Filters
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin Articles, uncategorized
In our world today, we have need of filters of all sorts. We filter the air and water in our homes. We use filters for fuel, air, and oil in our automobiles. We even have various filters in the human body. Lungs, kidneys, stomach, and even hair serve in such capacities. Many of us also drink filtered coffee. Even the trees and green plants serve to purify the air.
Why do we have so many kinds of filters? Is it not because we have so many impurities in our world? I’m glad we have filters, and am happy to see them perform a valuable service for us all. In fact, we could not live without them.
Some people fail to recognize that we need filters for our words as well. They get so carried away with our country’s guarantee of freedom of speech, they think we must allow anything and everything to be said, unhindered, and more often than not, unopposed. God does not allow total freedom of speech if we are to be accepted by Him (Matthew 12:34-37).
Paul told Titus that he should use, “Sound speech, that cannot be condemned….” (Titus 2:8). The word that is translated “sound,” literally means “uncorrupted.”
Beside pure speech, man needs a pure heart (1 Timothy 1:5), pure conscience (1 Timothy 3:9), pure wisdom (James 3:17) and pure religion (James 1:27). The only pure people, are those who have been purified by obedience to God’s word (1 Peter 1:22).
Since God’s word serves to filter the impurities from our lives, we should appropriate it and propagate it with all of the energy and enthusiasm at our command.
Our world is polluted (Acts 2:40; Philippians 2:14-15), but it can be cleansed to a large degree, if we will just allow God’s word to function as God intended (2 Peter 1:1-4; cf.1 Peter 1:22; James 4:8-10; 1 John 3:1-3).
—Pat Stephenson, North Loop church of Christ via Montana Street bulletin