If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
- I John 1:9
Are you familiar with the above verse Dear Reader? If so, did you read it just now or did you skim it? Did you really see what it says, especially the last seven words? The reason I ask is that when I recall the verse I have a tendency to leave those last seven words off. Most people who quote it leave the end off as well. We like to remember that if we confess our sins He is faithful to forgive us. And that is indeed wonderful. If that is all the verse promised it would be worth rejoicing about. But that's not where the period is.
Those last seven words are an amazing bonus beyond simple forgiveness, and we, you and I both, Dear Reader, would do well to remember them. We are promised not only to be forgiven but to be cleansed of all unrighteousness. There are a couple of different aspects of what this means for us, and they are a blessing above and beyond simple forgiveness.
Lets first take a look at forgiveness as healing. Hypothetically, what if we contracted chicken pocks? They are horrible. This is one of the worst cases ever known, covering almost every inch of skin, including inside the ears and between the toes, and they itch so badly that we're about to scratch all our skin off in an attempt to find relief. We pray and ask for healing, and the symptoms stop. The itching fades away, and the sores dry and begin to disappear. We are no longer sick. But there are still signs of the illness. We still have scabs from where we've been scratching, there are scars from some of the earlier sores, and even some of the last signs haven't left yet. We're well, no longer sick, symptomatic or infectious, but we are not whole. To be restored and made whole would include the healing we received but also mean the scars and the scabs and the sores are gone. There would be no sign that we ever had chicken pocks at all.
This verse is promising this kind of thing. To be forgiven is wonderful, we no longer owe the spiritual debt that we have incurred. God sets our bill aside. But to include being cleansed means that our life is restored to such a point that the stain and scars of what we have been forgiven of are gone as well. It is the transformation of our past from the mark of Cain that shows the world our sin, and the curse that came as a result, into the Word of Our Testimony that is a mighty weapon of spiritual warfare when used in conjunction with the Blood of the Lamb.
There is another, even bigger implication found here. In the times when the worship of God was done at and through the temple and the priests, every thing had to be right before it could be used. Not only the priests themselves, but even the bowls and candlesticks and every utensil had to be cleansed before they could be used in the service of God. To be forgiven means that we no longer face eternal judgment for failing to be holy as He is holy, but to be cleansed means that in addition to forgiving us, Jesus makes us ready, qualified and able to be a part of His service, an integral piece of worship, a reflection of His glory and part of what makes it possible for the lost and broken to come into the presence of God. We help the restorative work of Christ as one of His servants, after being cleansed and prepared for service.
Today, let us hold onto that truth, that we are more than just forgiven, we have been cleansed by the Blood of Christ. Everything that is and was less than right with God, unrighteous, has been washed away. We are now pure and clean before our Lord and set aside to be of use and service to and for Him in the work of reflecting His glory and drawing others to Him so that they might find restoration and relationship as well. The scabs and scars of our sin are being removed and cleansed, and by the time we stand before Him face to face there will be no trace, no reminder, no evidence that we ever fell sort of His glory and righteousness.
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