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We Are to Be Clean Inwardly and Outwardly, June 15
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean:
from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
Ezekiel 36:25
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In order to be acceptable in God’s sight, the leaders of the people
were to give strict heed to the sanitary condition of the armies of Israel,
even when they went forth to battle. Every soul, from the commander-in-
chief to the lowest soldier in the army, was sacredly charged to preserve
cleanliness in his person and surroundings; for the Israelites were chosen
by God as His peculiar people. They were sacredly bound to be holy in
body and spirit. They were not to be careless or neglectful of their personal
duties. In every respect they were to preserve cleanliness. They were to
allow nothing untidy or unwholesome in their surroundings, nothing which
would taint the purity of the atmosphere
The Ten Commandments, spoken by Jehovah from Sinai, cannot live
in the hearts of persons of disorderly, filthy habits. If ancient Israel could
not so much as listen to the proclamation of that holy law, unless they
had obeyed the injunction of Jehovah, and had cleansed their clothing,
how can that sacred law be written upon the hearts of persons who are not
cleanly in person, in clothing, or in their houses? It is impossible
Heaven is a clean and holy place. God is pure and holy. All who
come into His presence should take heed to His directions, and have the
body and the clothing in a pure, clean condition, thus showing respect to
themselves and to Him. The heart must also be sanctified. Those who
do this will not dishonor His sacred name by worshiping Him while their
hearts are polluted and their apparel is untidy. God sees these things. He
marks the heart-preparation, the thoughts, the cleanliness ... of those who
worship Him
Angels are impressed with the things which they behold in the outward
surroundings of God’s people
[174]
47
The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 1:1119
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48
The Health Reformer, February 1, 1872
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49
The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 1:1119, 1120
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50
Letter 35, 1901
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