Come!

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Revelation 21-22; Psalm 48

TO CHEW ON: "And the Spirit and the bride say 'Come!' And let him who hears say, 'Come!' And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely." Revelation 22:17

"Come over for coffee."
"Come shopping with us."
"Why don't you come for dinner?"

How sweet the word "come," that tells us we're included, we're invited, we're wanted! That word features prominently in this last chapter of Revelation - the last chapter of the Bible. But it also occurs in other places. Let's take a little trip through the Bible to see other places this one-word invitation was given.

"Come into the ark," God says to Noah, inviting him into a place of safety (Genesis 7:1).

"Come to the house of the Lord." Hezekiah's letter summons the tribes of Israel to a renewed Passover celebration. It is an invitation to revival (2 Chronicles 30:1).

"Come now and let us reason together," begins God's invitation to Israel in a call to receive cleansing (Isaiah 1:18).

"Come to the waters…come buy and eat. Yes come buy wine and milk…" is God's enticement to all who want lasting satisfaction (Isaiah 55:1).

"Come to Me," says Jesus to the weary and burdened, "and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).

"Come to the wedding," says the king in Jesus' story about the wedding feast. "Come for all things are now ready," is the summons in another one of Jesus' stories. They are invitations to the gospel feast (Matthew 22:4; Luke 14:17).

And then there's this invitation from Jesus in Revelation. It's from God the Spirit and His bride, the church. It's also from those who have already responded ("him who hears").

It is to anyone who is interested. There's nothing exclusive about this invite.

It's for the one who thirsts - who recognizes a need for water that is life-giving. It's an invitation to take an initial drink of that water and to live on that water.

What are your needs today? Whether for safety, revival, spiritual sustenance, or rest, God's invitation is always "Come."

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank You for this warm and wonderful invitation. Help me to take you up on it in all the circumstances of my life. And help me to extend it unceasingly to others. Amen.

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 48

The Bible Project VIDEO: Heaven and Earth (Theme Series)

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The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. - Used with permission.

Cleaning the temple

Hezekiah cleanses the temple

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 2 Chronicles 28-31; Psalm 78

TO CHEW ON: "'Now sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place.'"  2 Chronicles 29:5

In Old Testament times decisions about faith and religious practice were usually made by political leaders and not individuals.  Kings Ahaz and Hezekiah are examples of this.

King Ahaz, Hezekiah's father, determinedly, pointedly, and openly turned away from God. When he was defeated by the Syrians he decided to start worshiping their gods: "'Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me'" - 2 Chronicles 28:23.

And so he destroyed worship objects of God Jehovah, locked the temple, made altars throughout Jerusalem, and high places to sacrifice to "other gods" throughout Judah (2 Chronicles 28:24-25). It was no secret who he was worshiping and I can only imagine the trouble his subjects would have got into had he discovered they were clinging to Yahweh.

When his son Hezekiah became king, he reversed those practices. Immediately on ascending to the throne, this 25-year-old opened the temple doors, gathered the priests, and put them to work cleansing the temple in the hope of restoring God-honoring worship. Soon the lamps would again burn and the smell of incense and the smoke of offerings would again fill the air.

Though our faith and practice may not have the public component of a central worship place with open (or locked) doors, lit (or unlit) lamps, pungent incense and smoky offerings, the principles of opening, cleansing and sanctifying still apply to our worship. Now, however, each one of us administers our own temple—the temple of our heart and physical body.

King Hezekiah's directive to his priests is an excellent place to start with this: "Now sanctify the house of the Lord … and carry out the rubbish from the holy place."

In New Testament terms:

"Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are" - 1 Corinthians 3:16,17.

and

"Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are God's" - 1 Corinthians 6:19,20.

PRAYER: Dear God, help me to keep my temple clean, myself set apart for You and Your purposes, as I administer my body, soul, and spirit—the temple of Your Holy Spirit. Amen. 

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 78

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New King James Version (NKJV) Used with permission. The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

God-Who-Forgives

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 99:1- 100:5

TO CHEW ON: "You answered them, O Lord our God;
You were to them God-Who-Forgives,
Though you took vengeance on their deeds." - Psalm 99:8


Imagine you're a kid and have been caught in a rainstorm walking home on a country road. Soon the ground underfoot is soft and squishy. Clay clings to the soles of your feet, encrusts your pant cuffs, and you have grungy spatters all up your legs. Then a car motors by, splashing mud all over you. Finally you reach home, but there your mom bars your entrance. She has just washed the floor and vacuumed the white carpet. "You can't come in like you are!" she says.

That person covered head to foot in grime at the door of a clean house is a crude picture of us before a holy God. It brings to mind Isaiah standing at the entrance of the temple. Inside the angels are praising: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord." And Isaiah becomes keenly aware of his filthiness: "Woe is me for I am undone. Because I am a man of unclean lips" - Isaiah 6:1-5.

In this psalm the focus on God's holiness (Psalm 99:3,5,9) brings up thoughts of mankind's unworthiness in the writer. But then he remembers that God spoke to Moses, Aaron, and Samuel despite their imperfections. He was to them the God-Who-Forgives, though He didn't overlook their sins ("... You took vengeance on their deeds").

[Forgive: 1) to grant pardon for or remission of something and cease to demand the penalty for; 2) to grant freedom from penalty; 3) to cease to blame or feel resentment against; 4) To remit as a debt; 5) To show forgiveness, grant pardon; absolve.]

That's what God still does for us. No matter how dirty we are when we come to Him, or how much we mess up, He continues to be the God-Who-Forgives. Of course He doesn't overlook our sin-besmirched selves. He has made a wonderful way of dealing with our filthiness.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for being a God who forgives. May the love of Your holy presence be a hedge about me, keeping me from conscious and wilfull sin. Amen.

MORE: God cleans us up!
God not only forgives our sin but He cleans us up!

"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols" - Ezekiel 36:25.

"...how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" - Hebrews 9:14.

"But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin" - 1 John 1:7.

"... and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood" - Revelation 1:5.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Delivered from idols

All My Money - RGB Stock Photos

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Ezekiel 37:15-28

TO CHEW ON: "They shall not defile themselves any more with their idols nor with the detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then  they shall be My people and I will be their God." Ezekiel 37:23


If you're at all familiar with the Old Testament you'll know how big the temptation to worship idols was for the Israelites and how often they capitulated to it. Here God makes the promise that when this exile finally comes to an end, they will be cured for good of their inclination toward idolatry.

We have only to observe how many Hebrew words there are for "idols"—Easton's Bible Dictionary lists 18—to realize how multi-faceted this problem was. The two expressions for idols here: "idols" and "detestable things" are gilluwl and shiqquuts. Besides meaning "idol" these words infer contempt, dung, refuse, filth and impurity. Another word for sin in our passage—"transgression" (pasha)—means "rebellion."

Their release from this ungodly worship, these impure practices and rebelliousness comes in two ways:

1. They are removed from the source of temptation: "but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places."

2. They are cleansed and set apart: "but I will … cleanse them" and from Ezekiel 37:28: "I the Lord will sanctify Israel" (sanctify means to set apart, declare holy). 

What does this have to do with us? Plenty.

We may not bow down to god-images of gold, wood or stone, but how easily we give our allegiance to other things than God. In the powerful book and video series Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart, pastor Kelly Idelman exposes modern idols. What are these idols and how do we recognize them? From the book description:

"According to Idleman, idolatry isn't an issue it is the issue.

"By asking insightful questions, Idleman reveals which false gods each of us are allowing on the throne of our lives. What do you sacrifice for? What makes you mad? What do you worry about? Whose applause do you long for? We're all wired for worship, but we often end up valuing and honoring the idols of money, sex, food, romance, success and many others that keep us from the intimate relationship with God that we desire." (Emphasis added.)

Once we've recognized our false gods, we can begin to deal with them—and in the way God helped Israel do it:

1. Remove ourselves from the place of temptation. This brings to mind Jesus' words from the Lord's prayer: " 'Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil' " - Matthew 6:13. 

2. Ask God to change us / cleanse us and cooperate with Him through the process. I love verses from the previous chapter of Ezekiel in this regard:

"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them - " Ezekiel 36:25, 26, 27.

PRAYER: Dear God, please make me sensitive to my own idols. Help me to avoid temptation and cooperate with You as You show me my sin and soften and change my heart by Your Spirit. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

A deal in our favor

Image: pixabay.com

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Isaiah 1:18-31

TO CHEW ON: "'Come now, let us reason together,'
Says the Lord,
'Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool.'" Isaiah 1:18

In the middle of this prophecy, which is mostly a blistering scold of Judah for her rebellious ways, comes this short and dispassionate invitation: "'Come now let us reason together.'"

[Reason - yakach isn't transliterated reason very often. In other places it is rendered to decide, judge, show to be right, prove, reprove, chide, correct, rebuke. That, then, is the shade of reason here—a deal proposed by the One with the power, wisdom, and right to judge, to the one without.]

The deal the LORD sets out is simple. For willingness and obedience they will get supernatural cleansing (from sin). But refusal and rebellion will lead to death.

When we consider the price God demanded as payment for cleansing from sin—the life of a perfect lamb in the Old Testament, culminating in the life of the Lamb of God in the New, this "deal" seems highly weighted in favor of Judah, and us humans. But it does have two sides to it.

Still today the opportunity to be cleansed stands:

• "…the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all " Isaiah 53:6.

• "… while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" Romans 5:8

• " For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works…" Ephesians 2:8,9

• "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God…"1 Peter 3:18.

When we accept it, it means new life for us.

• " I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you … Ezekiel 36:25-27.

• "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" 2 Corinthians 5:14-17.

But we also have a part to play in this agreement.

• "…present your bodies a living sacrifice…" Romans 12:1.

• "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only…" James 1:22-25.

• "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me…" John 14:21.

However, even in this, God is at work to enable us.

• "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord" 2 Corinthians 3:18 (emphasis added).
  

Through the centuries it's a deal that remains weighted in our favour.

PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for making a way out of the stench and stain of sin to purity. Even though sacrificing You our whole selves in love and obedience is no little thing, in reality, it's all You, and a very beneficial deal for us! Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Power of blood

"Red Christ" by Lovis Corinth

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Hebrews 9:11-28

TO CHEW ON: "Almost everything is cleansed by blood, according to the Law's regulations, and there is no forgiveness without blood being shed." Hebrews 9:22 (Common English Bible)

Two facts about physical blood help us relate what the writer says here to our spiritual state.

1. Blood is a cleanser. Not the kind of cleanser that you pre-soak clothes in—do that with blood and you'll get a worse stain. But it is a cleanser within our bodies loading up with proteins, minerals, hormones, carbon dioxide, and toxins, which it then pumps to the transfer depots, the lungs to be exhaled or through the liver to be cleansed.

2. Blood is essential to life. When people lose all blood they die because blood delivers to the cells its fuel of oxygen and nutrients.

God's design for our salvation includes these two aspects of blood. The sentence in our focus verse: "There is no forgiveness without blood being shed" is another way of saying, 'there is no forgiveness without the payment of a life.' And that's what Jesus did for us when He paid the penalty of our sin with His life so God could forgive us without violating His holy, just character.

His blood also cleanses us, first in that we are clean before God, and, second, by flowing within our spirits in a metaphorical way, producing the desire to please Him resulting in repentance and surrender (exhaling the bad stuff, so to speak, and allow Him to purify us).

As I'm writing this, an old hymn is playing background music in my mind. It expresses these spiritual truths about Jesus' blood so well:

    1. What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

2. For my cleansing this I see—

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

For my pardon this my plea—

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

3. Nothing can my sin erase

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Naught of works, 'tis all of grace—

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

4. This is all my hope and peace—

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

This is all my righteousness—

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Lyrics by Robert Lowry, from Hymnal.net

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for the way You have designed spiritual truth to reflect physical phenomena (or is it the other way around?). Thank You for my blood, working tirelessly to keep me alive and healthy. And thank You for Jesus' blood, poured out so I could have forgiveness and spiritual life and health. Amen.




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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The rotten center

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Mark 7:14-23

TO CHEW ON: "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All of these evil things come from within, and they defile a person." Mark 7:21-23 ESV

The Pharisees' concept of purity seems to assume that they started out pure, or had achieved purity with their ceremonies. Then they had to keep themselves pristine by doing all kinds of cleansing rituals so no unclean thing could enter their bodies.

 But Jesus told them they had it backward. For it wasn't the things entering their bodies that defiled them but their very thoughts and actions—the things that flowed out of their fallen, defiled, impure, rotten hearts.

Are we as equally dirty? It's common to hear a person, when faced with his or her sinfulness, object: 'I've lived a pretty good life—never murdered anyone, robbed a bank, or even cheated on my spouse.'

But look at the things Jesus lists: evil thoughts ~ sexual immorality ~ theft  ~ murder ~  adultery ~ coveting ~ wickedness ~ deceit ~ sensuality ~ envy ~ slander ~ pride ~ foolishness. We see that lumped in with murder, theft and adultery are evil thoughts, coveting, envy, pride, foolishness. Can even one of us claim to never have committed at least one of these? By Jesus' measure we're all defiled and need purifying from the inside out.

The good news is that inner purity is His free gift to us:

"I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you."- Ezekiel 36:25 ESV

“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." - Isaiah 1:18 ESV

"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." - 1 John 1:7 ESV

PRAYER: Thank You for making my position before You very clear. I need Your cleansing to purify me from the inside. Amen.

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Scriptures marked ESV are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV® Text Edition: 2011. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved.

Cleansing word

TODAY'S SPECIAL: John 14:22-15:10

TO CHEW ON: " 'You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.' " John 15:3


In our beautiful passage, John quotes Jesus' words about the mysterious oneness with Him and God that believers can have. Living within the matrix of love and obedience (John 14:23) they will have the Helper—the Holy Spirit—within them. Jesus likens them to branches attached to a main vine that bears fruit because the life of the vine (God) is flowing through them (John 15:1, 4-8).

It all sounds wonderful until we come to the part about pruning and cleansing (John 15:2).  Cleansing may be uncomfortable. Pruning may hurt. But, He assures us, they will be so worth it when we see the fruit that comes as a result (John 15:5).

One means of cleansing Jesus mentions is through the word. That idea comes up in other places in the Bible as well. Here are some ways the word is able to cleanse:

• When we obey it:

In Psalm 119:9 a young man (or, I'd submit, a man, woman or child of any age) cleanses his way by heeding the word. 1 Peter 1:22 speaks of "… purifying your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit."

• When it prunes us:

Jesus' words in John 15:3 in the context of pruning (today's focus verse) tell us that the word purifies / cleanses us as we follow its direction in what to subtract or cut or prune from our lives. James 1:21 names "filthiness and overflow of wickedness" as things to lay aside.

• When it sanctifies us:

In John 17:17 Jesus prays that the Father will "Sanctify them by Your truth." "Sanctify" means to set apart or consecrate. The picture is of God's word active in our hearts and minds separating us from the world and setting us apart for Him had the Holy Spirit-empowered life.

• When it frees us from needless guilt and legalism:

In 1 Timothy 4:5 Paul warns Timothy about those who would again burden the church with systems of food rules. He is not to get caught in introducing or enforcing bans against foods that are now allowed. In other words, they are not to let man-made rules make them feel needlessly unclean where the word allows liberty.

In our quest for fruitfulness, let's acknowledge the place of the word (the Bible) to:
- Set the standard for behavior—and obey it.
- Alert us to what needs subtracting from our lives—then purify and simplify.
- Set us apart for God—in holy living.
- Keep us from needless legalism.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, help me to become increasingly familiar with Your word. Help me to understand it and how it relates to my everyday living, and to obey it. Amen.
MORE: Feast of St. Philip and St. James Apostles

Today the church celebrates the Feast of St. Philip and St. James.

This Collect begins the day's liturgy:


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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Blood

"Blood of the Passover"
by Ted Larson

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Exodus 12:1-14

TO CHEW ON: "Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt." Exodus 12:13

If you ever do house renovations or watch them on TV, you will know that all walls are not created equal. People who look at a fixer-upper with an eye to knocking down walls must do at least one thing before they get busy with the sledge hammer—check to see whether or not the wall they're planning to remove is load-bearing. If it is (i.e. supports parts of the house's basic structure) they know they can't remove it without compromising the soundness of the whole house.

Blood is that kind of load-bearing wall in Christianity. In today's reading we see the beginning of its importance in the Passover. It plays a key role in this ritual which God instituted through Moses just before the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt after 400 years of slavery.

The instruction about how it was to be used was particular. The blood of each household's sacrificed animal was to be painted on the sides and top of their entryway. God promised it would act as a barrier to "the plague" and "the destroyer."  When the death angel saw the blood, he would pass over that doorway, as he was not allowed to enter that household to do his deadly task (Exodus 12:13,23).

The blood "wall" doesn't only provide a protection, but it does much more. Some of the things it supports, as seen through the Bible:

• Atonement - Exodus 30:10; Leviticus 17:11

• Liberation - Zechariah 9:11

• Pardon - Hebrews 9:7

• Cleansing - Hebrews 9:22.

Centuries later Christ came and offered Himself as our Passover lamb. He shed His blood for each one of us.

We must never let the criticism that Christianity is too bloody cause us to look for ways we can remove that supporting "blood wall" from our faith.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for the rich images resident in the Passover story and especially the blood. Thank You for being my Passover lamb. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

A virgin again

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Jeremiah 31:1-22

TO CHEW ON: "'Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.
Again I will build you and you shall be rebuilt,
O virgin of Israel!
You shall again be adorned with your tambourines,
And shall go forth in the dances of those who rejoice.'" Jeremiah 31:3,4

After all that He has been through with her, God calls Israel a virgin?!

"Only the amazing love of verse 3 could call Israel a virgin," says my Bible commenter.

God here seems to be talking about a process of what is sometimes called "revirginization"—of restoring that which has been lost, squandered or blemished: "Again I will build you and you shall be rebuilt."

The idea of actual sexual revirginization is relevant in our society where sexual looseness is tolerated, even encouraged in movies, TV, books, music—and from the earliest age. Chances are good that if you came to the Lord in your 20s or 30s, though still single, you were no longer a virgin.

Ken Shigematsu in his book God In My Everything talks about sex and spirituality. After describing how God's presence in our lives helps us express our sexuality in wholesome ways, he subtitles a final section "Revirginization." In it he says:

"Perhaps you feel that you have fallen short or have been compromised  because of your past experiences, failing to live out God's ideal …. Perhaps your sexual purity feels like a ship that sailed away long ago."

He quotes Ezekiel 36:25-27 and concludes:

"You may struggle with an ongoing sense of regret or shame over past sexual sins, but God promises to sprinkle clean water on you and make you clean. He offers you a new heart. You don't need to be defined by your past. When you turn to God, you experience a new beginning" - Ken Shigematsu, God In My Everything, p. 106.

If we are plagued by memories and regrets in this area, let's take to heart God's words to Judah, and claim His cleansing and rebuilding for ourselves.

PRAYER: Dear God, we are surrounded by sexual lures and temptations. Please help us to stay pure and accept Your washing and rebuilding when we are plagued by memories and regrets of sexual sin. Amen.

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New King James Version (NKJV) Used with permission. The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Lessons from washing feet

A foot-washing ceremony was
part of my daughter's wedding.

TODAY'S SPECIAL: John 13:1-20

TO CHEW ON: "If I then your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." - John 13:14.


There are layers of meaning captured in this beautiful story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet—told only by John.

Jesus meant for this act to puzzle the disciples—to provoke them to being alert to its meaning. He said, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this" John 13:7.

• Jesus' answer to Peter's "You shall never wash my feet"—"If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me,"—implies a more thorough washing than feet is necessary for Peter and any disciple. Other Bible verses come to mind, verses like:

"Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity
And cleanse me from my sin....
Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean
Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow" - Psalm 51:2,7

and

"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols" - Ezekiel 36:25.

• But Jesus' insistence that their feet did need washing (John 13:10) suggests that even after we are cleansed by Jesus' atoning blood we continue to need cleansing from the defilement we pick up as we walk through life.

• Jesus' words: "... you also ought to wash one another's feet" and His entire sum-up of the significance of what He did (John 13:14-17) has given rise to a foot-washing custom in some churches. I like the way my Bible's commenter on John explains this:

"Jesus was probably not seeking to institute a literal practice to be observed continually in the church, although some feel this to be the case. But He shows great concern that the meaning of true servanthood be well understood that no one deem it beneath his dignity to perform the most menial of tasks for others. Ultimately servanthood is a disposition of the heart and spirit, which expresses itself in concrete actions" - Siegfried Shatzmann, New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1467 (emphasis added).

PRAYER: Dear God, help me to understand Your example of washing feet and how that translates into action in my life. Thank You for Your cleansing blood. Help me to wash my feet every day as I repent of the sins that dirty me along the way. Amen.


MORE: The Feast of St. John
Today the church celebrates the Feast of St. John, the writer of today's Scripture reading. He served us well with his contribution to the Bible—the Gospel of John and the three epistles, 1, 2 & 3 John.

The liturgy for the day begins with this collect:

"Shed upon your Church, O Lord, the brightness of your light, that we, being illumined by the teaching of your apostle and evangelist John, may so walk in the light of your truth, that at length we may attain to the fullness of eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."

Blood: a cleanser?

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 John 1:1-2:2

TO CHEW ON: “…and the blood of Jesus Christ His son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7b

I used to think it strange that blood was called a cleansing agent. We’ve all dealt with the aftermath of a bleed and know that blood dirties. Unless tackled immediately it leaves a stain that is hard to ever get out.

Then I did a little research and discovered that blood is indeed a cleanser–a powerful one which our bodies can’t do without. Besides doing many other things, like carrying nourishment, regulating body temperature and aiding in healing, blood cleanses. It cleans out waste made through body processes by picking up carbon dioxide from our cells and carrying it to our lungs to be exhaled. It also cleans out invaders like bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites that get in through our orifices or broken skin.

Of course I am aware of the cleansing aspect of Jesus’ blood in the way He died as our substitute – taking the punishment for our sin. The shed blood of an animal sacrifice was vital because it proved that animal had given its life. When Jesus’ side was pierced and blood poured out, it was proof that He was indeed dead. The punishment for sin was paid. You and I are now pure before God because the sinless Jesus shed His blood in our stead.

But maybe we could look at His blood giving life another way too. For it is His presence or life force within us (and “the life...is in the blood”) that cleanses our everyday lives, just like our human blood cleanses our bodies. As we give Him control over all the aspects of our living, we become aware of unworthy thoughts, attitudes and actions. As we live in obedience, changing our ways and conforming ourselves to His standards, His life in us (His blood) is cleansing us from sin.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for my blood – so vital to health and life. Thank You for Your blood, poured out in death for me and cleansing me as You live in me now. Amen.

MORE: Did you know…

• Blood makes up about 7% of your body's weight.
• An average adult has about 14 to 18 pints of Blood.
• One standard unit or pint of Blood equals about two cups.
• There are about one billion red Blood cells in a few drops of whole Blood.
• Red Blood cells live about 120 days in our bodies.
• Red Blood cells can be stored under normal conditions for up to 42 days.
• Frozen red Blood cells can be stored for ten years, and more.
• Platelets must be used within five days.

Many more blood facts here.