“For the love of Christ constraineth us.” II Corinthians 5:14
The United Pentecostal Church International continues to hold a high standard of conduct and dress, despite the challenges we often encounter in so doing. Critics assail this standard as unnecessary, and some even scorn it altogether. Yet, we do not change. Why? Is our motive “spiritual pride?” Are we in bondage? Are we out of touch?
The real answer is, and must always be, love. It is love that compels us. We are constrained, or obliged, by love to do better, to do more, to aspire to a higher level, to protect our reputation and image for the cause of Christ than others around us. Love prevents us from rationalizing our high standards away. “Everybody’s doing it” only applies to those who think they are “everybody.” We are not. We are a “chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people.”
Here are a few good reasons why we promote such high standards:
- We want to obey scripture as closely as possible. I Samuel 15:22.
- We want to be a living sacrifice unto God. Romans 12:1-2.
- We want to maintain a separate lifestyle. II Corinthians 6:14-18.
- In righteousness, we would rather err on the side of caution than risk. Philemon 1:21.
- We make the most of scripture, not the least. II Samuel 23:14-17.
- We must be at tension with worldly culture. I John 2:15; II Timothy 4:10.
- We recognize that there is a spirit of worldliness attached to current fashions and practices of the world and we reject it. II Timothy 2:1-7; 11-12; 15-21.
- Dangers of worldliness go unseen until it is too late. Hebrews 13:17.
- Israel suffered persecution for their differences. Daniel 1:8.
- With the fashions of the world, where are men “lifting up holy hands”? Where is “shamefacedness and sobriety”? Where are “women professing godliness, and modesty”? I Timothy 2:8.
When the Bible whispers, we hear a shout. When the Bible hints, we read it in bold type. When God frowns, we see a stop sign. Where the Bible is silent, we search our heart before proceeding. When no overt message exists, we look for the implied message. In the absence of a command, we stand on the principle.
As in the bonds of marriage, we submit to Christ and obey His commands on the basis of love. Where logic fails, love supplies the reason. Where material gain falls short, love pays off. Where fear no longer impels us to continue, love proves itself a sufficient reason. We are constrained by love.