds. It is the internal purity of our lives.
The Psalmist says, “let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight.” When the heart is pure, its meditation or thoughts will be pure. When our thoughts are pure our deeds will be pure as well. That is what makes purity of heart the seat of a morally pure and upright life.
We can then say, “blessed are people with pure and holy thought systems. They will be able to see or sense GOD, and be accurately led by Him.” Purity of the heart must be the daily desire of visionary people. That is the only way they will not miss their steps and attract wrong people and influences to their lives.
Now, our heart is our spirits. Hence, the purity of heart can also be called the purity of the spirit; a requirement for leading successful visionary lives. Which brings us to the next area of life we must be pure to lead successful visionary lives; our speech and moral lives. That is what people will see and believe in our God in their moment of truth.
All these tell us why the LORD commanded those who carry His vessel to be separate from filthiness and immoral living; to come out of unclean things. If we are leading immoral lives while carrying the vessels of the LORD, we should repent. If we don’t repent, we will be ruined.
Our devotional text says;
“The LORD has made bare His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; And all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
Depart! Depart! Go out from there, touch no unclean thing; Go out from the midst of her, Be clean, You who bear the vessels of the LORD.
For you shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight; For the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.” Isaiah 52:10-12 NKJV
If you are a carrier of a Heavenly vision, mandate or mantle, please lead a pure and holy life. It is not a suggestion but a necessity.
Get yourself involved in spiritual disciplines that will make that happen. Live a life that is not touching unclean things. Follow the ways of the LORD and let them take you away from what is unclean. Yield to the Holy Spirit through prayer and fasting and ask Him to help you to be clean.
It is my prayer that GOD will use these words to help us lead lives that aligns with the laws of visionary purity. Do not forget what the law says. It says God does not choose the clean because no one is clean by default. God qualifies the unclean after choosing them to carry His visions.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR YOU TODAY!
“Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1 NKJV