[AlphaSigma]

1 Tim. 6:11-12 (TLB)

"O Timothy, you are God's man. Run from all these evil things, and work instead at what is right and good, learning to trust Him and love others and to be patient and gentle. Fight on for God. Hold tightly to the eternal life that God has given you and that you have confessed with such a confession before many witnesses.

Trying to stay pure and not sin seems like a full-time job. How can anyone stay pure? Why would anyone want to?

Jesus talked a lot about the Pharisees. These men had created long lists of dos and don'ts about behavior of every kind. They wanted to be pure. Many of them were very good. But in Matthew 5:20, Jesus made an incredible statement: "I warn you-unless your goodness is greater than that of the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders, you can't get into the kingdom of heaven." (TLB)

If the Pharisees couldn't make it into the kingdom of heaven, who can? Those who make it into the kingdom of heaven are not just pure on the outside, like the pharisees. Anyone can make sure their behavior is correct to others.

Jesus was talking about being pure on the inside. This beings by accepting Christ's death on the cross as punishment for our sins. When we do this, we take on Christ's goodness, and, in God's eyes, we are pure and worthy of eternity in heaven.

God wants us to be like Jesus. This is a lifetime process of allowing God to mold us and change us. (1 Tim. 6:11-12). It happens by staying close to Christ and living a life like he wants us to lead. It's what keeps the Christian life fun, interesting, and challenging.

A Christian who's really alive realizes that his enternity is settled. But he also genuinely wants to be morelike the one who paid such a high price for his soul-Jesus. His motivation is not parade his goodness in front of others, but rather to please God.

Staying pure and growing as a Christian are "full-time jobs". But they are also natural by-products of staying close to Christ.

-God Bless-