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CHAPTER THREE
THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MY Purifier: HE MAKES ME More LIKE JESUS
Years ago we had neighbors with children about the ages of our middle kids. One of them was an angry child who knew bad words and used them at times. He played rough with our kids and found kindness difficult.
The mama bear in me wanted to protect my little cubs. But I also wanted to have a positive influence on our neighbors, so I chose to continue letting this child come over to play occasionally while I closely supervised the interactions. When needed I had conversations with my children after he went home.
Even with my noble intentions, over time I began to dislike our little neighbor’s presence, attitude, and actions more and more. Anger was growing in my heart. I knew Jesus wanted me to love him, but in truth I didn’t want to love this child. In my mind, behavior like this didn’t deserve to be rewarded with grace and love.
One day I realized my attitude and my lack of love was not pleasing to my God. The Holy Spirit showed me the truth about my attitude. THE SPIRIT WAS INVITING ME TO LET HIM MAKE MY HEART MORE PURE AND CLEAN LIKE JESUS, WHO LOVED EVEN THOSE WHO HATED HIM.
As a member of the Trinity, part of the Holy Spirit’s job is to “sanctify” me, to purify me, to make me more holy. “Sanctify” means to set apart from that which is evil and not like God.
God commanded His people, Israel, to be holy in Leviticus 11:45. He repeated the instruction to us in 1 Peter 1:16, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” Jesus demonstrated how to love and forgive and be holy toward those who didn’t deserve it—which meant everyone. We are called to be like Him.
EVEN THOUGH GOD KNEW HE WAS ASKING THE IMPOSSIBLE OF HIS SINFUL CHILDREN, NEVERTHELESS HE ASKED, KNOWING HE WAS GIVING US THE ABILITY TO BECOME HOLY BY THE POWER OF HIS SPIRIT. He initiates this relationship and then gives us what we need to please Him.
HERE ARE SOME SCRIPTURES THAT SPEAK OF THIS ONGOING PURIFYING WORK OF THE SPIRIT:
• The Spirit calls and urges us to become holy … “For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.” 1 Thessalonians 4:7-8
• The Spirit makes us holy by giving us His divine nature … “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness … he has granted us His precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature.” 2 Peter 1:3-4
• He purifies us by giving us the fruits of the Spirit, giving us the power to be loving, peaceful, kind, patient, etc., especially in difficult circumstances (Galatians 5:22-23). • He purifies us so we become more like Christ … “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23
• He convicts us of sin which means He shows or helps us see our sin … “And when he [the Holy Spirit] comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.” John 16:8
The Holy Spirit convicted me that my attitude toward our neighbor child was sin. It was not a holy response because I was responding out of my own human nature, which is compromised, broken, set on serving self. I needed God’s divine nature to rule over my own nature so that I could then become sanctified and holy.
Once I see what the Holy Spirit has shown me about my heart, I have a choice to either refuse out of pride or to surrender to Him and His desires, which are for my good and for the good of others. It is then, when surrendered to the will of the Spirit, that my motives can become pure.
With our neighbor child, I knew my opinion, my sense of what was right, didn’t matter before a holy God. Jesus loved this child and died for this child as much as He did for me. MY PROUD HEART COULD ONLY BE CHANGED BY JESUS.
The Spirit delights to help all of His children recognize our naturally sinful responses. Only He can produce purity in a
surrendered human heart. One of my role models, Elisabeth Elliot, said, “One doesn’t surrender a life in an instant. That which is lifelong can only be surrendered over a lifetime.” So be encouraged that our inability to stay surrendered is normal!
I surrendered to the whisper of the Spirit and prayed God would give me His love because mine was insufficient. I asked Him to remove the coldness in my heart and replace it with His love that was pure, kind, patient, compassionate, did not act unbecomingly or take into account a wrong suffered.
To my great surprise, I discovered soon after I prayed that my
animosity toward this child was gone. I didn’t cringe when I saw this little one walk down our driveway. I began to feel compassion instead of anger. My eyes were opened to see it wasn’t all the child’s fault. His home life was a significant factor.
What I experienced was the work of the Holy Spirit, my Purifier, who loved me enough to show me the truth about my heart and possessed the power to change me. I experienced the truth of Romans 5:5: “… God’s love
has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
After I saw what God could do with my heart over a neighbor child,
I began asking Him to help me love others, like my own children
when they weren’t so easy to like. Or my husband on some days, because let’s be honest … those closest to us are those whose flaws we see most clearly. They hurt us and disappoint us more often than others.
Changing a cold, hard, stubborn heart is a miracle of God. Why? Because we humans have a free will. No other living creature resists His voice. But we can resist the desire of God’s Spirit to change our hearts.
I PRAY GOD WILL GRANT YOU THE DESIRE TO BE MORE LIKE HIM AND THE WILLINGNESS TO SEE YOUR SIN AND SURRENDER TO HIS WORK IN YOUR HEART.
Reflection
1. Who are those you have a hard time loving?
Whose name suddenly popped into your mind as you read this question? If no one’s name was obvious then review your family, your co-workers, your neighbors, and those you know in church.
Be willing to be brutally honest with yourself.
Remember God already knows anyway. These relationships are between you and Him alone.
2. Talk to the Holy Spirit about these people. Tell Him how you feel if you want. But most importantly, surrender your inability to love to God and invite His Holy Spirit to change your heart. It’s a liberating wonder to experience heart change!
There’s nothing like cooperating with God.
3. To learn more here are five verses about the desire of God to make us pure and holy as He is. • 1 Corinthians 13 • Galatians 5:22-23 • Philippians 4:8 • Matthew 5:8 • 1 John 3:3
As you read these, remember it is impossible for you to change yourself. Only God can create a new heart that is holy and pure like His.
