Last week, we talked about Jesus cleansing the temple. The temple in Jerusalem had gradually become a noisy marketplace. It was probably difficult to have reverent and meaningful worship there, with the competing sounds of animals, the money changers, and more.
We also talked about sometimes there being a need for spring cleaning in our lives. Our bodies are the temple of the Spirit now; this is where He lives.
It's a fact of life that all "systems" if you want to call them that, get cluttered up over time with debris. They get clogged and congested and they can't operate at top effectiveness any more.
Have we heard from our doctors (or from television commercials) that plaque tends to build up in our veins and arteries? This gradually restricts the flow of blood. It's imperceptible at first, but over time it may become a dangerous problem.
Perhaps we aren't sailors, but I bet we've all heard of barnacles, right? These critters build up on the hulls of sea-going vessels, from the trawlers bringing in shrimp and fish to the aircraft carriers that patrol the seas. Get enough barnacles on there and the ship is slowed down dramatically. I read somewhere that in just one year, a tanker ship can accumulate four or five TONS of barnacles!
Ever seen the barges that dredge rivers or the channels in a harbor? Mud and silt and shells can build up in the "lanes" that the commercial and pleasure vessels use, and it can make them impossible to navigate.
I think we see the point: whether we are talking about veins or ships or rivers, they can all get filled with rubbish and need to be cleaned out. It is not usually a pleasant process, either. Dirty, smelly, even painful if done manually.....
The same thing applies to marriage and family relationships, no? They can become clogged with unrealized expectations, resentment, and unforgiven offenses. Many a family has been torn apart because of unresolved conflicts or un-offered apologies.
But this week, we are focused on our spiritual lives. Over time, if we aren't careful, our lives can get cluttered and clogged with the debris of sin. If we want to carry our analogy one step further, our minds and hearts can get encrusted with the barnacles of ungodly attitudes and beliefs from the folks in this world that we "rub shoulders" with each day. All of this hinders our relationship with God, and our fellowship with other believers.
It also reduces our joy and peace, and decreases the power "on tap" in our Christian lives.
Maybe we need to do a deep dive into how to avoid this.... and how to clean up if it has already happened. (Grin)
First of all, we don't need to be down on ourselves because it's a problem that we all have from time to time. It's common to all of us. We are none of us immune -- we can't afford to go blithely about our days, unconcerned with the matters of holiness, or how sin is beginning to pile up.
Even the scriptures point to this; if it were not a common problem, I don't think so many of the writers would have addressed it!
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. (Proverbs 4:23)
Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil so that I take part in wicked deeds
along with those who are evildoers; do not let me eat their delicacies. (Psalm 141:3-4)
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! (I Corinthians 10:12)
Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, (Ephesians 5:15)The scriptures are full of appeals to be watchful, and careful....to guard our hearts. Otherwise, over time, the world will begin to conform us to its way of thinking, speaking, and acting. We must be careful that ungodly habits don't creep in..... because it's kinda frightening how it can happen without our noticing!
When a believer falls away from walking with Jesus Christ, it's not usually like a hang-glider jumping off a cliff. (Grin) It's a gradual process. We may have been there..... what used to be a blessing is now seeming like more of a burden. The time we spend in prayer and Bible study begins to be cut shorter each day. We may no longer care so much about spending time with our Christian friends.
And worst of all, as the world gets closer to us, our tolerance for impurity within our own hearts gradually increases.
Even if there is a mega-failure, an epic situation that is perhaps public in our lives, there's usually been a period of time during which we have continued to make small compromises with sin. The decline is subtle, and often barely noticeable to others, and to ourselves as well.
To top it all off, many of us are able to keep up the outward appearance of religion, even while our relationship with Christ is weakening every day.
I'd like to suggest that each of us truly examine our hearts and pray. Let's find the barnacles and the sludge, so to speak.
Next time we will begin to look at ways to get rid of the debris that we find....
Powerful!
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