Washed and Being Washed

I enjoy swimming, and most Monday mornings I visit our local swimming pool. It’s a lovely feeling afterwards, when I leave the building, all nice and clean, and walk to the bus stop to go home.

But one particular Monday turned out very different from that. It was raining heavily as I left the building, and, as I stepped on to the pavement, I tripped over and fell face down into a deep, muddy puddle. I was literally plastered in mud! I wasn’t badly hurt, but my glasses were broken. I went straight back into the building, thinking at least I could get the mud off my face before walking to the bus stop.

Amazingly, I felt conscious of the Lord’s presence as I walked down the street. I reflected on how, sometimes, through no fault of our own, we can find ourselves defiled by what’s going on around us. We may have heard a conversation full of blasphemies, or something on the radio, which was unhelpful. My husband has often told me that he’s been watching a film that he thought was wholesome, only to have to turn it off half-way through, because of some defiling scene, such as foul language, or something sexually explicit and sensuous.

It’s good to know we can always come to the Lord to be washed clean from the grime that the devil, or the world, throws at us. Jesus shed His precious blood so we could be cleansed. But the Apostle Paul also counsels us to cleanse ourselves from anything, or everything, which is defiling to our bodies and spirits.

It means avoiding situations or places which will defile us. Jesus instructed His disciples that if their eye caused them to sin, to gouge it out. He didn’t mean that literally, but rather that we shouldn’t look at things, or images, which would cause us to sin. ‘Dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God’ (2 Corinthians 7:1).

I hated being covered in mud, and was desperate to get clean as soon as possible. If you’re feeling dirty through something you’ve experienced, you can be made clean again simply by coming to Jesus and telling Him all about it, and asking Him to cleanse you by His precious blood. He will do it!

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, help me to keep close to You today, as I go out into the world. Thank You that Your blood not only cleanses me from my sin, but also cleanses me from the sins of others. Help me to grow in holiness out of love for You. In Your name I pray. Amen.