| “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” |
| —Isaiah 1:18 |
As a parent, have you ever had one or more of your children come inside after playing outdoors in the mud. When they walk through the door, you catch your breath. They stand before you, covered from head to toe, dripping mud onto your clean floor. It takes you just an extra second to identify which of your offspring is underneath all that mud.
Twenty minutes later, freshly bathed and in clean clothes, their color has changed from dark mud to the sparkling fresh, natural, God-given skin tones that you are used to seeing. In your mind you say to yourself, “Yes! This is my child—my sweet, adorable child!” It is really quite amazing what a change of color can do.
In our spiritual lives, we are covered by the stain of sin. When God looks at us, He can’t help but see the change of color that sin has left on our hearts, minds, souls, and strength. But when He washes us thoroughly in the shed blood of His Son, Jesus, we become instantly clean—totally, absolutely, completely clean. The sin is gone. Our true spiritual color has been restored.
The Prophet Isaiah reported God’s own declaration, when Isaiah recorded these words in Isaiah 1:18:
“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
A dramatic change in color makes all the difference in the world. We whom God has called to belong to Himself have been restored. The sin is gone. We have been rescued from the garbage heap of sin and washed thoroughly.
As we begin another day, let’s remember that the cleansing flood of Jesus’ precious blood has redeemed us, restored us, and washed us thoroughly from our sin. Then, let’s be willing to share this good news with everyone who crosses our pathway, even as God prompts us to do so by that nudging of the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us.
Based on a blog originally posted on Friday, February 24, 2017
