Articles/Bulletins
Fresh Snowfall
R E F L E C T I O N S
Thoughts on nature and the Christian faith - 1/24/22
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."
- Ps. 5
1:7
1:7We recently had a 10-inch snowfall where we live that pretty much shut everything down for awhile. So, like the child I am at heart, I had to go outside and play in the snow. I love a fresh snowfall because it covers up any unseemly or unattractive things with a blanket of white. There may be ugliness underneath, but it remains unseen. I took this image by a small stream that runs through our property. This ribbon of darkness snaking through pristine white made me think of a promise God made to those who have put their trust in him, that all of our blackness will be washed as white as snow. To appreciate this promise there are a few things that need to be acknowledged. The first is that we all have a blackness in our hearts that needs to be addressed. Mankind is not basically good. We have prideful selfish hearts and live disobedient lives. The purpose of the law of God is to show us what we ought to be and also to show us what we are not. Law-keeping cannot save us. That is not its purpose. Its purpose is to show us our need, to bring us to our knees before a holy and just God. We need a purity, a whiteness that none of us has inherently. Another thing we need to acknowledge is that our situation is not like this image of snow covering darkness. We need more than a covering for our sins, we need for those sins to be removed. And, if you are a Christian, that is exactly what has happened. Our sin has been taken away and the just penalty for our sin has been paid in full. So, if our sin was taken away, where did it go? It was laid on another, and he took the punishment that we deserve. The purity and whiteness of his life was then credited to us and we now stand before our Father spotless in his sight. Think of that great exchange the next time you see snow. And then go out and rejoice in it. - John
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