Perfecting Holiness (Holiness 5)

Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1)

Exactly what promises does Paul refer to in 2 Corinthians 7:1? The promise given in the verse just before, of course, the promise that “I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” This exposes one of the dangers people experience in compartmentalizing their Scripture reading into chapters only. You might start in chapter seven and not even think of looking back into chapter six to see what Paul was talking about. Paul says, therefore, that since God promises that we believers in Jesus Christ shall become his sons and daughters, then we should cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. He goes on to say that if we do thus cleanse ourselves this will perfect holiness in us.

The great heresy in modern Christianity is that Christians bear no responsibility in their own upbringing as a son or daughter of God. People take Scriptures like “For in it [the Gospel] the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (Romans 1:17) to prove that our righteousness (holiness) has nothing to do with ourselves because it is all by faith. Yes, it is all by faith, but our faith is proven by our deeds, our good works, our fruit. This is why Paul taught that Christians must work out their (soul) salvation. If I simply have to believe in Jesus, then there remains nothing else for me to work out. Presto! I am done! Let me put my hand back into the fleshpots my body and soul desired before I believed in Jesus and think no more about this stupidity of “perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” Surely Paul spoke nonsense there, did he not? (If so then let us all return as dog does to its own vomit, its own carnality, its own sin and lust).

This leads me to explain what I believe to be an error in the translation of 1 Corinthians 7:1. We do not cleanse our spirits of filthiness. Filthiness only contaminates our flesh and souls. Our flesh and souls sin, not our spirits. John says, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s[b]seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.” (1 John 3:9-10) Anyone born of God has received the seed of the Holy Spirit within his spirit. That seed will work out its perfection in the believer until he perfects holiness even in his flesh. If you look at Strong’s concordance you will see that the Greek work και kai kahee in 2 Corinthians 7:1 can be translated “so then” or “but” instead of “and.” Thus the correct interpretation of 2 Corinthians 7:1, I believe, is “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh, so then by the spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

So what is it we are supposed to clean our flesh and soul’s of? Paul tells us a little earlier in chapter 6.

“… We appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says,

“In a favorable time I listened to you,
    and in a day of salvation I have helped you.”

Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15 What accord has Christ with Belial?[b] Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,

“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,
    and they shall be my people.
17 Therefore go out from their midst,
    and be separate from them, says the Lord,
and touch no unclean thing;
    then I will welcome you,
18 and I will be a father to you,
    and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:1-18)

Christians love to take 2 Corinthians 6 and say that this only applies to Christians hanging out with and doing things with unbelievers, with non-Christians. It certainly does relate to that for we should not participate in any idolatrous or evil ritual of any false religion (and all religions except Christianity are false). But, it means far more than just this. Paul also speaks about coming out of apostate Christianity, about leaving churches which have become lawless, have given themselves to licentiousness, and which have fallen into sin and idolatry.

We live now in the closing days of Babylon the Great, the days of religious confusion where every false religion, including false expressions of Christianity, depends upon the power of the beast (man’s Satanic government structures) for its sustenance. This is why Revelation 17 depicts the woman riding the seven headed scarlet beast as “the Mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations … drunk with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” False religion always kills the followers of true religion. History witnesses this both in wars between rival sects of particular religions like the various branches of Christianity and Islam and between altogether different religions, like Islamists killing Christians and Hindus today. One group which believes it alone possesses the true path to God kills a different group which it believes to be filled with infidels. God will soon end these religious wars when he reveals the One true religion, actual identity with Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ in the flesh of his overcomers.

God will soon reveal these overcoming men and women as saviors upon the earth, men and women fully formed into Christ’s image, men and women who have worked out their salvations by allowing God to perfect holiness within them.

This entry was posted in a perfect stone, Beast Government, Bride of Christ, Elohim, Fear of God, Firstfruits, Fruit, Gospel, Holiness, image of God, Kingdom of God, New Jerusalem, Overcomers, practicing righteousness, Prophecy, Righteousness, Salvation of the Soul, Second Coming of Christ, Sons of God, the Order of Melchizedek, The Separation, The Teaching About Righteousness. Bookmark the permalink.

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