Daily Devotional for January 14, 2020
Sin Cleanser
“Oh, I forgot! Jake thought as he stirred his hot cocoa. I’m not supposed to bring this in here anymore because of the new carpet! But Mom was busy outside, and Jake wanted to watch a game on TV. I’ll be careful, he thought. His eyes were on the TV as he reached out to set the mug down. But he tilted it too far, and some of the cocoa spilled out and made a dark spot on the new, light-colored carpet.
Jake raced to get a towel and soaked up some of the cocoa, but an ugly dark spot remained. Hearing Mom come into the house, Jake scrubbed harder, but he could see it was no use. I’d better tell Mom what I did, he thought. Maybe she’ll know a way to get the stain out. So Jake slowly headed for the kitchen and confessed what he had done.
“Oh, Jake!” Mom hurried to survey the damage. “Well, I’ve got some new carpet cleaner that works really well on fresh stains.” She went to get it. As she worked on the carpet, she said, “You couldn’t get this stain out yourself, but this cleaner will take care of it. Does that remind you of something about God?”
“Um…you mean we need Him to get rid of our sin?” asked Jake.
Mom nodded. “It makes me think of people who try so hard to earn their way to heaven through their own good deeds. I used to be one of them.”
“You did?” Jake asked, surprised.
“Yes,” said Mom. “I was sure the good things I did outweighed the bad ones and made me good enough for heaven. But I was wrong. God helped me realize I was a sinner and that the wrong things I’d done had left a nasty stain on me that I couldn’t get out on my own. I needed Jesus, who took the punishment I deserved for my sin. When we trust in Him, He cleanses us from sin and forgives us.”
“Just like you forgive me for spilling on the new carpet?” Jake asked hopefully. “I’m sorry I brought my cocoa in here. I won’t do it again.”
Mom set the cleaner aside. “Yes, Jake. I forgive you.” -Karen E. Cogan
How about you?
Have you put your faith in Jesus and trusted Him to forgive you? No matter how many good things you try to do, you can’t get rid of sin yourself. Only the blood of Jesus can wash it away. Make the verses in Psalm 51 your prayer today. Confess your sin to Jesus and trust Him to give you a clean heart.
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