Reasoning, Salvation and Santification

UV 1175/10,000 Reason, Salvation and Sanctification
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool

Isaiah 1 v 18

The Lord despite His absolute standards of holiness, righteousness and integrity is willing to reason with us and make us understand the extent of His infinite holiness and the extent of the stains of our sinfulness. His standard of holiness is so absolute that He was willing to take upon Himself the responsibility, the guilt, the sinfulness, the penalty and the burdens of all mankind in the person of Jesus. He does not have a “serves you right” attitude that we have when we see people we know suffering some setback. His grace, mercy and love is as absolute as His holiness and justice. When we reason with God and see the evidence in history as well as in our personal experience this far, we will be able to recognize, understand and appreciate the attitude God has towards sinners. The Lord invites every human being to experience this eternal cleansing or washing. Faith and salvation come through a reasoning process and not by a blind leap or by inheritance or tradition or religious affiliation. The Lord is reasoning with mankind all through history, “ You cannot save yourself just as you cannot pull yourself up by your own bootstraps. Come to me and I will show you the effective way for which there is no substitute.”

Our thoughts, words and deeds have dirtied our clothes and they are blood-stained or crimson in colour. We have done violence to ourselves and bled from a thousand self inflicted wounds. But when our clothes are washed in the blood of Jesus, they become white as snow. It is not a water-wash or a dry cleaning but a faith-wash. Where sin abounded formerly, now His grace will abound in our lives. This is the eternal “scarlet” cleansing that we receive when we believe in the atoning death and resurrection of Jesus, the Lamb provided by God. This comes by the confession of faith.

In addition to a once and for all “faith –wash” we need a daily cleansing or blotting out of our transgressions. Just as we use a blotter to absorb and wipe away any excess ink or fluid spilt on a surface, the Lord will blot out our “crimson” deeds. We obtain this cleansing by the confession of individual sins and shortcomings. Over a period of time, He will make us white as wool implying that our sanctification is not overnight but is a process that lasts a lifetime.

Prateep V Philip