7Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. -Psalm 51:7, 8 (KJV)
A couple of years ago one of my sons decided to make himself a cup of tea. We tend enjoy hot tea during the winter months and someone in our house is frequently brewing a cup. The problem was he only thought there was water in the tea pot. He sat it on the stove, turned the burner on high, and walked away. When he came back a few minutes later the tea kettle, once white and shiny, had burned to an ugly dark and scorched color. We were certain the tea kettle, which ironically I had bought for Andrea a few months earlier, was ruined.
I was not prepared to discard the tea pot just yet. After letting it cool I soaked in hot soapy water and then began a careful process of cleaning it with scratch pads. It took several cleanings yet in the end I was able to restore it to its pre-burned condition. In fact, one might not even realize it had ever been burned and nearly ruined in the first place.
As I consider this I think of what the Lord does for us. We too were negatively affected by the devastating consequences of sin. In many instances we might have wandered so far from God and become so soiled by the world that we wondered, along with everyone else, if there was any hope for us. Yet God in His mercy reached out and touched us through the Holy Spirit. He drew us in, gently, lovingly, and with deep compassion and grace. By Christ’s sacrifice on the cross of Calvary we were washed clean and made pure. Our sins which had stained our souls and our lives were washed away completely through Jesus Christ.
Like David in his Psalm of repentance we too were in need of God’s mercy and forgiveness. The Lord did not discard us, but instead forgave and cleansed us. God even went so far as to adopt us as His own children. The grace of God is indeed wonderful and miraculous. Others might have given up and thrown us out, yet God in His mercy redeemed us and gave us a new start on life.
Do not give up – on yourself or someone who is far from God. The Lord still works miracles in peoples’ lives and He is still searching for the lost sheep who has wandered away. Having found the one who was lost God then offers mercy and grace. A wonderful transformation takes place; death becomes life, despair becomes certain hope, and what was stained with sin becomes clean and pure.
The Lord is gracious and He will save.
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