Untainted

By Rob Redden "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world" (James 1:27 NIV).     Several years ago, Federal health regulators said they found tiny particles of trash in drugs used to treat rare enzyme disorders. Since the FDA has not discovered any adverse events, the agency is not removing the products from the market because it says there are few alternative treatments. The agency urged doctors to thoroughly inspect vials for particles before injecting them into patients!     How would you like to discover you have been injected with trash? What's a little steel, rubber and fiber as long as it makes you feel better? Years ago, when President Nixon attended a ceremony celebrating a high-tech water purification plant that treated water from sewage, he was offered a drink of its 99% pure water. He responded, "No, I'm worried about the 1%!"     There are so many people who do not worry about a little contamination. Just a little cheating, a little lying, a little sexual immorality, a little false doctrine are fine if it does not become a major percentage! Like the FDA, we tolerate a little bit of error and worldliness because we have not seen any adverse problems - yet. This is like saying, "I will eat out of trash cans as long as I don't get sick!" How foolish!     James tells us our religion must be pure and unadulterated, without spot (Jas. 1:27). Do we use a little "cussing"? What about a little lust? Perhaps a little road rage isn't all that bad! "Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles!" (James 3:4-6 NKJV)     We need to be vigilant about the subtle contaminations of our souls that daily attack us.

Rob Redden preaches for the Grover Beach Church of Christ in Grover Beach, CA. He may be contacted through the congregation's website - www.groverbeachchurchofchrist.com