Body of Lies

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, . . Galatians 5:19

Impurity – The Greek is akatharsia. This word comes from kathairo (we derive the English “catharsis”). Here Paul makes it a negative, so the meaning is “not cleansed”. The background of katharos is ritual cleansing. It is not the same word that is used for the purity of holiness before God. That word is hagnos (it comes from a word meaning “to stand in awe”). Why would Paul speak of ritual cleansing rather than purity of heart? This doesn’t seem to make sense. After all, he was not writing to Jews. His audience may not have known all the Jewish laws for ritual purification. And he is trying to press the point of being separated from the sins of the world. Wouldn’t he choose hagnos rather than katharos?

The answer lies in the Old Testament background of the word katharos. The equivalent Hebrew word for “cleanse” is taher. It is used more than 200 times in the Old Testament. In almost every case, it is about ritual purity. These are the actions that need to be taken before, during and after religious events. They included ritual washing of hands, preparations of sacrifices, prayers and many other details. But the intention of all of these actions is to point us toward God’s holiness, not to make us holy. The Bible says over and over that no amount of ritual conformity on our part will ever make us holy and acceptable to God. Only God can clean us up from the inside. God will do the real cleansing. He will wash away all the guilt and all the judgment. He will forgive.

When Paul uses the Greek word akatharsia, he is saying that these people have not allowed God to wash them clean. They are still practicing the art of self-justification. They still believe that they can become pure on their own. When we see this connection, the damnation that Paul brings upon his first century audience really hits home now. Our present religious rituals, like rote prayers, communion without consecration, baptism without commitment, Easter and Christmas celebrations, attending church and any other actions we do, cannot replace what God has to do if we are to be His people. Without God’s cleansing, none of the rest of this matters. With God’s cleansing, all of it is a proclamation that we have been washed by our Creator. Either way, it is not about us. Being cleansed today means letting God remove the guilt and sin that has polluted my life. That’s a job I can’t do for myself.

Paul is condemning those who think they can make it to God their way.

But he is also saying more than this. He uses akatharsia in a sequence. The sequence is “adultery, fornication, akatharsia, lustfulness” – four words that he groups into his comments about sex sins. People who practice the art of self-justification also violate God’s sovereignty over their bodies. They believe that they are in control. They believe in the rights of human beings to decide their own fate. Whether it is abortion or intercourse, they think that it’s up to them. They have not understood the ritual of consecration to God. So, akatharsia also belongs in the sex sins group. It is the description of a life that serves itself.

There is still more. Association with those who were impure violated ritual purity. So it is with akatharsia. If we associate with those who flaunt God’s sovereignty, we are tainted with their impurity. We are unclean by contact and implicit endorsement. If you aren’t standing up for God’s authority, you are lying down with the unclean. This is why Paul says to the church in Corinth, “If you allow sexual misconduct in your group, all of you share in the guilt and blame”. Impurity is a contagious disease. It will spread wherever it is not resisted.

Topical Index: impurity, ritual, akatharsia, clean, justification, body, Galatians 5:19