Isaiah 44:22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.
In this incredibly deep verse, The Lord compares the blotting out of our sins to a thick cloud. For those of you who have ever been in fog, that is what this makes me think of. I don't mean a little mist that you drive through for a few minutes on the way over a mountain pass; I mean the kind of fog where, if you are driving, you have to strain to see even the white line on the roadside to assure yourself you are still on the road at all. My mom, sister and I got caught in fog like this once. We went down into a valley town where it lightened up quite a bit, so we thought "Oh, this isn't going to be too bad! We can definitely make it home tonight!" I don't know if you can guess the ending...we most definitely could NOT make it home that night! ;) We ended up going up the hill leading out of the town and realizing that we literally could barely even see the front of our own vehicle, let alone where we were going. It took us 20 minutes to find a place to turn around (you couldn't see turnoffs till you were past them). Anyway, this passage says that our sins are "blotted out, as a thick cloud". You couldn't see them even if you spent forever trying to! They are gone for good under the blood of Jesus Christ. If you are agonizing over sin that you have committed in the past, please--pay attention to the last part of the verse!! Return to The Lord: He has redeemed you if you have repented of sin and called on Him for salvation! In that very moment, he washed away ALL your sins; past, present and future. All of them. It's been said that you can't start a new chapter of your life if you keep rereading the old one, and it's so true! If you are focused on old sins, old habits, old guilt, you will never be an effective servant of Jesus Christ. Turn to the One Who has redeemed your soul, and let go of those things that are blotted out forever! May God bless each of you as you follow Christ's example this week.
Mykaela
I enjoy these verses about the Lord and the clouds, too. This morning I read in Nahum 1:3, " . . .the Lord hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet."
ReplyDeleteI know several people who find cloudy days sad and depressing, and I would like to share this with them. Personally, I think cloudy days are glorious - you see colors differently, and if it rains everything is fresh and lit up soft and rich. It is beautiful! I love the idea of the clouds being a sign that God is walking near me!
Ashley