Every Last Bit, No Exceptions

Late this evening, shortly before Robin and I would ordinarily begin wrapping things up and going to bed I was looking on Facebook and saw a post from a woman who is a mutual friend of ours. She posted something that came from Psalm 130. I responded to her post with a comment and link to a version of that Psalm, set to music, that I am quite fond of. And, being fond of it, I put my headphones in and listened to it.

A few minutes later I heard Robin's phone begin to play some very familiar music. She had seen my link and was playing it for herself. I then connected the speakers to my laptop and we listened to the Psalm again.

In my Bible the last verse of Psalm 130 reads:

"And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities."

In the song that verse is:

"Who will at last his Israel free,

 from all their sin and sorrow."

That last phrase, "from all their sin and sorrow" then repeats a number of times, back-and-forth between a male and female voice, and then repeats and fades, like a haunting echo, as the music ends.

Earlier this evening, shortly before this whole episode I'm describing took place I read a sermon by George Whitefield. In the latter part of the sermon Whitefield made a powerful appeal to his listeners to consider how sinful their lives really were, when seen from God's point-of-view. He said that there was no way to soft-sell what they had done against God. He said that for the least of their sins they would bear terrible guilt and the truth of the matter was that they had many more sins than they could possibly imagine. Whitefield didn't cast them as any kind of exceptionally evil people, for he said that he was just as much of a sinner as any of them were.

But here is the thing. When they, or he, or you or I, for that matter, come to have faith in Jesus as our Savior, it is Jesus who deals with our sin. Every last bit, no exceptions. The freedom that Psalm 130 points forward to is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus.

Jesus isn't a Savior in the same way where I might sweep up a floor. Doing a job that may be pretty good, but not worrying too much about a missed spot here or there. Something that I will probably get the next time I get the broom out.

Jesus is the kind of Savior who removes every last bit of sin from every single person who has faith in him. He misses nothing. He prepares us for that moment of final judgment before the Father so completely as to make us spotless.

That is hard to see sometimes, living here in the world and continuing to struggle with sin. But it is the Bible's truth, and the Bible never lies.

Turn to Jesus. Now. And know freedom from "all your sin and sorrow." Every last bit, no exceptions.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.