Sexual Purity

Most of the time when I think of sexual purity, I think of not having sex outside of marriage. But as I've been reading Ephesians 5:4-5, I've begun to think more about verbal sexual purity.

I have friends whose speech is always sprinkled with sexual innuendo. Or they tell sexy jokes - nothing truly filthy - but in my human, sinful mind they are funny and I laugh making myself agree with what is being said. Even on TV so much of what is said in comedy shows - the ones with real people and the ones that are cartoons - hinges on sex.

I don't have a problem when I get an email. If I start reading and decide it's not what I want to read, I just delete it and don't read all the way to the end. If I see or hear something on TV, I change the channel or turn it off. But when someone is speaking, especially in a group, I have trouble removing myself.

God's word says, "Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place..." How easy it is to laugh with the world at what the world laughs at. Instead I need to keep all that out of my mind, my heart, my speech.

I want my heart to be so pure, so holy that I will NOT laugh or even smile when I hear something that is sexually impure or immoral. I want to speak the truth (Ephesians 4:25) to these friends who claim to be Christ followers. Yet I don't want to be the person with the log in his eye trying to remove the speck from his friends eye. Hopefully, someone will speak truth to me about things they see in me that need to change.