Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean.”
John 13:10a
Those of you who read my post, “choosing the hard way,” you’re probably wondering how my kitchen cabinets turned out (being that I took the lazy-girl route of no sanding and leaving on the doors). Simply put, awesome. The antique white paint completely transformed the outdated, dark wood cabinets. My kitchen is so much brighter and even feels more spacious. I love it.
I’m not going to lie, though, and say the task was easy. Despite my shortcut, it took two full days of painting and left my hand so fatigued I was unable to grip my toothpaste. And after letting the paint dry and putting hardware back on, I was able to see all the misses: the unpainted hinge-side of some of the doors, one door I forgot to hit with the second coat, and the quarter-round that only got primed. My cabinets have been made white and clean and beautiful…but they’re certainly not perfect.
Sounds a lot like us Christians, doesn’t it?
When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are washed clean and made white as snow (Isaiah 1:18; Psalm 51:7). Our sins are forgiven—past, present, and future. It’s awesome. But our salvation does not make us perfect. As long as we are on the earth (in its current iteration), we miss the mark—we sin—every day. So, that’s why regular touch-ups are needed.
This is what Jesus was teaching His disciples (and us) when He said our whole body is clean, but we need to wash our feet (John 13:10). We get dirty walking through this world. It’s inevitable. Things come out of our mouth we wish we didn’t say. We lose our patience and act unkindly. We watch a popular Netflix show that is far from righteous. We use social media to…well, you get the picture.
Brothers and sisters, we are made righteous by the Blood of the Lamb. Out of gratefulness we pursue holy living. And when we mess up (because we will), we are not “hypocrites” (as some may call us). We are sinful humans saved by grace. So, each and every day, we need to make an assessment, recognize those failings and misses, ask the Lord for forgiveness, and pray for the wisdom to make different choices the next time.
We are beautiful and bright, but—like my painted cabinets—we just need some touching up.
Lord, I am so grateful for my cleansing salvation…and for Your precious grace that daily renews my mind and heart.
encouraged by grace 