It has become increasingly important to learn how our young people, who have been in the midst of many problems and sins, can be released from their defilement and come into perfect righteousness, perfect purification. Even if only a little of the old life remains, it could rise up like a thorn in their side, just as the Canaanites rose up to plague the Israelites after they had gone into the land of promise. This we do not need. We must be free to do the will of the Lord. We need to be free of every handicap.
I have the conviction that this walk with God does not need to be an almost impossible undertaking, burdened with inner conflicts and restraints caused by prior conditioning. I am convinced that we can be totally renovated and renewed by God, so that we can enter into everything God has for us with real faith and with all joyfulness in the Lord.
After the first Passover, the exodus out of Egypt, the people were to be purified so they could enter into the Passover experience. As I looked to the Lord, He directed me to the sixth chapter of Ezra. It tells of the completion of the rebuilding of the temple and how the Passover was kept for the first time after the return from Babylon. That in itself ought to be a guideline for us. What was the Passover to mean to those who had been delivered out of the oppression of Babylon—the captives who had returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt the temple? How did they go about that first Passover? The account of this gives us perhaps one of the greatest keys to purification.
Although we read of it repeatedly in the Scriptures, purification remains a neglected truth. When the days of her purification were ended, Mary took Jesus up to the temple and He was circumcised. Acts 21 describes a time of purification when Paul spent seven days of purifying himself and the Jewish believers with him. A mob arose accusing Paul of taking a Gentile into the temple, and then the riots began. Even into the Christian dispensation, the apostles were observing the days of purification at the temple in order to be rid of any defilement and to be enabled to keep the Passover of God most effectively.
Let us read a little about this thing of defilement from Ezra 6:14–22: And the elders of the Jews were successful in building through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decree of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. And this temple was completed on the third day of the month of Adar; it was the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
And the sons of Israel, the priests, the Levites and the rest of the exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. And they offered for the dedication of this temple of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats, corresponding to the number of the tribes of Israel.
Then they appointed the priests to their divisions and the Levites in their orders for the service of God in Jerusalem, as it is written in the book of Moses. And the exiles observed the Passover on the fourteenth of the first month. For the priests and the Levites had (note carefully) purified themselves together; all of them were pure.
Then they slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the exiles, both for their brothers the priests and for themselves. And the sons of Israel who returned from exile and all those (this is important) who had separated themselves from the impurity of the nations of the land to join them, to seek the Lord God of Israel, ate the Passover. And they observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy, for the Lord had caused them to rejoice, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to encourage them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.
As we see how this first Passover in the restored temple was kept, I am concerned that we note the emphasis that is placed upon the people separating themselves from the corruption and the impurity of the nations round about them, and on the sanctification and purification of the priests so they could keep the Passover Feast. This seems of the utmost importance to me because the time has come when this has a spiritual significance.
The last book of the Old Testament talks about the return of our Lord: “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. And He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord, as in the days of old and as in former years.
“Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulters and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien, and do not fear Me,” says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 3:2–5.
It is amazing that in the day of His coming, the thing that God will do and that we witness He is doing, is to sit as a purifier of silver. He begins to refine the spiritual priesthood as silver is refined in fire. The days of purification have been upon us more than we realize. God has not really been as concerned about urging us to a dedication to go to the ends of the earth with this gospel of the Kingdom as He has been concerned about the purification of these vessels. …be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord. Isaiah 52:11. The purification of your spirit is more important than anything else.
The Christian world has seen the defiled and the unbelieving, the arrogant, the ambitious and the self-centered, all running forth, apparently to do the will of God in the earth. This is not what God is after. God is concerned about the sons of Levi being refined as silver. Then the offerings to the Lord will be great. What does He say He is going to do? “For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, My name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense is going to be offered to My name, and a grain offering that is pure; for My name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 1:11.
Malachi was prophesying, not a restoration of the Jews, but an anointing that was to come over the whole earth, from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same. Among all these nations the Lord would be glorified. The offering of the Lord would be pure, not contaminated by deceit or rebellion or this awful thing of self. The Lord is concerned about the purification of His spiritual priesthood.
I think we ought to study a little more about the Old Testament way of purification, and then turn to the book of Hebrews for the references to washing of water, the sprinkling of the blood, and the rites of purification, so that we begin to see what God is trying to do in our lives. This is the day when the Church spoken of in Ephesians will be presented to Christ as a Bride without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. He is going to cleanse it by the washing of water by the Word (Ephesians 5:26, 27). Again it goes back to the old Testament rites of purification.
You may say, “But I have been forgiven of my sin.” That is good, and that is where you should start, but what about the purification of your entire spirit, soul and body before the Lord? I think this move of the Spirit has brought forth the first indication of perfection in the whole history of the Christian Church. For the first time, people are not drawing back from the idea that they can be sinless.
The Methodists came close to it, when John Wesley preached entire sanctification, the whole spirit, soul, and body preserved blameless unto the coming of the Lord. I was once so intrigued with this teaching that I collected a library shelf almost six feet long of books written by holiness teachers. I read them, but they were always a disappointment. They had a vision of something, yet they missed it. But the day is coming in which sinlessness will be the objective of every person: to find the Lord purifying you, removing from you the deep filthiness of the old nature, and bringing you pure before the Lord.
Who shall come before the Lord? He that hath clean hands and a pure heart (Psalm 24:3, 4). In the rituals of the Old Testament, the priests were commanded to wash in the laver after they had offered their sacrifices. Before they could stand in the presence of the Lord, they had to wash their hands; otherwise God would slay them.
Exodus 30:17–21 records God’s command concerning this. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base of bronze, for washing; and you shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it. And Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet from it (incidentally, this is where the principle of foot-washing really originated); when they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, that they may not die; or when they approach the altar to minister, by offering up in smoke a fire sacrifice to the Lord. So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they may not die; and it shall be a perpetual statute for them, for Aaron and his descendants throughout their generations.”
Malachi’s prophecy speaks about the priesthood of the end time, but he alludes back to the book of Exodus and how the priesthood had to be clean when they presented their sacrifices to the Lord. “Then you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it, and shall consecrate it and all its furnishings; and it shall be holy. And you shall anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar; and the altar shall be most holy. And you shall anoint the laver and its stand, and consecrate it.
“Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting and wash them with water (again the ritual to purify them). And you shall put the holy garments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister as a priest to Me. And you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them; and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing shall qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.” Thus Moses did; according to all that the Lord had commanded him, so he did. Exodus 40:9–16.
The book of Hebrews shows us what this purification was to mean. “But He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. The purpose of Christ was not just to save you, so that you would make it into heaven by a squeak, but it was to perfect you. What you have in mind and what God has in mind may be two different things, but God wants absolute perfection!
And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws upon their heart, and upon their mind I will write them,” He then says, “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin. Since therefore, brethren, we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, (then let us go into these rituals of purification; let us go on to purify ourselves so that we can be the priesthood of God; notice how He expresses it), let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean (the sprinkling that goes back to the rites of purification) from an evil conscience and our body washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:12–22.
Our Scripture from Exodus describes how Aaron was brought to the door of the tent of tabernacles. In Old Testament times they did things differently than we do now. I think the current emphasis on nudity belongs to the devil. The nudity in the Old Testament was another thing entirely.
We find David throwing off his clothes and dancing before the Lord, until his wife despised him in her heart. Aaron, the dignified high priest, was stripped of all his robes and given a bath right there at the door of the tabernacle. Then clean robes were put on him and he was told, “Now go into the presence of God and minister.”
When the priests offered the sacrifices, they had to wash their feet and their hands in the laver because they were going to stand in the presence of the Lord. Whenever they came close to God or anticipated a close meeting with the Lord, this rite of purification took place. Because this is the unique experience of the end time, we should study it. In his epistle, John wrote about the Lord appearing to people in our time, and he said, And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. I John 3:3. In his heart, he goes into the spiritual work of purification, so that, when the Lord appears, he can stand and minister in His presence. This is for all of you. It is what God wants you to do.
You may say, “It is awesome. I draw back from it.” Do not draw back from it. It is essential that you be delivered from the idea that you are going to be inspired to run out and do a lot of work that will glorify you, that will be very rewarding and satisfying, as you accomplish something so worthy and so worthwhile. That is not the vision! The vision is a people who are purified.
Daniel prophesies of the end time, “Many will be purified and made white” (Daniel 12:10). These are the ones who will do exploits! They are going out to minister in the presence of the Lord because of the purification that the Lord has worked within them. It is not a discipline within themselves, but a mighty work of God who has sprinkled them with the blood of Christ, purified them, and brought them into a higher state of salvation—saved to the uttermost! This is the work of the great Lord over the priesthood who will minister in His presence in the end time.
This is exactly what you are experiencing. When you start moving in God, you think, “Now we are going to have gifts, we are going to have a ministry, and we will be able to do wonderful things. Isn’t it marvelous?” But what does the Lord do with you? He sits and refines you, like silver, in the fire. Some of you have been boiling in the pot for a long time, and you are continually amazed at the impurities that keep coming up.
The Lord wants an offering that is pure. He is more concerned about the quality of the remnant than He is the number. When the quality is there, the work will be done through the whole earth in a short time. Gideon had an army of thirty-two thousand. After “operation chicken,” twenty-two thousand went home, leaving ten thousand. Then those ten thousand were reduced to three hundred, who successfully defeated a nation who were as the sands of the sea in number when they came against Israel. This was “operation purity.”
We have the call of God upon us and we want to move, but God will keep on refining us until we stand before Him in purity of heart. It is not how much you know or what you can do, but it is the state of your spirit before the Lord that is important. As Hebrews expresses it, Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our body washed with pure water. Ah, that is it!
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near. For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins (heed this carefully), but a certain terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified (another reference to this matter of making you a sanctified vessel), and has insulted the Spirit of grace (notice: he has only “insulted” the Spirit of grace)? For we know Him who said, “vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hebrews 10:22–31. This entire passage refers back to the rites of purification. Purify yourselves! Cleanse your hands ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted and mourn and weep.
I know there is a joy in keeping the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but it is also a time of affliction. The Lord brings us together to purify us, to dig deep into our lives, to see that everything is going to be right before Him.
Ezekiel 36:23–27 contains a prophecy of restoration. “And I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord,” declares the Lord God, “when I prove Myself holy among you in their sight. For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land. This is speaking of restoration. Take it in a spiritual sense.
Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”
I like that emphasis on carefulness. With what carefulness we should walk with God. When will we be careful to observe His ordinances? When God has cleansed us from all filthiness, when He has sprinkled clean water on us and washed us, when the purification from our defilement has been removed. This is one of the reasons that leads me to think we should soon be returning to foot-washing services. It is so symbolic. When Jesus washed the disciples’ feet after the Passover meal, Peter said, “Lord, wash also my hands and my head.” But Jesus washed only the feet because that was part of the ritual of purification.
The Lord took the ritual of purification and made it foot-washing. He took the Passover and made it the Lord’s supper. These were Old Testament ordinances through which He revealed His grace, that people might be released and delivered by His blood and that they might be cleansed from their defilement. It is marvelous to realize that the blood of Jesus Christ, the Passover lamb, comes to give us a glorious release and deliverance. But then we are to go one step further and be cleansed thoroughly from all defilement, that we might walk before the Lord blameless.
“And you will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers; so you will be My people, and I will be your God. Moreover, I will save you from all your uncleanness; and I will call for the grain and multiply it, and I will not bring a famine on you.”
“And I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, that you may not receive again the disgrace of famine among the nations.” Purification precedes fruitfulness. In John 15, the chapter which speaks of being purged that we might bring forth much fruit, we are told, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.”
“Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and your abominations.” Ezekiel 36:28–31. This is an experience you all must have, of looking at yourself and absolutely hating and loathing yourself, but then declaring also, “I am believing God for this purification.”
We tend to modify and tone down our reactions. We do not express fully what God puts in our hearts. We do not seek after the Lord with all of our hearts, or acknowledge His greatness as we adore and worship Him. On the other hand, we also do not abhor ourselves in the old flesh as much as we ought to. I like David’s actions. He loved the Lord, and he said, “With my whole heart I seek Him.” He fixed his heart. He danced before the Lord with all his might. Everything within him responded to love God. When he repented, he repented. When he was given to sorrow, he was completely given to sorrow. You would be embarrassed to see someone at a funeral service express his grief as David did when one of his friends died. He wept, he threw ashes on his head, he put on sackcloth, he lifted up his voice and wailed and cried until the sun went down and he had no more strength to weep. David was a strong man, but he expressed his grief.
In these days, people hide their sorrow. They hide their feelings, afraid to express themselves. This is especially true of the American people. But when we come into a walk with God, we become more expressive. As we open our hearts to the Lord and sing and worship, people think we are soulish. It is one thing to be soulish, emotional, and clear off the beam, and it is another to come to the place where everything within you is responding to God, and in all sincerity without phoniness, without any emotionalism, you seek the Lord with all your heart.
You may say, “Well, I don’t know whether I can do that.” If He purified you, you can. The route to the fulfillment of the first and greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind, and with all thy strength,” is that you loathe yourself in your own sight for your iniquities and your abominations.
The Scriptures on purification have blessed me as the Lord poured this message into my spirit. Through them He has destroyed forever the trace of reluctance—which I think everyone has—that says, “I am going all out for God, but there are some nice things out there in the world to enjoy. I don’t want to get too carried away with this, or I might miss some of them. I don’t want to take a chance of being unfulfilled or of my joy in this world not being complete.” That is the world’s thinking. I would rather be miserable and please God! Wouldn’t you? But you will not be miserable; you will be filled with joy.
What does it mean to be sanctified, to be made clean in the sight of the Lord? We quoted earlier from the New Testament that the Bride is to be presented to the Lord without spot or wrinkle; by the washing of the water of the Word she is to be clean before the Lord. Now let us consider a Scripture with a very practical aspect, II Timothy 2:19–22: “….The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let every one who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness.” If you name the name of the Lord, then you abstain from wickedness. Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue after righteousness, faith, love, and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
This is not holiness preaching, that if we do not get rid of all of these things and live an austere life, we will go to hell. This is talking about the kind of vessel you are going to be and how the Lord will use you. Malachi spoke about offering to the Lord a pure offering. You are to be a vessel of honor that the Lord can use.
In a house there are all kinds of vessels. The vessels of honor are the kind you bring out for company, such as the good silverware.
In a great house there are vessels of honor and there are vessels of dishonor. If you sanctify and purify yourself, you will become a vessel of honor prepared for every good work. Anything for which God wants to use you, anything that will please Him, anything by which He will be glorified—you will be ready to do. This is the purpose of purification, that we should do the exploits, the signs and wonders in the name of the Lord, that the gospel of the Kingdom with great witness should be proclaimed to the end of the world, that we should be a vessel of honor for God to use.
I Thessalonians is a unique book because it focuses on two things. Most of us know that Thessalonians deals with the Lord coming for His saints and other end-time events. However, few people realize that I Thessalonians has some of the most concentrated and marvelous passages on sanctification and purity of heart to be found in any book.
One such passage is chapter 3, verses 8–13: For now we really live, if you stand firm in the Lord. For what thanks can we render to God for you in return for all the joy with which we rejoice before our God on your account, as we night and day keep praying most earnestly that we may see your face, and may complete what is lacking in your faith?
Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you; and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men, just as we also do for you; so that He may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.
This Scripture establishes a fact that you cannot get away from—God wants us to be unblameable. He wants us to be holy. God will do something for this generation of people who are following the Lord, in removing from them every bit of sin, everything that is displeasing to Him. Reckon on this one truth: You cannot serve God and mammon.
You cannot love this world that God is judging and also love the Lord. You must love His Kingdom. You must seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.
Continuing in I Thessalonians 4:1–8, we read: Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you may excel still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God.
What is meant by “possessing his own vessel”? A man’s wife is his vessel; she is the one who serves him. A woman’s husband is her vessel; he is the one who serves her. Your sanctification is the will of God, that you abstain from sexual immorality, that you know how to possess your own vessel in sanctification and honor. You young folks and those who are unmarried may be saying, “I am not married, so that doesn’t apply to me.” Yes, it does!
When a young man goes courting, it is not to seduce a woman into becoming his wife; it is to possess her in sanctification and honor. There should be a difference in the way a man and a woman get together in the will of God from the way the world does it. You young folks remember that. You are not courting as the world does. You are not to turn each other on to see how much spark you can get going.
And that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you. If you cheat (whether you are single or married), you have a promise—a Christian promise to believers—that God will avenge all manner of such things. For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. This is what God called us to do. You may say, “But I am lustful and easily tempted to sexual sin.” That is too bad. Get down on your knees and do some praying. Nothing justifies yielding to the flesh.
Consequently, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you. If you reject these things, you are not rejecting man; you are rejecting God who gives the Holy Spirit. This emphasis during the Feast of Passover has been unique. In all the years of God’s dealings, I have never seen the Lord lay it to us so strongly and so bluntly. But we are at the place where the young folks must walk right before the Lord. They will go out from here to see the world change before their word, before their prophecies and their psalms, because they are going to be vessels that God can use for such a purpose—not in old-order holiness, but in real purification of their spirits before the Lord. This is what the Lord is doing in your life.
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. I Thessalonians 5:23–24.
In this unique hour in the history of the Church, God sets before you the objective of getting rid of any impurities in your life. If you have that hope of His coming, you will purify yourself. In case you are thinking, “I cannot purify myself,” let me remind you that this Scripture is not talking about old-order discipline. It is talking about you looking to the Lord: “Faithful is He who has called you, who also will do it.” God will do it, but you have to hunger for it. You must have faith for it.
It takes time for our spiritual capacity of understanding and comprehension to expand. Even now some of you may not fully be grasping what I am saying, but if there is a submission in your heart to believe beyond your understanding, accept what I am telling you, because then God will loose you from everything that could hinder you.
Is there fear in your heart because you know that you have not really been purified? Is there fear of repeating past mistakes? Is there a fear of walking in responses and conditioning of your minds? Is there a fear of the influence that evil and abounding iniquity has had upon you, that may have dulled your spiritual senses or caused your love to wax cold? That has to go!
You do not want to be a castaway, one who is put aside; you want to walk on in all victory. There is something within me that desires to see every one of you presented perfect in Christ Jesus. I cannot describe the yearning in my heart to see you make it. I will not judge you. I will not look upon you and say you are full of faults. And I ask that you do the same for me. I just want to see kindled in your heart what is burning in mine: the desire to please Him, the desire to be a pure vessel before Him, to be someone He can honor.
I am not worried about how things appear to the world, nor am I concerned about eliminating persecution. We are not aspiring to be highly esteemed by everyone. We want something far greater than that: We want to stand before the Lord with a pure heart, with that covenant spoken of in Ezekiel written on our hearts, with God cleansing us from all our impurities, to stand and prophesy, to sing and worship before the Lord. The Word of the Lord is going to reach the ends of the earth. The new song of Zion is going to come. This is what it is all about.