Sin is Oh So Draining
Numbers 19:20
“If the man who is unclean does not cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, since he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD.”
The mercy of our LORD is a well with no bottom, and the more our sin immerses us into it, the deeper and wider and more expansive it becomes. Just when we think our feet have struck the floor, just when the devil convinces us that this time we’ve come to the end of God’s amnesty, we dive afresh into deeper waters, realizing that our feet had only been dancing on the surface of the shallowest end before, that each momentary, baptismal dip of regeneration is an everlasting plunge.
Now, while there is no amendment to that wondrous reality of our security in the well of Christ’s mercy, friend, there is an addendum to it. There’s another corresponding well in our life of faith that, when drained, is not so easily replenished. It’s the well of our impact on the world around us. The aqueduct whereby Heaven delivers truth and grace into the lives of others through our words and deeds. The stream of ministry that flows to our surrounding families and friends and co-workers and co-ministers and neighbors and fellow citizens. The pastor who becomes addicted to pornography and doesn’t come clean, the spouse who flirts with co-workers in the office, the entrepreneur who lies on his tax returns, the elder who holds an unspoken grudge against a fellow member, the deacon who gets drunk on weekends, the athlete who cusses out referees on the ballfield, will leave an indelible puncture-wound in the wall of his impact. Though he’ll never find the well of God’s mercy to run dry, he’ll find that others are no longer coming to him as a conduit.
No wonder James calls to us in uncomfortable sternness in James 4:8-9, “Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Humble yourselves before the LORD, and he will exalt you.” We don’t want a spiritual life full of leaks, do we? For the love of God, friend, come clean today of any sin that’s been dampening your ministry to others! We need your well to be full in the assembly! The sanctuary of divine mercy is richer with you in it.