#226 HOLINESS DOES NOT RUB OFF 10-3-26
“Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Now, ask the priests concerning the law.’” (Haggai 2:11)
God told Haggai to ask the priests a question. That is interesting because God could have simply given the answer Himself. Instead, He directed Haggai to the men who had been entrusted with teaching God’s law. The priests were supposed to know the difference “between the holy and the unholy, and between the unclean and the clean” (Leviticus 10:10–11).
Then God asked a question that exposed something much deeper than ceremonial religion. “If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and with the edge he touches bread or stew, wine or oil, or any food, will it become holy?” (Haggai 2:12).
The answer was no.
Then God asked the opposite question. If someone who was ceremonially unclean touched those things, would they become unclean?
The answer was yes.
There was the lesson.
HOLINESS DOES NOT RUB OFF. DEFILEMENT DOES.
Israel had returned from captivity. They were rebuilding the temple. They were working around holy things. They were offering sacrifices. They were involved in the work of God. But their external involvement did not automatically make them spiritually clean.
God said, “So is this people, and so is this nation before Me, says the LORD, and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean” (Haggai 2:14). That is a sobering word. You can be around holy things without being holy. You can carry a Bible without carrying its truth in your heart. You can sit in a church building without surrendering your life to Christ. You can sing the songs, hear the sermons, teach the classes, preach the gospel, and still neglect the obedience God desires.
Sacred activity is not a substitute for a surrendered heart.
The people thought the holiness of the work would somehow cover the disobedience of the workers. God turned that thinking upside down. Being near the temple did not make them clean. Touching holy things did not make them holy.
And there is another side to this truth. Defilement spreads easily. One compromise can become another. One neglected command can open the door to another. “Do not be deceived: ‘Evil company corrupts good habits’” (1 Corinthians 15:33). James says that sin, when it is conceived, brings forth death (James 1:15).
But thank God, there is cleansing that does not come from proximity to holy things. It comes through Jesus Christ. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
We do not become holy merely by touching holy things. We become holy by coming to the Holy One. Jesus does not merely stand near our uncleanness. He cleanses it. He does not merely tell us to be better. He calls us to Himself.
So let us not confuse religious activity with righteousness. Let us not mistake proximity for purity. Let us not assume that because we are doing something for God, everything must be right with God.
God is looking deeper.
He is looking at the heart.
And the good news is that when we bring that heart to Christ, He can make what is unclean clean again.
BDD
