Do you ever think about the water you drink? Clean, pure water on tap is an incredible luxury we have and often take for granted. If you’ve been to Mexico what is the warning everyone gives you? “Don’t drink the water!” The fact that at the pull of a lever I can have the cleanest water for drinking and washing is something that millions of people around the world could only dream of.
Every year I get a report from the city I live in regarding the quality of the water the city provides. It is important because we live in an area that has been rated as “moderately high” when it comes to the risk of our source water being contaminated. In other words, since the source of our water can easily be contaminated, we want to pay extra attention to our water to make sure it’s pure. I am pleased with the report because it says that out of the 2.9 billion gallons of water treated for 2012, “the water we treat has never had a violation of a contaminant level or of any other water quality standard.”
Isn’t that nice? Doesn’t that make you thank God? Isn’t it refreshing and reassuring to know that the water in your glass is clean? That the ice cubes are clean? That the water you’re bathing with is actually making you cleaner? That your clothes are clean because the water is clean? I can’t remember the last time I even thought about being concerned that the water would be impure. A first world given is a third world dream.
But, Let’s imagine that report from the city said something different. Let’s imagine I opened my mail and in reading that report I found it said this: “Unfortunately, due to the increased contamination of cryptosporidium in our water supply, many people have experienced a dramatic increase in diarrhea, fever, and gastrointestinal symptoms this past year. While we tried several cheaper processes to eliminate the contaminant, we chose not to try more expensive measures at this time due to budget cuts. Besides, cryptosporidium is only a tiny, microscopic organism that is invisible to the naked eye. You’ll never see it. Below you will find a coupon for Pepto Bismol. Bottoms up.”
I don’t know about you, but, I want clean, pure water. I don’t want a trace of any of this stuff in the water I drink.
You know, that is how God feels about our purity. He doesn’t want any trace of impurity detectable in our lives. Look at Ephesians 5:3 with me. Notice what Paul says, “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed…”