Be Clean, Smell Clean

God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:2

Have you ever forgotten a load of clothes in the washer? Do you recall the musty smell when you finally transferred them to the dryer? Stinky! Despite our best efforts to clean them, this one mistake means we’ve botched the job and need to start over.

God’s children all have dirty laundry, and I’m not talking about clothing and linens. When you and I sit too long in sin in the washing machine of life and we don’t hang out in the Sonshine to dry, our spirits start to stink and truly affect everyone else—and not for good!

But unlike laundry, God does not need special detergent to clean us up. He doesn’t need to separate or categorize us by the sins we commit either. His cleanup formula works perfectly on all of us. Jesus took our sin stains to the cross with Him. We are separated unto God and made clean only in Christ.

Only God can clean us and remove our stain so that we smell like Christ in this dingy, dirty world. When we put ourselves in His hands and pull out the detergent of God’s Word, the Holy Spirit reveals our dirty laundry and begins His method of cleaning our hearts white as snow. We just need to confess to God Almighty, who is without stain—pure and spotless—with arms open wide. He forgives our sin and makes us clean so that our lives send a Christlike fragrance rising up to God (2 Corinthians 2:15), which affects everyone else for His Kingdom good.

Be clean and smell clean with Christlike fragrance! And here’s a practical tip about that stinky load in the washing machine. Do a rewash, adding a cup of vinegar along with a little more detergent, to get the odor out. It works every time!