Inter-Varsity Press

Contents

Foreword - by Nigel D. Pollock
Introduction
Why pure?

1. Pure perfection
The way we were: Genesis 1 and 2

2. Pure rebellion
Where it all went pear shaped: Genesis 3

3. Pure planets
Living in a new community as Mars and Venus:
Colossians 3

4. Pure sex
Being sexually pure: 1 Thessalonians 4

5. Pure gifts
Making the most of your gift: 1 Corinthians 7

6. Pure forgiveness
Cross-effects: Isaiah 53

Afterword - by Catherine Brooks

... ‘pure’ is not a dirty word. We badly need a new vision of purity that recognizes the high value of personal holiness.

Purity is not something that comes naturally to us. It is not defined primarily by the absence of anything but is a positive quality, produced by God through relationship with him. As people, our characters are flawed, our motives are tarnished and our orientation is fundamentally selfish. Our new identity in Christ calls us to live distinctive lives characterized by a radical attitude to money, sex, image and work.

The reality of the gospel is demonstrated through the differences evidenced in the Christian community. The key to authentic Christian witness is not that we blend in and blur but that we stand out. I believe it is only through the clear manifestation of the difference that Christ makes that we will make a lasting impact in our communities and in the world.

Pure will challenge you to lead a distinctive life. It will help you to avoid compromise and to get excited about the opportunities and the adventure of a life lived well.

Pure will encourage you to embrace your true identity in Christ. It will be of practical help as you engage with real issues. I would encourage you to read it at the same time as a friend and to chat through the implications as honestly as you can. ...
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Extract from ... Chapter 2
Pure rebellion Where it all went pear shaped: Genesis 3

Once upon a time a man and a woman met, fell in love, got married and lived happily ever after together. Yeah, right. When does that ever actually happen?

The way God made us, as seen in Genesis 1 and 2, seems like a fairy tale set in an ideal world and is a far cry from what we experience today. Men and women don’t even understand each other, let alone get on! We have become the butt of each other’s jokes.

It seems that our communication has broken down. The relationships that do exist around us are often a mess. Instead of sex being viewed as a good gift from God, it is used and abused selfishly. Even our friendships can be full of hurt and pain. It seems more like a nightmare than a fairy tale.

It only takes a passing glance at the media to see that things are the same the world over. The newspapers are filled with expose´s of yet another MP’s affair. For every new celebrity ‘golden couple’, there will be another failed celebrity marriage. Even Marge and Homer, that great bastion of wedded bliss, more often than not demonstrate miscommunication, selfishness and unfaithfulness. Domestic violence continues to be a crippling and terrifying prison for many women, while men are accused of being chauvinist pigs if they hold a door open for a woman. Families shatter and fall apart in the wake of divorce. It doesn’t take long to think of examples of how relationships are far from perfect.

How did we end up here? How did we get in such a mess? It’s not because of women’s bad sense of direction or spatial awareness, or men’s inability to ask for directions, but because of something much deeper and much more terrible. God created us to live in relationship with him and with each other. Perfectly. But something went badly wrong for all of us back in Eden.

Where it all went pear shaped (excuse the pun)
You know the basic story. Adam and Eve are merrily exploring and working in the garden (tra la la), when the serpent appears (boo, hiss). The serpent tempts Eve to disobey God and eat fruit of the forbidden tree. She then gives some to Adam and they eat it. Then they realize what they’ve done and go and hide from God (like that’s going to work!). God confronts them and they start pointing the finger of blame (Adam blames Eve, Eve blames the serpent and the serpent doesn’t have a leg to stand on). God then spells out the consequences of their actions for them and for all humankind who would follow them.

The reason this chapter is so important is that the way that Adam and Eve behaved in some ways sets a terrible pattern for us. Romans 5:12 tells us that we’re all caught up and represented in the actions of Adam. The way that the serpent tempted the first man and woman to sin (i.e. disobey God) is the same as the way people are tempted today. Think for a moment about one of the things you are most tempted by. Think about how your mind works when you are tempted. See if you can spot any familiar patterns in what happened in Genesis 3.

Notice how sneaky the serpent was in verse 1.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, ‘‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’’?’

The serpent is Satan in disguise (see Romans 16:20). Satan himself has no power to create or to rule, so instead he works as an illusionist, a master of deception. He places doubt in the woman’s mind: Did God really say . . . ? You can just imagine how those words were ringing round in Eve’s mind. Perhaps they have rung round in yours, too. ‘Surely God would never say something like that? That would just be stupid. I really can’t believe that he would be so petty as to say that eating a little apple would be wrong. That would just be ridiculous, illogical even. He’s probably just trying to stop your fun - that’s a bit stingy.’

Satan is not stupid. Somehow he tries to persuade us that sin makes sense. That doing something wrong isn’t wrong at all, but will feel pretty good. Sin promises something that it can never fulfil. Satan deceives us into thinking that we will be happy if we just do this one thing. He tempts us by telling us it doesn’t really matter - there’s no point making a big deal out of it.

His next tactic is twisting God’s words: ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’ (Genesis 3:1). Sounds almost right, doesn’t it? I’m sure God mentioned something about trees and not eating. But if we look back to Genesis 2:16, we see that God told Adam, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.’ What the serpent has actually done is to exaggerate and distort what God has said. In twisting God’s Word, Satan is actually twisting God’s character.

Whatever Satan has said has started to work. He’s hooked her and is now drawing the line in. Eve enters into conversation with him. Unlike Jesus’ response to temptation (Matthew 4:1–11), she doesn’t rebuke Satan with God’s Word on the matter and tell him to clear off. She continues chatting with Satan and in doing so starts to muddle up what God actually said. She says that God told them not even to touch the tree. D’oh! God said no such thing.

Knowing God’s commands and obeying God’s commands shows that we are serving him. If we don’t actually know what God’s will is, we won’t be equipped to avoid temptation. When Satan tempts us to disobey God we will only see it for what it is if we hold everything up to the plumb-line of Scripture. Don’t even engage with Satan. Don’t enter into a conversation with him, trying to reason with him. Get rid of temptation by counteracting it with the life-giving words of God. We’ll only be able to do that if we know God’s Word.

Satan then starts to pull in the line. Eve is now engaged in a conversation and Satan is subtly persuading her. He has planted the idea in her mind and already it’s sounding good to her. After slighting and doubting God’s character, the serpent lies: ‘You will not surely die’ (Genesis 3:4). God specifically said that the just punishment for disobeying his command was death. Satan denies this. It’s a direct challenge to God and calls his goodness into question.

Satan is still denying God’s Word today. He presents it in such a way to make me believe that I will be happier if I follow what he says. The power of temptation is the belief that giving in to it will make me happier. But the true Word of God cuts through the fog of Satan’s lies and shows me that true fulfilment is found in obeying God and trusting him. ...