Pure Blood Transfusion

Another epiphany just happened in my head. For some reason I began thinking about the word “purity”. I also identified internally my lifelong typical reaction to that word as something of an impossible demand by a holy God looking for excuses to fault me. Of course my picture of God is rapidly changing away from such horrible lies, but there are still many pockets of residual associated lies in my head that need to be exposed for what they are and replaced with truth consistent with the rest of the truth I am so excited about. This is definitely one of them.

As I thought about this word “purity” and how I have typically thought about it, I began asking questions about what it really means and why it is that God is so emphatic about it. There must be a reason that God is so particular about His people being completely pure – not just mostly pure. And the reasons must be consistent with the goodness and kindness and mercy of God, not darkened with the skewed images of an angry, vengeful tyrant-God waiting to point out my failures and inflict punishment.

Then the answer suddenly struck me with perfect logic. How would a patient feel who was in urgent need of a blood-transplant to save his life if he was informed that the blood he was to receive was not completely pure but was probably safe for the most part? It only contained an extremely small percentage of deadly viruses, but that should not be of much concern since it was mostly pure.

Of course, if the patient knew anything about medicine and health he would be amazed that anyone would have the audacity to even suggest such an idea. Why would anyone in their right mind be willing to settle for a transfusion of blood that was tainted in the slightest with anything that held the potential of killing him with an infection from some dangerous organism? Why not demand only the purest blood, even if there was only one place in the world from which to receive it? Why play into the hands of death when there was a perfectly pure alternative that would guarantee life, especially if that life could last forever?

When looked at from that perspective, purity of life and character in the light of eternity makes much more sense, especially from heaven's point of view. Think about the serious and valid doubts and questions that billions of intelligent beings throughout all of the universe must have about God's plans to introduce humans into the perfect atmosphere of heaven to live there forever. It is quite plain to them the results that the infection of sin and selfishness produces in the horrible experiment being played out on this planet. They certainly must not want any part of that infection spreading anywhere else in the cosmos and they have legitimate reason to wonder how God intends to deal with that issue in His public plans to import humans into the very center and hub of all the life of the universe, the very nerve center that connects to every other part of the cosmos. What is going to prevent us from carrying even the smallest element of this deadly virus with us to someday reinfect our hearts and again spread and wreak havoc once again?

Some would suggest that God will simply wipe sin away from our minds so that we will not be dangerous carriers. But that is to deny the most precious thing that God has endured millennium's of pain to protect – the complete freedom of all His created beings to love from free choice. God is extremely jealous of our freedom of choice, even to the extent of allowing sin to flourish in that open environment without ever using force against anyone's freedom to choose, to stop its spread. That is the most mind-boggling thing that most people simply cannot bring themselves to believe about God. But God has insisted on using something He declares is far more powerful than force – pure, untainted, selfless love.

Yes, sin has flourished all too well in the rich atmosphere of freedom and that is why so many believe that the antidote to sin is to remove freedom itself. But that is not God's ways but is part of the lies conveyed by the originator of sin himself; that is part of the makeup of the virus of sin that has infected us. Force, fear, shame and blame are all part of the satanic psychosis that robs us of freedom and insists that freedom is a luxury that cannot support a perfect environment.

But God says that freedom is of such a rarified nature that only complete purity of love can be the fuel for all its participants. That is why purity is of such urgent importance to God – not because He is dogmatic and fault-finding but because He is determined that this will be the only round of sin that will ever take place without giving up the slightest bit of a universe filled with complete freedom. Purity is necessary for freedom, for real love, for safety, for securing an eternity free from reinfection of sin. Ask any good medical lab technician about maintaining purity for a safe environment of health. The slightest introduction of contamination into a pure medium can become a deadly compromise. I am sure those more familiar with this area than I am could come up with much better explanations and analogies than I can.

The really good news is that though it is impossible for any one of us to purify ourselves and make ourselves perfect and safe for heaven – well, what the Law could not do, God did through His Son. (Romans 8:3,4) He came up with an incredible plan called salvation (which means healing, restoring to original perfect condition) whereby anyone who submits to be molded and transformed by abiding in Christ and being led by His Spirit will be made safe and pure and eventually free of all traces of selfishness and sin viruses. The blood used for this transfusion is none other than the perfect, pure, uncontaminated blood of the Son of God who submitted to be murdered by sinners like us so that we would come to believe in the grace and love and kindness of a pure and holy God.

Given that context for the idea of purity, I believe that purity is something I desire, even crave. I want to be restored to full health in every part of my existence and I certainly don't want any secret sin-virus hiding out in any part of my being waiting to reinfect me and cause more misery and death to myself and those around me. I also know that I cannot accomplish this by my efforts and that only the work of the Spirit of God within me can accomplish this herculean project. But God has promised unequivocally that He is going to finish the work that He began in me. I hold Him to His word, for He is able to do what He says He can do.

God, fill me with Your presence today and make me completely pure in every way. Thank-you for Your promises and Your passionate love and Your faithfulness. Transform me into a little Christ today, a carrier of Your antidote to sin – perfect and selfless love. Let my heart be more synchronized with Your heart today and make me a magnet for You by allowing Your love to flow through me more openly. Increase Your presence in my life today for Your name's sake, for Your reputation.