SIMPLICITY AND PURITY OF DEVOTION TO CHRIST

But I am afraid… your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.” (2 Cor.11:3)

            In the previous verse Paul refers to the Christians at Corinth as being a pure virgin that he has betrothed to Christ.  And what is required of a betrothed (engaged) woman - simplicity and purity of devotion.  It is going to be a long engagement, but what a wonderful wedding it will be when all of us who belong to Jesus are forever joined with Him, never to be separated again.  The marriage of the church, the bride of Christ, to Jesus is pictured in Revelation 21as a truly glorious event which will lead right into the creation of a new heavens and a new earth.

            However, in the mean time, Jesus waits with the expectant heart of a husband-to-be, and we wait with the expectant heart of a bride-to-be.  Yes, He has given us His Spirit as the comforter; yes, we have His Word; and yes, we have each other (sometimes a mixed blessing J).  But these are all part of a long distance relationship with Jesus.  What we really long for can’t be found on this earth, because He is not here. 

            So what does all this romantic talk about us and Jesus and a wedding have to do with following Him and being His disciples?  Everything.  Being a follower of Jesus can so easily become a matter of doing all the right things, and not doing all the wrong things.  I have found that even that precious time with Him in the mornings can easily lose its glow and become a matter of duty - what I need to read, and the list of things that I need to pray about.  Life has a way of getting complicated, and it isn’t long before what is truly important gets lost.  So I try to keep going back to what Paul said to the brothers and sisters at Corinth.  I keep reminding myself that being a follower of Jesus is first, foremost, and always a matter of simplicity and purity of devotion to Him.