Making the Transition from Impure to Pure

Before one can hope to transition from a state of impurity to purity one must understand the initial transition takes place SPIRITUALLY and the resulting transitions take place naturally. In other words, no one can start living a pure lifestyle before initiating a transformation in their heart. Now the heart is the core and essence of a person. It is the place from which their thoughts, motives, and desires spring. The heart can only exist in two states: impure and pure. By nature we are all born with impure hearts with a sinful nature that drives us to sin naturally. The pure heart, on the other hand, is free from the sinful nature and dedicated entirely to serving God. The graphic below is a simple illustration of these conditions and the transition from one to the other. Notice all the components and their various states. Notice also that there is only ONE solution to transitioning from the impure heart to the pure heart, from the identity of a sinner to the identity of a Christian: Jesus Christ. Additionally there is only ONE solution for the void inherent in the impure heart: the Holy Spirit. So before we can explore purity in its various forms, the first and most critical step is to understand and identify your current spiritual condition.

If you find that you are addicted to sin (even if you’ve offered your life to Christ in the past), then your heart is impure. Don’t be too discouraged or ashamed to think you are too broken to be fixed or that God can’t help you because that is not true. It doesn’t matter how old you are, how many times you’ve sinned or how broken you feel. God not only can fix you, He wants to fix you! He’s just waiting on you to choose to be fixed.  I encourage you to dedicate (or rededicate) your life to Christ in order to be cleansed and be able to break that sinful addiction.

If you were fortunate to have become a Christian at an early age and are struggling with how to remain pure, then you need to remember the vow you made in your youth. Rely on the Holy Spirit to keep you on the straight and narrow road that leads towards God and away from sin, and follow the recommendations on this site to ensure you master purity in every area.

Study the graphic below and note the stark differences between the characteristics of the two hearts.

“What’s so Important about Purity?”

Perhaps you’re wondering what the big deal is with all this purity stuff. Is it really important enough to build a whole ministry around? Absolutely! Purity is a concept that is not only largely ignored outside the church, but sadly it is largely ignored inside many churches too. In today’s society there is more emphasis placed on feelings and political correctness than on truth and the importance of abstaining from sin. I believe if everyone knew just how important purity was, this erroneous trend would end immediately. Here are what I believe to be the top three reasons purity is so important.

Purity is Essential to Christianity

It is a plain and simple fact that without purity Christianity is meaningless because Jesus Christ is perfectly pure.  Consequently, there is no such thing as an “impure Christian”. The term “impure Christian” is actually self-contradictory! It would be like describing a shape as a “round square” or a color that’s “dark light.” These terms make no sense. If purity is defined as: freedom from all sinfulness, then impurity is defined as: enslavement to sinfulness. The whole purpose of becoming a Christian is to transition from a sinner to a son or daughter of God by accepting God’s gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. Thus purity and Christianity go hand in hand. This means that purity is a HUGE deal to anyone who identifies as a Christian.

Purity is an Invaluable Gift from God

Gratitude is the proper response to a gift. In fact, the greater the gift, the greater the gratitude should be. Imagine the difference in your response if you were in need and someone blessed you with a hundred dollars versus a million dollars. The former is certainly a good gift, but the latter is life-changing and you’d be forever grateful for such a generous gift. In the same way, God’s gift of purity through Jesus Christ deserves a proper response. Christ suffered through torture, shame, and death to provide us the gift of salvation through purification. The proper response to this invaluable gift is to accept it, embrace it by maintaining a pure lifestyle, and thanking God every day for saving us from sin and death.

Purity has Phenomenal Consequences

The most significant consequence of purity is that it leads to eternity with God, which is the ultimate destination. Contrary to what some believe, there are only two places where we can spend eternity: heaven or hell. Purity leads to the former. Why? Because purity is both a reflection of God and is pleasing to God. Pleasing God is a honor and a privilege and maintaining a pure lifestyle affords us that opportunity.  Purity also has a powerful effect on others. Many sinners have been led to Christ not by a Christian’s words but by observing a Christian’s lifestyle. This is a powerful principle every Christian should keep in mind: we are not only Christians to save our own souls; we have the power through Christ to save the souls of others through the light within us.