In observing the lives of those who have made a profession of faith, I see a wide spectrum of commitment. Some are deeply dedicated to the Lord. They honor Him in every area of their lives, speak of Him to others, and are the go-to people when I have any needs or problems.
Others not so much. While they claim to know Jesus, they seldom talk about Him. Church attendance is sparse and their philosophy of life is mixed and confusing. They have marginal victory over sin and are often called “hypocrites” by the rest of the world because their actions do not match what they claim to believe.
When God’s people left Egypt (certainly a picture of a life enslaved to sin), they were given a new land and a new way of life. This pictures the new life Christians are given when they begin their walk with Jesus Christ. In those Old Testament days, their leader was Joshua, a Hebrew word that also means Jesus. He gave them a warning that was important to the success of their new life.
Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and to cling to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. (Joshua 22:5)
This same warning has value for those who follow Jesus. We must do so with all our heart and soul. My obedience to Jesus cannot be mixed with allegiance to the stuff of the world.
The author of today’s devotional reading uses an illustration about gold and its value. He says that gold cannot be used for currency as long as it is mixed with the quartz and rock in which it lies imbedded. It must be refined and pure.
Last week we were at a large flea market. One of the sales booths was actually buying gold. The clerk had a machine for testing metal. She put it on our rings and told us the caret value in the gold. My ring was actually 14 ct. as I was told when I bought it. However, one person in our family had a platinum ring that was 91%, acceptable as “pure.” Another had what they thought was a 14 ct. gold ring and it was only 11 carets.
Comparing this to my spiritual life, I can easily see that my life is useless to God if it is polluted with sin, earthliness and selfishness. When God gave me new life in Christ, He purified my heart and separated me from the sin that held me in bondage. He intended that I stay that way. As His gold coin or gold ring, I am stamped with His image and superscription, and made into a divine currency. I am to bear His likeness in this world.
Another thought is added to this illustration. It is the idea that a Christian is, so to speak, the circulating medium of Christ, the coin of the realm by whom the great transactions of mercy and grace to a lost world are carried on. In financial matters, currency stands for gold. In spiritual matters, a Christian stands for Christ, representing His good and acceptable will and presenting what He is like to others, showing them how much He loves them.
I cannot do this if the gold of my life is full of impurities. The muck of sin cancels out even the occasional glitter. The stains of selfishness mar whatever testimony I might have. Worldliness makes me just like everyone else and totally unable to be a picture of the grace and redemptive power of God.
Aside from this illustration, Joshua’s warning is plain. When I look around me and see those who observe and obey God and those who do not, the importance of what God says needs no explanation. I must obey Him.
Lord, thank You for the awesome privilege of representing You. I don’t have a special machine where I can look at myself and make an evaluation. Instead, I need to keep my eyes on You, doing what You say and trusting You to keep my life pure, refined by Your power, and useful in accomplishing Your will. My part is simple: I must obey You.
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