Introduction. “Wash your hands” is a sign seen at many restaurants and hospitals because viruses and bacteria are everywhere. With the multitude of encounters we have with these tiny enemies, it is amazing we’re not sick most of the time. Hand washing is efficient because generally the only path into our body is our mouth, nose or eyes. If we keep our hands clean we are generally safe.
We should thank God for the marvelous properties of our skin! God designed skin as an impenetrable fortress to keep out these organisms. While skin allows sweat to leave the body, it will not allow them to enter. Because skin is a barrier against disease, we can visit and minister to the sick without fear. With sensible precautions, we are safe even when touching them. With this wonderful barrier, doctors and nurses can work in the hospital, coming into contact many times with very sick people, and come home to their families unscathed.
Protected Spiritually by the Truth. When Jesus prayed for his disciples, he knew they would face similar dangers in a spiritual sense! As sheep in the midst of wolves, they traveled to the uttermost parts of the earth and encountered many perils. To preach to every creature, they entered many vile and corrupt places and came in contact with evil and wicked people who sought to corrupt them even as they tried to save them. Yet Jesus did not pray for God to remove them. As God designed skin to protect our bodies from the perils of disease, and thus allow us to safely minister to the sick, God also designed the truth to protect us from the perils of the world of the ungodly so we can minister to the lost and even in contact with the vilest and most corrupted sinner be safe.
We should thank God for the marvelous properties of our skin! God designed skin as an impenetrable fortress to keep out these organisms. While skin allows sweat to leave the body, it will not allow them to enter. Because skin is a barrier against disease, we can visit and minister to the sick without fear. With sensible precautions, we are safe even when touching them. With this wonderful barrier, doctors and nurses can work in the hospital, coming into contact many times with very sick people, and come home to their families unscathed.
Protected Spiritually by the Truth. When Jesus prayed for his disciples, he knew they would face similar dangers in a spiritual sense! As sheep in the midst of wolves, they traveled to the uttermost parts of the earth and encountered many perils. To preach to every creature, they entered many vile and corrupt places and came in contact with evil and wicked people who sought to corrupt them even as they tried to save them. Yet Jesus did not pray for God to remove them. As God designed skin to protect our bodies from the perils of disease, and thus allow us to safely minister to the sick, God also designed the truth to protect us from the perils of the world of the ungodly so we can minister to the lost and even in contact with the vilest and most corrupted sinner be safe.
- I have given them your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. (Jn. 17:14-19)
So when we visit someone gravely ill, we can rely on our skin to keep our body sanctified and separated from all germs. In the same way, we can rely on truth to keep us sanctified and separated from all defilement. Among the sick we are protected by our skin and among the sinful and defiled we are protected by the truth.
It is imperative that young disciples study and learn the truth in order to make the clear distinctions necessary between those living in error and those living according to truth. This is how we become no longer “fashioned according to this world,” and “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:1). We learn to “come out from among them and be separate” and “do not touch what is unclean.”
Going back to our analogy, every good doctor prepping for surgery knows he must come out from among those defiled with germs. He must cleanse himself from all bacteria, then after putting on gloves, touch nothing unclean. That is exactly what truth does for the Christian. As we put on truth we also “cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2Cor. 6:18; 7:1).
Taking Precautions. Those who minister to those infected with hepatitis or ebola, know the need for precautions. As Christians minister to the lost and build relationships with sinful people, they too must learn to take precautions. Although we are the “salt of the earth and the light of the world,” (Mt. 5:13-16), we are still at risk. Just as they wear gloves and gowns, we must put on the whole armor of God (Eph. 6:10-16). We must be guided, shielded, and obedient to the truth. Only in this way can we remain sanctified and “unspotted from the world.”
When “a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness,” but we must never cease “considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” As we seek to “save with fear, pulling them out of the fire,” we must also “hate even the garment defiled by the flesh.” Regardless of our intentions, the truth teaches us that “evil company ruins good morals." (Gal. 6:1-2 Jude 23; Gal. 6:1-2). So we must never let down our guard and continually use truth to shield and protect us from defilement.
Conclusion. As Elijah (1Kings 18), Jeremiah (Jer. 18:18) or Daniel (Dan 1-3), we can be alone in the midst of wicked and corrupt people and still emerge victorious. We can overcome evil companionship and refuse to allow it to corrupt our good morals (1Cor. 15:33). Though the devil, roaring like a lion seeks a weakness and a point of entry to send a fiery dart (1Pet. 5:8; Eph 6:16), truth will be the protective “skin” for our soul. God encourages us to buy the truth by investing time and effort in his word. We should gladly pay this price since those who know the truth are free!