Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean, remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes, cease to do evil.
Isaiah 1:16 ESV
Yesterday we talked about the phrase, “Idle hands are the devil’s workplace”. This phrase is not found in the Bible, but there are a number of Scripture passages that warn against laziness.
My mother often told me “Cleanliness is next to godliness”. My mother was all about clean. I heard this phrase when she was assigning household cleaning chores and when my room got too messy.
Several years ago my brother-in-law, who is a pastor, preached a sermon about the importance of knowing our Scriptures. He demonstrated this importance by quoting a number of phrases we use often that many people believe are in the Bible but are not. This phrase was one of them.
My mother argued with him that this phrase was indeed in the Bible. He challenged her to find it and she could not. There are several phrases that speak of the importance of cleanliness but they are speaking of spiritual cleanliness or purity.
Interestingly enough, one of the best ways to cleanse ourselves is to study God’s word and pray daily. Being in close relationship with Him makes us more aware of our sins that tend to “dirty” us as Christians.
This phrase is believed to have originated with John Wesley, a co-founder of the Methodist church. He used it in a sermon in 1791. He wrote “Slovenliness is no part of religion. Cleanliness is indeed next to Godliness.” This ties our phrase from yesterday in with our phrase for today.
In order for us to be the good Christ followers we are called to be we cannot be lazy and we must strive for purity. I use the word strive because while we work at it, this purity or cleanliness is not something we cannot attain on our own. It must come from God.
David prayed for God to cleanse Him. In Psalm 51:7 he asked God, “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” In Psalm 51:10, David prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”
Psalm 51 was written after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba and murder by killing her husband, Uriah, the Hittite (2 Samuel 11-12). David had committed these awful sins and was praying for God to forgive Him and cleanse him from his sinfulness.
We are told in 1 John 1:9 God will do this for us as well, if we will simply confess our sins. This Scripture tells us He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
We are told in 1 John 1:7 that the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. Nothing But the Blood of Jesus is a song written by Robert Lowry, a Baptist minister and professor at Bucknell University, in 1896. Its lyrics say, “What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
Our sin or our filth makes it impossible for us to see or approach a Holy God. But thank God, He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross so His blood could atone for our sin. He sent His Son to be an intercessor for us.
My friend, if you want to be in close relationship with Jesus Christ, you must be cleansed or purified. Just as keeping our bodies or our homes or cars clean, this is not a one time thing it’s an ongoing thing. At best, we are all dirty, rotten sinners.
We must strive to be clean and pure. The only way we can be cleaned is through Jesus’ blood. Trust in Him, accept Him as your Savior, confess your sins to Him so He can cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
There is no place for laziness or filth in the heart and mind of the Christian. We must always work at keeping our lives clean and free from the sins of this world. When we slip up, we must immediately run to our Savior and repent and be forgiven.
To quote John Wesley, “Cleanliness is indeed next to Godliness.” If you want to be close to your Lord and Savior ask Him to cleanse you and wash you white as snow with the blood He shed on the cross for you.
Have a great day!