Matthew 23: 25-28
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Psalms 51: 7-12
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Have you ever cleaned a dish only to realize it still had food or stains on it? Or vacuumed your carpet wondering if it really is as clean as it looks? I imagine most of us know that carpets may seem clean to the naked eye, but there is a lot of dust and allergens imbedded underneath. You may also know the best thing to do for a pot or dish that has baked on food is to let it soak in soapy hot water. After a few hours, you can usually scrub away the particles like magic! Or for dried food on stoves, sprinkle salt and let it sit for a while and then scrub away. Didn’t know you were getting cleaning advice, did you? Now here’s the real question. Would you eat or drink out of a dirty, stained dish? Most of us would not. Jesus speaks to us about dirty dishes and unclean graves. But He’s not giving us cleaning advice for our home, but for our heart. He’s not teaching us how to keep a grave clean, but how to keep our minds pure.
When you eat something that doesn’t settle well in your stomach, it usually has to find its way out. I’m sure we have all dealt with that awful experience. Whatever you put into your stomach has some effect, it can be painful or wonderful. Proverbs tells us to guard our hearts, to protect it and to be on the offensive with its care. Our hearts are as fragile as glass and as strong as steel. We have to learn how to use it properly and to guard it carefully. Our hearts have the power to destroy and the power to heal all at the same time. The words and actions that flow from our heart is determined with what has been put into it. There is so much that influences us on a daily basis. From the moment we wake up, we are listening to the radio, the TV, the people in line, people at work, friends, and relatives. We are reading our phones, computers, books, signs, and billboards. We are talking to people on the phone, people at work, at the grocery store, at the drive through, or down the street. Our brains and hearts have the ability to process all of this and sometimes all at the same time. From information to emotions, our minds and hearts never stop working, processing, and feeling. Tired yet? Yet somehow we have to be able to filter what sticks to our heart and what we need to scrub away. I personally don’t want everything I read on a billboard or hear on the radio to stay with me for the rest of the day. What tends to happen when we are not careful is that whatever we don’t scrub away, somehow finds its way out of our mouth and into our actions. Hence the reasons we must guard, defend, and fortify our hearts and minds.
So how do we clean and scrub away? I suggest a few cleaning products. The baking soda Bible is the best filtering system you are going to find out there. It’s where stains and crusty particles don’t stand a chance. In the background of God’s Holy truth, our imperfections are revealed. Another good product is Comet people. Having a few godly people who can see the dirty areas, point them out, and help remove them is essential to any cleaning plan. They can help you, sharpen you, and encourage you, but like any cleaning product, you have to let them work. The last item that is by far the most important is the Spic and Span Spirit. The Holy Spirit resides in you if you have surrendered and offered your life to the Lord Jesus. It is the Spirit that gives you the wisdom to understand and apply the baking soda Bible. It is the Spirit that uses the Comet people in your life to show you truth, to rebuke you, and to comfort you. It is the power of the Holy Spirit that truly washes and scrubs you clean. The bottom line? You have all the resources you need to help you remove the stains of anger, selfishness, greed, pride, rudeness, envy, and anything else that is black against the light of the baking soda Bible. The question is will you use it? Do you want to shine from the inside out? I can have awesome products like fancy soap and cool brushes, but unless I use them properly, they are just that, fancy soap and cool brushes.
Let us go back to the carpet analogy. I can vacuum my carpet and it can be clean on the surface, but unless I deep clean, it is only clean on the top. Underneath lays all sorts of nasty stuff. This is how Jesus describes the Pharisees in the passages above. They seem righteous because they’ve cleaned the surface, but underneath they have stains that only deep cleaning can reach. You have to have the right condition for cleaning as well. You need a hot soapy heart. Yes our hearts are delicate like glass and strong as steel, but we must choose to have soapy delicate strong hearts. Soapy hearts can soak a lot of information and emotions, but then you can apply the baking soda Bible, Comet people, and the Spic and Span Spirit to scrub away the unwanted stains. Cleaning is a daily chore. Just like any chore, sometimes we have no desire to do it. But cleaning isn’t always about desire, is it? It is about what is necessary. If we waited on desire to clean our home, we might end up living in a pig pen. We clean daily because we want our home livable and enjoyable. How much more should we cherish our hearts and minds, and the hearts and minds of those living with us? If you are not cleaning daily with the baking soda Bible, Comet people, and Spic and Span Spirit, then get on board. Dirty hearts are not enjoyable to be around and God can’t always use you the way He desires unless you are in the business of cleaning. Can we agree to start cleaning today and living with soapy hearts?
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Psalms 51: 7-12
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Have you ever cleaned a dish only to realize it still had food or stains on it? Or vacuumed your carpet wondering if it really is as clean as it looks? I imagine most of us know that carpets may seem clean to the naked eye, but there is a lot of dust and allergens imbedded underneath. You may also know the best thing to do for a pot or dish that has baked on food is to let it soak in soapy hot water. After a few hours, you can usually scrub away the particles like magic! Or for dried food on stoves, sprinkle salt and let it sit for a while and then scrub away. Didn’t know you were getting cleaning advice, did you? Now here’s the real question. Would you eat or drink out of a dirty, stained dish? Most of us would not. Jesus speaks to us about dirty dishes and unclean graves. But He’s not giving us cleaning advice for our home, but for our heart. He’s not teaching us how to keep a grave clean, but how to keep our minds pure.
When you eat something that doesn’t settle well in your stomach, it usually has to find its way out. I’m sure we have all dealt with that awful experience. Whatever you put into your stomach has some effect, it can be painful or wonderful. Proverbs tells us to guard our hearts, to protect it and to be on the offensive with its care. Our hearts are as fragile as glass and as strong as steel. We have to learn how to use it properly and to guard it carefully. Our hearts have the power to destroy and the power to heal all at the same time. The words and actions that flow from our heart is determined with what has been put into it. There is so much that influences us on a daily basis. From the moment we wake up, we are listening to the radio, the TV, the people in line, people at work, friends, and relatives. We are reading our phones, computers, books, signs, and billboards. We are talking to people on the phone, people at work, at the grocery store, at the drive through, or down the street. Our brains and hearts have the ability to process all of this and sometimes all at the same time. From information to emotions, our minds and hearts never stop working, processing, and feeling. Tired yet? Yet somehow we have to be able to filter what sticks to our heart and what we need to scrub away. I personally don’t want everything I read on a billboard or hear on the radio to stay with me for the rest of the day. What tends to happen when we are not careful is that whatever we don’t scrub away, somehow finds its way out of our mouth and into our actions. Hence the reasons we must guard, defend, and fortify our hearts and minds.
So how do we clean and scrub away? I suggest a few cleaning products. The baking soda Bible is the best filtering system you are going to find out there. It’s where stains and crusty particles don’t stand a chance. In the background of God’s Holy truth, our imperfections are revealed. Another good product is Comet people. Having a few godly people who can see the dirty areas, point them out, and help remove them is essential to any cleaning plan. They can help you, sharpen you, and encourage you, but like any cleaning product, you have to let them work. The last item that is by far the most important is the Spic and Span Spirit. The Holy Spirit resides in you if you have surrendered and offered your life to the Lord Jesus. It is the Spirit that gives you the wisdom to understand and apply the baking soda Bible. It is the Spirit that uses the Comet people in your life to show you truth, to rebuke you, and to comfort you. It is the power of the Holy Spirit that truly washes and scrubs you clean. The bottom line? You have all the resources you need to help you remove the stains of anger, selfishness, greed, pride, rudeness, envy, and anything else that is black against the light of the baking soda Bible. The question is will you use it? Do you want to shine from the inside out? I can have awesome products like fancy soap and cool brushes, but unless I use them properly, they are just that, fancy soap and cool brushes.
Let us go back to the carpet analogy. I can vacuum my carpet and it can be clean on the surface, but unless I deep clean, it is only clean on the top. Underneath lays all sorts of nasty stuff. This is how Jesus describes the Pharisees in the passages above. They seem righteous because they’ve cleaned the surface, but underneath they have stains that only deep cleaning can reach. You have to have the right condition for cleaning as well. You need a hot soapy heart. Yes our hearts are delicate like glass and strong as steel, but we must choose to have soapy delicate strong hearts. Soapy hearts can soak a lot of information and emotions, but then you can apply the baking soda Bible, Comet people, and the Spic and Span Spirit to scrub away the unwanted stains. Cleaning is a daily chore. Just like any chore, sometimes we have no desire to do it. But cleaning isn’t always about desire, is it? It is about what is necessary. If we waited on desire to clean our home, we might end up living in a pig pen. We clean daily because we want our home livable and enjoyable. How much more should we cherish our hearts and minds, and the hearts and minds of those living with us? If you are not cleaning daily with the baking soda Bible, Comet people, and Spic and Span Spirit, then get on board. Dirty hearts are not enjoyable to be around and God can’t always use you the way He desires unless you are in the business of cleaning. Can we agree to start cleaning today and living with soapy hearts?
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.
keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.
Proverbs 4:23-26
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