Our Diaper

“We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” Is. 64:6.

A newborn is so cute, so beautiful, so cuddly, so innocent. But then his face takes on a new expression, and the little person lets go and soils himself. Suddenly Baby has issues! The news wafts around and it gets everyone whispering! Yet Mother and Father are not surprised. Their attachment to Baby does not fade. Its just part of life. The things they deal with on a daily basis is a function of existence. They cannot force Baby to stop its horrible habit. The best they can do is to put a cloth, clean and white, on Baby to contain the mess before it happens. So long as Baby stays clothed in that clean white cloth and has the constant care of his parents, everyone is safe from the pungent matter that flows from the depths of his bosom. At some time later, the parents will potty-train him.

As they grow together, the parents become prepared for bigger issues with Junior. Because they nurture him, he develops into a normal adolescent and adult, happy to be alive, ready to fight the battles of life, and himself able to nurture another generation.

Baby’s cloth needs to be changed often; a single change won’t do. There is not a baby in the world who can keep from soiling his britches. Even so, if we’ve been keeping the same ripe Robe of Righteousness for a month, or a year, or 5 or 50 years, we have defied the odds. It reeks and is greatly in need of discard. We need to be born again and get a new cloth, which again, is only good for part of a day. We all need this constantly. Once in a lifetime is not good enough. So, let’s discard that filthy rag! Everyone will thank us for it! If we’ve not known repentance and surrender to God’s goodness lately, let’s not deceive ourselves that no one knows our robe is not new. It screams!!!

According to the Levitical law, leprous garments were to be burnt. (Lev. 13:52.) So let's burn them! Or throw them out with a vengeance! (Matt. 5:13.) And hope that the ground has passed the perc test! In those old rotten, smelling-like-a-homeless-person rags, any righteousness of Christ is all used up and gone. They have lost any usefulness and are good for nothing. Let’ s throw them out and go get some new. This was the message in Christ’s parable of the wine bottles. (Lk. 5:36) If my wine is old and dead, and the wineskin is dried and brittle, what I need is new wine and a new wineskin to go with it.

But warning: “No one having drunk old wine immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’” Lk. 5:39. The new taste for a tonic rather than the intoxicating beverage will not come immediately. So, here’s hope: Jesus didn’t say the spiritual alcoholic would never desire the tonic, but that it will require time and patience and determination. Jesus is the Prince of patience, and if He can be patient with us, as we daily partake of the tonic, we can be patient with ourselves and with His work in changing our tastes for the tartness of truth. Old, dead, imaginary religion makes spiritual winos out of everyone who imbibes it. Christ’s religion of loving reproof and conviction perks us up. It makes our brain cells snap to attention and say, “Yes, Sir!” Old wine makes us say, “Doh!” New wine makes us say, “Whoa!!!!!!!”

So, let’s get with Jesus, and find that surrender to Him. He’s more than happy to dispense the rich blessing of His righteousness to the helpless human agent. And this time He wants us to continue to come back, repeatedly─and that’s an order from Christ, and a wonderful privilege. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” Lk. 9:23.

“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”