Washcloth
WORD PICTURE: WASHCLOTH
Scriptural Reference: Ephesians 1:4-6
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
1. Have someone(s) read the scriptures from various translations.
2. Start with a dry washcloth and a small portable tub of clean water. Explain this symbolism:
Washcloth = Believer searching scripture
Wet washcloth = Believer in the living water/immersed in truth/full of truth.
Twisted = Water leaking out/tormented (no peace)
3. My sharing, offered to spark sharing by others.
What I Shared
Satan is very smart -- an IQ of probably a billion. Of course, God is smarter! But Satan is still smarter than me. Therefore he got away with twisting me in a knot about this exact portion of scripture. He took this -- plus a few other comments -- and twisted it until I found myself thinking, “What’s the point of praying for someone’s salvation? It’s all pre-known by God -- it’s futile -- a giant waste of time! Besides, God is sovereign -- He already knows who will come and who will not. You don’t. Do you think you’re God or something?”
I am only using this as an example of getting twisted into a knot -- I am not seeking a debate regarding the doctrine of predestination, although we can always go there if you want. I am using this as an example of being “tormented” instead of being comforted by Scripture. How I overcame the torment was by remembering what Jesus did when He was tempted by the Devil in the wilderness. His comeback to each twisting of the truth was, “It is written!” So that’s what I did, too. I looked into the Word and looked for the sum of the word on this and ended up feeling much better -- washed with peace instead of all twisted into a knot.
The main issue this brought up for me was a subtle form of legalism -- a tendency to worry about the Word after I read it – to worry that, now that I knew God’s opinion, was I performing well enough?
The way God corrected me and relieved me of this false pressure was, now that I look back on it, hilarious. It happened one day when I was folding laundry in my son’s room while he was making his bed. Many mornings I have gone in his room and seen his sweet obedience to my orders to make the bed. It was always done -- lumpy but done. Often I would just sit there for a minute and be so grateful for an obedient kid who is doing his best to obey me, even if the bed comes out all lumpy. It touched my heart that he was obeying and trying -- so much that I didn’t even mind the lumps.
Then came the morning when I was actually in the room, so I could see the contortions he was going through to make his bed. He had all the pillows thrown on the floor; he got himself in the middle of the mattress and was flapping out each layer of sheets and blankets, trying to smooth and tuck each one in before flapping out the next layer. He was such a little guy, and it touched my heart to see the trouble he went to each morning just to obey me. All of a sudden, I am crying to which he says, “Mom, what’s the matter??!!??” And I reply, “Nothing, Ned. I just never realized the effort you put into making your bed. It really touches my heart.” And then I heard God say, “I love the lumps.”
This was a personal breakthrough for me because it revealed to me that I had a form of legalism in me that was subtle -- so subtle I didn’t even know I had it. I was not aware that I had become so concerned about “Do’s and Don’ts” -- but there they were -- very subtly. I think the legalism slid in on my commitment to put Jesus in charge of my life. I knew He was my Savior, but I also wanted to make Him Lord of my life. The problem was that word: MAKE. Slippery slope, and it quickly slid me into a “works mentality” that made me feel like a failure whenever I fell short. Then God revealed the lumps. In His eyes, I’m just like Ned making His bed. God’s will is that I obey Him -- not that I do everything perfectly. He wants me to know that He, too, loves the lumps.
So -- are there areas of your faith where you find yourself troubled or tormented rather than washed with God’s blessed assurance and peace?
All Scripture references from the New International Version of the Bible (NIV).
Copyright by Whitney McKendree Moore, August 2007