When I was a little girl, I colored in long strokes with a permanent red marker on my blue bedspread. Eager to show my mom my artistic abilities, I wasn’t prepared for her distress. She apparently saw my masterpiece as a stain to eliminate. The washing machine worked overtime. My mom went through half the bottle of stain remover as she scrubbed it many times until the bedspread was pristine. I never played with red Sharpies again.
Jesus' sacrifice serves as the permanent stain remover for our sins. In the Old Testament, everyone, even the priests, had to continually offer sacrifices of bulls and goats to cover their sins before God. Now we have a different standing with God. Hebrews 10:14 says, “For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified” (NKJV). Jesus only had to offer Himself once to make us spotless for eternity. When He died on the cross, His blood flowed backwards to cover the sins of humanity. Romans 3:24b-26a says, "Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness" (NKJV). God knew His Son Jesus would obey the Father and drink the cup of wrath that we deserved so He passed over those sins for a time. The coming Messiah made it possible for everyone who ever lived to go to heaven. All salvation pivots on the work of the cross where every sin was washed white. Jesus not only paid for the sins of people in the past, but for our sins on this side of the cross. We can come to the Lord with confidence when we request forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (NKJV). We will be restored by the blood of the Lamb when we acknowledge our sins before God. We agree with God that our actions violate His commands. Then we thank God that He has already forgiven us through the finished work of the cross. We hide our lives in Christ so the Father sees His righteousness when He looks on us. While you’d never wash your clothes in blood, His blood is the only detergent that can cleanse our consciences. Hebrews 10:19-22 says, “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” Guilt and shame, once inevitable, are now banished by the blood. We are free to have peace with God. The cleansing power of the blood encompasses all people, past and present, permanently. Jesus’ gift of laying down His life provides the means to restore our evil minds to an inconceivable purity. I thank Jesus for the stain removing power of His blood to wash me clean from the inside out so I may walk in new life.
15 Comments
It's always awkward in today's society to talk about the blood sacrifice, so thanks for taking on this important topic. The Scripture passages and your thoughts communicate so clearly how we are washed clean by Jesus' sacrifice. It's so easy to focus on my own inadequacies and failings, but thanks be to God for wiping the slate clean.
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11/19/2019 10:52:56 pm
The need for the blood sacrifice is because the life of the flesh is in the blood. Jesus gave us life to pay for our sins. I realize when I focus on my sins, I make them bigger than God. And nothing is bigger than God!
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11/18/2019 08:13:33 am
There is nothing too big for Christ to carry away ma'am. We just have to have enough courage and conviction to truly give it all to Him. Well said author!
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11/19/2019 10:56:05 pm
Funny how we sometimes can get so attached to our guilt and shame that we treat them like fuzzy blankets when they are a prickly cacti. We have to choose to receive God's forgiveness. He doesn't force it on us.
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11/18/2019 12:25:39 pm
Nothing is too big for God-forgiveness of our sin or a huge obstacle or problem in our life, yet we often act as if it is. Thanks for the way you communicated truth today. The marker and stain remover is an idea to file away with grandchildren and a "here a little, there a little" conversation.
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11/19/2019 11:04:19 pm
Glad that the marker and stain remover analogy will be helpful with the grandkids. That is great that the truths can be passed along to the younger generation.
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11/18/2019 04:05:21 pm
I love your sentence the says, His blood flowed backward to cover the sin of humanity.
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11/19/2019 11:08:59 pm
I love that Jesus covered all sins once and for all. We don't have to earn our salvation or fear God's wrath. Such peace we have as we rest in His laurels.
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11/19/2019 11:41:49 am
So thankful for the work of the cross, Christ’s blood, and God’s peace. Enjoyed your post. Blessings!
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11/20/2019 05:57:23 am
I'm so thankful His blood cleanses us. The blood of animals only covered the sin for s time but Jesus is the eternal sacrifice and we are cleansed forever!
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11/21/2019 08:38:31 pm
I am so thankful we don't have to constantly offer up animal sacrifices all the time. That would be really grueling after only a short time. So grateful for the blood of Jesus.
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11/20/2019 12:45:05 pm
Yes, I have felt, at times, that my sin was too big for Jesus to wash clean. I knew in my mind that He is the only One that can wash away my sin, but in my heart, I was afraid. Since that time, I have experienced the miracle of His Grace, that only He can give. Loved your analogy of the Sharpie stain. Thanks for the blessing you have shared today.
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11/21/2019 08:40:08 pm
Even after my mom got out the Sharpie stain, she still had to wash the bedspread again because it got dirty over time. Only Jesus blood washes us clean once for all.
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AuthorJoanna Eccles has led Bible studies for over ten years and completed the year-long C. S. Lewis Fellows Program. She is passionate about discipleship and helping people know God better. Joanna enjoys coffee, traveling, and reading, and currently lives in Florida. Categories
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