Daily Devotions
“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” Isaiah 1:18
Scripture contains some beautiful “Comes” – God’s gracious invitations. Through Isaiah He exposes the rebellion and guilt, the insincere offerings and prayers, of His Old Testament people. He pictures them lifting hands in prayer – hands full of blood. Then Isaiah offers the invitation of God, “Come now, let us reason together. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” Those blood-stained hands will be washed clean by God’s forgiving action.
These words strike to our hearts. We also rebel against God in many ways, walking from Him to the lure of our selfish goals – money, prestige, power, success. We come to worship piously only to raise sin-stained hands in prayer. He pleads with us, “Come now, let us reason together. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”
We know how God’s forgiving action works. We see the blood-stained hands of the Son of God. His nail-pierced hands bore our sins as He died on the cross. We have been washed clean in the blood of the Lamb. Through Baptism we experience a daily cleansing of our sins as we live the life of repentance. How precious those promises to our ears: Come for cleansing!
PRAYER: Thank You, Lord Jesus, for shedding Your blood on the cross so that I may be washed clean of my sins in that precious blood. Amen.
(Devotions from “My Daily Devotion” by Dr. Stephen J. Carter, copyright 1988 CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time emailing of this link to a friend. For ordering information, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit www.cph.org.)