For the next couple of days I want us to talk about Holiness. I observed a great object lesson on holiness a couple of years ago. I traveled to Manaus, Brazil, to participate in a dedication service for a new church building we had helped to finance. Manaus is a rapidly growing city in the heart of the Amazon rain forest. In Manaus two major river systems converge: the Negro River and the Amazon River.

The Negro River is named such because of its color. The Negro’s pure waters are tinted black from decaying leaves at the bottom. However, the Amazon’s churning waters are murky with light brown mud eroded from the Andes Mountains. When these two rivers converge, for miles one side of the river is black, while the other side is brown. But after a few miles, the waters merge. And guess which side wins. You’re right, the pure waters do not purify the muddy waters, but the muddy waters contaminate the pure waters and the entire Amazon River continues on its muddy brown path.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:14-15: “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what does righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?“

Tags: holiness, river