For today’s devotional blog post, I’d like to start off with 2 Corinthians 6:17.
“Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,And I will receive you.”
(2 Corinthians 6:17, emphasis added)
What does that mean?
Well, first off, the word “touch” in this verse means “to fasten one’s self to, cling to.”
The word “unclean” means “impure, foul.” What I find interesting is that the word “foul” used to be the Old English word ful.
So, what does that have to do with anything? You may ask.
Well, it’s just interesting to note that the Old English word ful used to mean UGLY. But what’s even MORE interesting is that the word “ugly” comes from an Old Norse word that means “fear.”
That reminds me of two key Bible verses:
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
(2 Timothy 1:7)
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.
(1 John 4:18)
Now, going back to 2 Corinthians 6:17, what can we learn from this verse based on what we just looked at?
“Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,And I will receive you.”
(2 Corinthians 6:17)
Well, before we try to extract a lesson from this, I’d like for us to do one more quick word study.
So far, we’ve seen that–as we broke down the word “unclean” in 2 Corinthians 6:17–it has led us to the word “fear.”
But what does “fear” mean? It’s interesting that the word “fear” actually comes from an Old Norse word that means “DECEPTION.”
So, what can we take from this?
Friends, as we see the final events of Bible prophecy begin to slowly drip into the vial of time, God is APPEALING to our hearts through this verse.
Right now He is gently calling us to step away from the world, and to stop clinging to this world’s deceptions. To stop HUGGING things that are deceiving our own souls and deceiving our faith in God.
Friends, what are you hugging today?
Are you hugging the deceptions of this world? The deceptions of social media? The deceptions of movies? The deceptions of wealth? The deceptions of video games? The deceptions of fear? The deceptions of pride? The deceptions of selfish ambition?
What are you hugging to your heart?
Worldly deception or Jesus Christ?
A Prayer
Friends, if you desire to let go of the worldly deceptions, lies, and sins you’ve been hugging onto for so long, and give them fully to the Lord, then I wanna encourage you to pray:
Amen! Maranatha!