Defiled

Was being defiled mean to you? Do you have horrible thoughts running through your mind? Have you contemplated what it means to defile yourself? Have you at least thought about thinking about it? Are you afraid to think about it?

When we think of someone being defiled today, horrible things run our minds. Most of them are physical in nature. We do not like the images that come to our mind, nor do we want to spend time thinking about them. Rightfully so.

Yet, that is not how Jesus defined being defiled. We must remember, Jesus turned the world upside down. He turned the human way of thinking on its head. Jesus says it is what comes out of our mouth that defiles us. Spend some time thinking about what you have said yesterday, this week, this month, over the past year.

Why is it what comes out of our mouths? Because it reveals our hearts. It is not simply the use of curse words, though that is not good either. It is slandering someone else, speaking badly about them while not knowing their entire situation. We often see posts on social media on this very thing, but most people only picture the person who is struggling as themselves or someone they are very close to. When it should apply to someone they do not like, they cast aside any thought of pausing to consider what that person may be going through.

What does this mean for us? Our hearts are not in sync with Jesus. We are not showing the same grace He showed. We must remember that Jesus was likely appalled at both the woman caught in adultery (and her partner), and the crowd who brought her to Him. He chastised the crowd by using a parable that caused them to think and refused to condemn the woman. Bottom line, Jesus demonstrated the grace of God. The same grace He sheds on us.

I pray we all seek to demonstrate the same grace Jesus did. I pray we seek to get our hearts in sync with Jesus’ heart. I pray each one of us spend time thinking about what defiles us. Show grace to others. Seek to be in sync with Jesus. Know how Jesus defines defilement. Ask Jesus to help clean your heart.

Matthew 15:10-11 Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, “Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.”