Repentance and Mud Pies

“Therefore repent and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped out, that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord” ~Acts 3:19 HCSB

Reading this verse I am given a painful reminder.  Without repentance there isn’t salvation, notice the order of this verse--repent and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped out.  We have stopped telling people in sharing the gospel they need to repent.   In our effort not to sound judgmental or offensive we have stopped telling people they need to turn from their sin.  As I read the ligature and hear the gospel presented by others I hear it like this.  “We have all sinned, Jesus died for our sins and by putting our faith in Him we are saved, all you have to do is believe”.  What is missing is the need to repent, Jesus died for us and we have to repent of our sins and turn to Jesus, who will remove our sin and help us overcome the sin we struggle with.  

When we are without Christ and living in sin we are walking away from Christ, by repenting we are turning our backs on sin and turning to Christ.  It is not a continued walk with sin and Jesus walks along with you, you have to turn away.  In our thinking we have cheapened the effects of sin.  In doing so, we have developed a mindset that sin is like a playing with mud pies.  The mud gets on our hands and it’s messy, it might get on our cloths and even in our hair, but it was fun and it washes off!  Sin is far more sinister than mud—it makes its way through our pours and poisons us.  The mud makes it way to our hearts darkening and hardening them.  The mud gets to our minds and clouds our thinking, sin has one purpose, to kill, steal and destroy.

Even worse you cannot wash it off, it cannot be removed by your efforts.  You can wash, scrub, use high industrially cleaners and will never remove it, and whatever you touch it becomes dirty.  When you hold your kids, your spouse or shake the hand of a friend it spreads to them.  It dirties everything and everyone around you.  Only the blood of Christ can remove it, only the blood of Christ can keep it from you.  By turning to Christ we are saying I cannot clean myself, I need you to clean me.  We humble ourselves and acknowledging Christ is the only one who can save me and wash me white as snow.   

Lord help us to repent of our sins, to turn away from sin and turn to you.  Lord help me to live a life of holiness, that brings glory to you.  Lord cleanse my heart and my mind of the dirt.  Lord help me to share this with others that they too may know you and experience the season of refreshing that comes from you and you alone!  Amen