But the wisdom that comes from God is most of all, pure… James 3:17
Christ-like wisdom is pure since it is a gift from God, but we make a mistake when we think the opposite of pure is always impure—it isn’t; at least not all the time. The opposite of pure is the perversion of pure: it’s puritanical. It’s keeping rules and exerting discipline. It’s adhering to the “traditions of the elders”. Pure wisdom is not a mixture of rules and good intentions. Christ-like wisdom is empowered by the Holy Spirit and is constantly being drawn toward more complete holiness both in our hearts and in our life experience.
When the Holy Spirit is transforming our minds, then our thoughts are being purified…not only that, our desires mirror Jesus’ desires (that’s what real holiness is) in all aspects of life. We desire what God desires and He gives us the desires of our hearts because they are in line with His wisdom.
BUT, when we don’t allow the Holy Spirit to fill our thinking, attitudes, actions and desires, we are left trapped in all kinds of impurity. That’s when we start to rely on rules and traditions to achieve a pseudo-holiness—and the result is that we are puritanical and legalistic. Kind of like the Pharisees of old: hypocrites, knowing the right rules but powerless to actually carry out their ideals.
Why does this rules-based, tradition-venerating living appeal to so many people? Because God has given most people a level of wisdom that at least looks out for its own well-being on some level. Sometimes we call it “the wisdom of man” or “worldly wisdom”. So even with just this “wisdom” most people can see that a life of unbridled sin is self-destructive. So they follow some kind of a self-improvement program in their own self-interest.
That’s why in Romans 1, Paul says that when people fail to pursue decency on even this most basic level, their minds become foolish, clouded, corrupted to the point where self-destructive behavior seems wise to them. And even unbelievers will shake their head at these people and call them fools, because they’re hurting themselves the most.
But for believers, “The gospel unveils a continual revelation of God’s righteousness—a perfect righteousness given to us when we believe. And it moves us from receiving life through faith, to the power of living by faith. (Rom 1:17) This is the purity that comes by faith.
In Matt 5:8, Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” More on that next time…