A washing machine is a standard piece of hardware in most American homes. Long before that modern convenience clothes were still washed. Dishes were still washed. Just about everything in life still needs to be cleaned. God understood this too. We come to God dirty, he does not disappoint us. Our God offers cleaning for our souls in baptism.
Before we get to baptism, in Paul’s letter to Titus, God lays out what the problem is in our sinful nature. Verse three has a logical series of steps for the fallen mind and soul. The fool says in his heart there is no God. If there is no God, why obey anything? The lie is that sin is fun – the fool is deceived. …and then enslaved, the truth is that on our own we can’t stop! The passions and pleasures of this world could be anything, just put a Nike Swoosh and if it feels good, do it! If you thought this only impacted you, verse three ends with a reminder that we are filled with malice and envy – hating and being hated.
That is what you were. Christians are different, but we still have that long list of temptations. The danger for the Christian is that these temptations can pile up like chop sticks China (You’ll have to watch the sermon to see what that’s all about).
The good news is that no pile of sins or chopsticks is too large for the waters of baptism and the power of our God. For that filth and rot that we bring to the table Jesus walked into the Jordan River. In spite of who we are the list of sins credited to our account, the Father thunders that he is pleased with us. When we think we can’t go on, the Spirit descends on us and in power gives us the courage to follow God’s plan.
Want to hear more, including three ways we confuse forgiveness? Watch this Sunday’s sermon from Titus 3.
Tag(s): Baptism, Epiphany
Speaker(s): Fred Guldberg