Accept the Help
July 22, 2009 by Marla
Filed under Beatitudes, Salvation
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:3 (NIV)
Props: stained white shirt, laundry soap and bottle of bleach
*Emphasize to the children that they should never use bleach without adult supervision.
I brought one of my best white shirts with me today. This shirt is nice and comfortable and it’s one that I wear all the time. It goes with almost everything. Unfortunately, though, it was stained by some really dark juice. How many of you have ever stained your clothes? (Allow for response). Sometimes that happens. But I really need this shirt and I need to get it clean if I’m going to be able to wear it.
This shirt reminds me of our lives. Our lives and hearts are supposed to be clean before God, but they get stained by the bad things we’ve done. The sin and rebellion in our lives, all the anger and backtalking and bad attitudes make us unclean. If we want to live with God forever we have to be clean, so what do we do about the stains of sin that are on our hearts?
Well, with my shirt I tried washing it with my regular laundry detergent. I thought, “This will get all the stains out.” But it didn’t do anything except make the stains a little lighter. Sometimes we try to wash our own sins away by being good. It’s great to be good, but it won’t get rid of the bad things you’ve already done any more than me washing my shirt will get rid of the stains. It takes something more than that.
With my shirt, the only thing I can do is use bleach. Bleach is more powerful than detergent, and it lifts the stains out of the fabric. There is something more powerful than being good that can lift the stains off of our heart: the blood of Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross, his blood was spilled and he took our punishment. Forgiveness can only come through him. You will be blessed if you understand that you need God. It’s only when you understand your need for God that you can be forgiven and washed clean of your sins. If you keep trying to do it yourself, you’ll never get clean. Understand today that you need God. Come to Him and ask Him to forgive you for your sins. He will and you will be totally clean.