09/07/2018
How do we come into the presence of God? Are we clothed in all of our sin, and wearing shoes that are filthy and covered in the dust of the world? As creatures of both physical and spiritual construction we can’t travel anywhere without both sides of ourselves being present. Only at death is that separation possible. So until then, we must be careful regarding the purity of both our body and our spirit when we come before the Lord.
“When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." Then he said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." And he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.”
Exodus 3:4-6 ESV
There are laws that were given to the Israelites regarding cleanliness, and they were very rigorous and detailed. Washing of feet, washing of hands, faces, bathing, cleansing when one came to the temple in the Mikveh, and the washing of a husband by his wife. So as we consider what God has asked of Moses, “take your sandals off your feet”, we are taken to that moment in the Upper Room when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. I ask myself... wouldn’t they have already washed their hands before the meal, and feet when they entered into the house? If so... then the lesson becomes even more powerful doesn’t it?
Here is an excerpt from the Jewish Encyclopedia...
“It was also customary to wash the feet before meals and before going to bed (comp. Cant. v. 3); to abstain for a long time from washing them was a sign of deep mourning.” - Jewishencyclopedia.com
So, how do we cleanse and prepare ourselves both physically and spiritually for prayer? How do we make ready to enter the presence of God?
“And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared."”
Luke 1:16-17 ESV
Scripture tells us that Jesus will make us ready for the Lord... that He will prepare us. Was this part and parcel of what His foot washing was demonstrating, and possibly accomplishing, in the Upper Room?
Do you eat with filthy hands? Do you come to your father’s table covered with grime and sit on his furnishings, and then begin the meal smelling of the world? I dare say not... and do you sit down and begin to serve yourself and eat the meal before praying? I know that when I came into my home as a child my mother would shout from the kitchen... “Go wash up, dinner is ready!” Today I need no reminder to wash up for even the routine meals, but for meals like Easter, Christmas, and Sundays, I am not only washed, but dressed in my good clothes. As for prayer... that preceded every meal. We prepared ourselves, and so did the disciples before their Passover Seder.
Our bodies are an integral part of who we are, and we need to pay particular attention to them. We are not merely spirits, but come as a complete package which includes our body. We are not Holy until both the spirit, and the body have come into alignment with God’s will, and been made pure.
“Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”
2 Corinthians 7:1 ESV
Cleansing ourselves body and spirit. So often we neglect to keep our body clean and prepared for God’s habitation. We sin physically and never purify ourselves. Some commit adultery and don’t acknowledge that they have now become one flesh with that person.
“Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, "The two will become one flesh."”
1 Corinthians 6:16 ESV
This is only one example, but it prompts us to ask ourselves how we are keeping our bodies? Are we remaining pure; are we removing the physical stain that sin has left there by contrition and water... cleansing them before entering the presence of God? Do we sin on Saturday night and sit on the pew Sunday morning without bathing ourselves in water and prayer; without honestly asking forgiveness? Are we removing our shoes?
“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV
How are we keeping ourselves, and are we truly holy? Do we pray for spiritual forgiveness and neglect the sins of the flesh that we walk around with on our feet and hands?
Prayer,
Father, I thank you for both my spirit and my body. I thank you for joining them together to make me who I am, and for providing your Son Jesus Christ, who is the water, and blood, of forgiveness that both might be made pure before you. Help me Holy Father to always ask your forgiveness, and to remove the shoes of my sinful nature before entering into your presence. Make me aware always of the Holy Ground that surrounds you, and remind me as you did Moses to remove my sandals and not defile your temple, or dishonor your presence. Never let me forget that the sins of my flesh can be every bit as egregious as those of my spirit. Teach me to purify myself before coming before you; let me wash myself in prayer, water, the blood of Christ, and with true contrition so that I can stand before you unblemished in the redemption of your lamb. You are a Great God, and greatly to be praised. You are the Holy, Holy, Holy, God who rules over my body, spirit, and soul. You are He who completes me in the fullness of the man you have created. Praised be your name always.
Rich Forbes