Thursday 6 November, 2014

Read: Colossians 1:21-22

Nothing really cleans like they say in the ads. You know the advertisements. If you buy our spray, wipe, cleaning solution or sponge you will be able to clean up anything easily without any stain or blemish. It sounds fantastic but when the product comes and you actually try it out it doesn’t work anywhere near as well. There is always a mark left behind, a catch you didn’t know about or permanent damage to the thing you were trying to clean. Nothing quite cleans like they say in the ads.

There is one single exception. One thing that cleans just like promised. One thing that can wash away any stain and any blemish and leave things absolutely pristine. What is that one thing? Only the blood of Christ. Only He can truly wash as promised. Only He can wipe away all the stains. That is what Paul is telling us about here in Colossians.

Firstly, he reminds us of the stains in our lives. Look in verse 21, we have been alienated from God and are His enemies in our minds because of our evil behaviour. This is true of all of us at one point or another. We have all sinned against God and rebelled against Him. Our minds and hearts have been set against Him whether we know it or not. We have been guilty of terrible sins before Him. Our evil deeds have alienated and separated us from God forever. We are stained and cannot clean ourselves.

Paul’s next words are some of the most hopeful in the whole Bible: “But now…” Those two words tell us that God has done something amazing. We were in a state of separation from God, stained by our sin but now God has done something incredible to change things. What has he done?

“He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free form accusation.” Through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ we have been restored to relationship with God. We have been made right with Him. Where once we were enemies of God we are now His children. Where once we were separated from Him by our sin we now have confidence to enter right into His presence and be with Him (Hebrews 10:19).

This is all made possible through the death of Jesus. It is only by His blood that we have been made clean and we can draw near to God. His blood is the only thing that can clean us and leave us totally spotless. Because of the blood of Christ we are presented holy in God’s sight, without blemish and free from accusation.

Think about that. Whatever stains you have on your life. Whatever horrible sins you have committed or had committed against you. Whatever suffering you have endured that has marked you forever. Whatever terrible things have happened. No matter the stains that colour your life they are washed away by the blood of Christ and no blemish or trace remains. What incredible grace we have through Jesus!

Prayer:

Use the Bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

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Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Praise God for His lavish and incredible grace to us through Jesus Christ! Thank Him that we are cleansed from all our sins.

¥ Pray by name for those you know who are still stained by their sins and haven’t put their faith in Jesus Christ so that they might be cleansed. Pray that God would soften their hearts and give you opportunities to share.

 Walk Moment:

Freedom from the stain of sin does not free us to continue to sin. We are to turn from our sin, to go and sin no more. You are washed by the blood of Jesus so turn from your sin today.

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. Imagine that a  new believer comes to you in a state of distress. They are weighed down by guilt and shame over their past sins. How would you encourage them from this passage?

2. Can you think of any other passages you would point them to? What would you say from these passages?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: It can be really hard to clean up a big mess. Some things will never really be clean again.

Share: A big mess that you had to clean up. What happened? What did you have to do to clean it up?
Read: Colossians 1:21-22 When we disobey God we make a really big mess that needs cleaning up. We take the stain of our mess with us everywhere. What does verse 21 say about this mess we are in? God has done something amazing to clean up our mess. What has God done? (vs 22) What happens when God cleans us up? (End of verse 22)
Pray Together: Thank God that He has cleaned up our mess through Jesus. Thank Him that He has made us clean.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: It can be really hard to clean up a big mess. Some things will never really be clean again.

Share: A big mess that you had to clean up. What happened? What did you have to do to clean it up?
Read: Colossians 1:21-22 When we disobey God we make a really big mess that needs cleaning up. We take the stain of our mess with us everywhere. What does verse 21 say about this mess we are in? God has done something amazing to clean up our mess. What has God done? (vs 22) What happens when God cleans us up? (End of verse 22)
Pray Together: Thank God that He has cleaned up our mess through Jesus. Thank Him that He has made us clean.