James 1:21 – Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.
Today I want to speak to you from James 1:21. I want you to particularly look at the words “filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness.” Since James tells us that we must remove and discard from our lives whatever is meant by these two concepts, it is imperative that we understand exactly what he is talking about.
The man pictured in James 2:2 is described in this same way. In this verse, James described two categories of people who attended the Early Church — those who were nice in appearance and those who were filthy dirty. About these categories, James wrote, “For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, and in goodly apparel, and there come also a man in vile raiment.”
Nothing stinks worse than an attitude of a grumpy and pessimistic person. In fact, a person with a bad attitude emits such a distasteful aroma that it will literally drive people away from him! This person has to make the decision to “lay apart all filthiness” — which in this case is not referring to dirty clothes, but the stinking and repulsive attitudes he carries in his life.
For people who fit this description, it will take a strong act of determination for them to stay free of those old encumbrances. That’s why it’s so important to understand the words “lay apart” (from earlier). These words describe someone deliberately laying down wrong attitudes and then pushing them so far out of range that he isn’t able to reach down to pick them up again.
Before you get too busy today, why don’t you take a few minutes to ask the Holy Spirit to show you if there are any stinking attitudes from the past that you’re still carrying around in your life? I guarantee you that He will reveal them to you — and then He will give you the power to remove these foul-smelling, negative attitudes from your life!
Prayer: Lord, I thank You for washing me with the blood of Jesus and for making me brand new. Forgive me for clinging to my old ways of thinking and of doing things. Today I ask You to help me drop those old habits and attitudes and to never pick them up again. By myself, this would be almost impossible, but I know that by Your power, I can walk free. Right now, I release those old attitudes and habits that I’ve been carrying around with me for so long. I ask You to help me think and behave in a way that’s consistent with the new creature in Jesus Christ You have made me to be! I pray this in Jesus’ name!