Several states saw some stunning results in yesterday’s off-year elections.

So many savvy “savior”-seekers saw Governor Glenn Youngkin as their next great hope politically, but it’s widely deemed that those dreams were dashed and debatably destroyed after he fought so hard but failed to win the Senate and actually went in reverse  in losing the Virginia House of Delegates, too.  (But both just barely, by a baby  whisker, but damage was undeniably done… what a dramatic, diametric  difference a day can make.)

And ruby-red Kentucky really had heads scratching after electing a Democrat as their governor.  Again.

And Ohio, which went with Donald Trump by a big nearly-ten percentage points both in 2016 and 2020, approved a ballot measure to instill in that red state’s constitution the right to have an abortion – by a landslide, two-to-one, i.e., those voting yes doubled  those voting no, despite a decisive number advantage of Republicans over Democrats there.

But I think the most shocking thing I saw occur last night was this:  not only that a woman chose to run for the House of Delegates in Virginia after having publicly participated in a super-sordid scandal… but that she came within an inch of winning.

Let that set in for a second.  After her public scandal of unmentionable immorality, many people dwelling in that district deemed her perfectly fit to fulfill a position of political leadership.

We’ve all seen that telling the truth has become an endangered species in society.

So has purity.

The personal and public problem with this is that purity is literally the gateway for wisdom.

• “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” (James 3:17)

In other words, it’s impossible to possess much less practice wisdom without first putting on purity, without mustering much more than a modicum of morality in one’s daily living.

I’m not shocked at all that she ran for office.  But it is sad to see so many men and women (“the masses”) vote for her.

There’s a palpable price to pay when the public pursues impurity and eschews wisdom.

May we double-down on our decision as Bible-loving, Bible-living  believers to turn our back on and outright reject the things so readily and roundly applauded by the sinful, siren-song-singing world system.  May we live life looking  to lovingly share the transforming truth of the Bible in general and the Gospel in specific with others, that they too may put away those things, to “die to sin and live to righteousness” and enjoy the purity, peace, and power certain to ensue.

• “and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

And may we never, ever forget that there but by God’s grace go (and went!) we.

• “And such were some of you…” (1 Corinthians 6:11a)
• “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.” (Titus 3:3)

And I’ll end on this very upbeat note:  that both of these verses use the word “were”, not  ”are”, and that the very next  word in both cases is a big, beautiful, blessed “but” – praise the Lord!

• “but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:11b)
• “But when the kindness and affection of God our Savior appeared, He saved us…” (Titus 3:4-5a)

Wisdom is wonderful and indescribably blissful, but the Bible does so sufficiently for our finite, fallen minds to figure out more than enough about it that we will want and work and wait for it to fully materialize and manifest itself in and through our otherwise-little lives.

• “How blessed is the man who finds wisdom and the man who obtains discernment.  For her [wisdom’s] profit is better than the profit of silver and her produce better than fine gold.  She is more precious than pearls; and NOTHING YOU DESIRE COMPARES with her.  Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.  Her ways are pleasant ways and all her pathways are peace.  She is a tree of life to those who seize her, and all those who hold her fast are blessed.” (Proverbs 3:13-18)

Beautifully put, but please keep in mind that the very first step on the precious path to palpably possessing it is the perspective and practice of personal purity.  Possible only by the grace and goodness granted by God, not garnered or generated by anything inside or inherent to man.

Praise the Lord indeed!

 

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