2 CorinthiansSample

Like verse 16, verses 17 and 18 take quotations from the Hebrew Bible. Today we will go back and read where these are being quoted from.

Isaiah 52:11 strongly instructs us to depart from anything impure, and it may sound quite harsh if read out of context. However, paired with 2 Samuel 7:13-16 things make a bit more sense. God is talking about the covenant He is making with the house of David, a covenant that would last, even if there is a need for discipline along the way.

To follow Jesus is to live a disciplined life. The word disciple even comes from the same root as a discipline. Because of the new covenant that we have been grafted into, there is a need for us to separate ourselves from that which is impure. As we do this, we are able to live in this present world with freedom from sin. This allows us to reach out to others with the love of Jesus, inviting them into the freedom we ourselves have found in Christ. His desire is that others would come to be adopted into His family as we have been.