Pastor’s Pen: What can wash away our sins?

One humid summer’s evening I was cutting the grass around the manse with my mosquito hat on. The heat was stifling and mirrored my bad humour - the mosquitoes were enjoying an evening meal of my blood. Sam was sniffing around the garden, somewhere.

Hearing the sound of car tyres on the gravel driveway I looked up to see a 4x4 approach the house.

The lady driver rolled down her window and said: “I think I have your dog in my car.” I stammered a reply to the effect that Sam was with me. She opened the back door of her car. There he sat in the back seat like a dog of regal birth. He looked at me - I glared at him.

“You, out,” I commanded. When he got out the smell almost knocked me over. He had been rolling in dead things. Embarrassingly I thanked her so, so, so much for bringing Sam back, while wondering why she would put a smelly, filthy dog into her car. When she left, Sam and I had a serious one-sided discussion about his conduct, followed by a good washing down to make him acceptable to come into the house.

When we wander from God our souls become dirty through sin which makes us unacceptable to enter our real home, the kingdom of God. However, no amount of scrubbing on the outside will make us acceptable for the kingdom of God.

All we have to do is to say to God “forgive me for my sins.” Jesus has already done the work washing us by his blood when he died on the cross.

It’s amazing how it works, the blood of Jesus washing away our sins, just like the gospel song goes, ‘What can wash away my sins, nothing but the blood of Jesus.’

When you come to God asking for forgiveness for your sins He won’t glare at you or make any demands, He will simply invite you into fellowship with Him.

There is more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents…

Ephesians 2:8 - For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.