Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty. Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.—2 Corinthians 6:17-18; 7:1
In the previous chapter we are instructed to take protect ourselves from ungodly relationships that turn our hearts away from God our Father. It did not say you could not have associations, working relationships or casual acquaintances with those who do not believe in Jesus. But a godly friendship takes place where there is like precious faith and common values. There you can build a solid friendship that has redeeming qualities.
You heard the phrase one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch! Given the fact we have an awesome promise of sonship, meaning God wants to be a Father to us who protects, provides and guides us through the storms of life. We need to protect ourselves from being robbed of the promises of God by not letting anyone influence us in the wrong direction. Lets face it, our culture is like a bad apple rotting from the inside out.
2 Corinthians 7:1 is a conclusion to Paul’s admonition in chapter 6. It is a charge to protect the physical body and the spiritual man with good morals. Bad morals can destroy the body and spirit. For example, sexual promiscuity is unleashing a flood of sexually transmitted diseases in people’s bodies and its also making them sensual. When a person becomes sensual (or sense ruled) they also become opposed to spiritual things. Perfecting holiness means to finish what the Spirit of God has started in you. He creates the desire to please and obey The Lord then we are to put boundaries in place so that God’s promise can come to pass in our lives!
Finish Strong! 