SERMON: STAIN REMOVER

STAIN REMOVER
18 October 2009

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Psalm 51

1. Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
2. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
3. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
4. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.
5. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts ; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
7. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

-- John and Nancy purchased a new couch -- in and of itself, this was not an incredible feat, but for John and Nancy, it marked a new chapter in their married life -- as parents of three young children, they had experienced the whirlwind of life from meeting and dating and getting married to settling down to start a family of their own -- but while their family was growing, their resources didn't -- their newly acquired home still resembled the first apartment they rented, right down to the mix-match furniture inherited from generous family members and purchased for bargain prices at the yard sale down the street
-- but, now, they had made the first major purchase of their married life -- trading in John's old Volkswagen Super Beetle for a shiny new sofa -- mauve, the salesman called it -- John said it really looked like Pepto-Bismol, but because it represented a substantial investment for him and Nancy, they though "mauve" sounded better
-- The man at the furniture store warned them not to get it when he found out they had small children -- "You don't want a mauve sofa," he advised. -- "Get something the color of dirt." -- but, John and Nancy had the naive optimism of young parenthood -- "We know how to handle our children," they said -- "Give us the mauve sofa"
-- From the moment the mauve sofa was settled into the living room of their home, the whole family knew clearly the number one rule in the house -- Don't sit on the mauve sofa -- don't touch the mauve sofa -- don't play around the mauve sofa -- Don't eat on, breathe on, look at, or think about the mauve sofa
-- remember the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden? -- this became the law of their household -- "On every other chair in the house, you may freely sit, but upon this sofa -- the mauve sofa - -you may not sit -- for in the day you sit thereupon, you shall surely die"
-- then, came The Fall
-- One day there appeared on the mauve sofa a stain. -- a red stain -- a red jelly stain
-- so, John's wife, who had chosen the mauve sofa and adored it, lined up their three children in front of it -- Laura, age four -- Mallory, two and a half -- and Johnny, six months
-- "Do you see that, children?" she asked -- "That's a stain -- a red stain - -a red jelly stain -- the man at the sofa store says it is not coming out -- not forever -- do you know how long forever is, children? -- That's how long we're going to stand were until one of you tells me who put the stain on the mauve sofa."
-- Mallory was the first to break -- with trembling lips and tear-filled eyes, she said, "Laura did it"
-- Laura passionately denied it -- then there was silence for the longest time -- no one said a word. -- No one -- John knew the children wouldn't, for they had never seen their mother so upset -- John knew they wouldn't because they knew that if they did, they would spend eternity in the time-out chair
-- John knew they wouldn't, because John was the one who put the red jelly stain on the mauve sofa -- and John knew he wasn't saying anything -- as far as he was concerned, that stain could remain a mystery for eternity [adapted from John Ortberg]

-- now, if there's something that I know about, it's stains -- I can't tell you how many times I have ruined shirts just by eating supper -- it's gotten to the point that when I eat supper at home -- and we don't have company -- I put on an old t-shirt so that I won't ruin another good shirt -- at first, Kim rolled her eyes, but now she sees the wisdoms in my actions -- I think I've got more stained and ruined shirts and ties and slacks than anyone else on the planet

-- but, you know, if you're honest, you'll have to admit that you know about stains, too, don't you? -- and not just the stains that ruin shirts and slacks -- the stains that ruin lives
-- we've all stained the sofa -- we've all seen perfection marred by the ugliness of a stain that can't be removed -- some of the stains are small and barely noticeable -- but some of them bleed through the entire fabric of our lives

-- funny how we act when we get a stain, isn't it? -- let's say that we're going about our day and all of a sudden, we realize that we've got a stain in our life -- kind of like this one
-- so what's the first thing we do? -- we pretend it's not there, don't we? -- we walk around and pretend like no one can see it -- "hey, how you doing? -- I'm doing good -- what? -- no, I don't have a stain -- don't know what you're talking about -- you must be talking about somebody else -- I wasn't going to mention it, but I did notice that John had a big stain on his shirt -- somebody should tell him about that" -- there we are, pretending that we don't have a stain in our life, when the Bible says that our stains are shining like scarlet -- red as crimson -- obvious to us and to God and to everyone around us
-- and then, when we find out that everyone can see our stain, we start trying to pass the buck -- "Yeah, I know that stain's there, but I didn't put it there -- it was Leroy -- he was over there eating and got sloppy and spilled some of his food on me -- or I was driving to work and hit a bump and my coffee spilled -- it's not my fault -- it's the road's fault -- they really ought to fix that pothole over there"
-- and then, when it's obvious that no one is buying that, what do we do? -- we try to cover it up -- we go out and buy us a patch and make a design and put it over that stain and try to convince ourselves that our stain is gone forever -- out of sight, out of mind -- just cover it up and we don't have to worry about it any more
-- but you know what? -- none of that works -- it didn't work for Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden -- and it won't work for us -- that's not how you get rid of a stain -- you can pretend it's not there -- you can blame someone else for it -- you can cover it up with the fanciest clothes -- but that won't make it go away -- it doesn't matter what we try, we can't get rid of it
-- people around us might not see it, but that doesn't make it go away -- in those quiet moments of our lives -- when we're honest with ourselves -- we have to look in the mirror and admit that we've got a stain -- that no matter what we do, it's not going away -- King David knew this -- look back at verse 3 -- "For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me"
-- we can cover up that stain and hide it from the whole world, but we know what's hidden in the recesses of our soul -- we know how stained and ruined our hearts are -- the question is, "What do we do about it?"

-- if pretending our stain isn't there doesn't work -- if blaming others doesn't work -- if covering it up doesn't work -- then how do we get rid of those stubborn stains on the mauve sofa in our heart?
-- David gave us the answer in Psalm 51 -- we need a stain remover -- we need something -- or Someone -- to come in and give us a deep cleansing -- to remove not only that stain that we can see but that stain that we can't see -- that someone is Jesus
-- David realized that only God could cleanse him of his sin -- David knew that only God could clean the stains from his life -- so he cried out to God in verse 2, "Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin." and in verse 7, "Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow."
-- God tells us in Isaiah 1:18 that if we turn to Jesus for healing and forgiveness that even though our sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."
-- that's not just covering up a stain or a sin -- that's getting to the root of the problem

-- if you would, turn with me to Hebrews 9 and let's finish up there
-- this passage is found in a section of Hebrews where the author is comparing the old covenant to the new covenant -- he's been talking about how the old tabernacle was just an imitation of the more perfect sanctuary in heaven -- how the old priesthood was replaced by the more perfect priesthood that came through Melchizedek
-- and now, here in these verses, the author is going to tell us how the old covenant of the law -- with its sacrifices of goats and bulls for the atonement of sin -- was fulfilled and perfected through the new covenant established with Jesus' death and resurrection

-- look if you would at Hebrews 9:11

11. When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation.

-- Jesus came to be our High Priest -- to represent us before the throne -- to minister before God the Father on our behalf
-- as our High Priest, Jesus didn't just minister to God for the Jews -- He ministered to God for all the good things that were already here on earth -- all of those things that God created and proclaimed as "Good" at the beginning of Genesis -- that's the Jews and the Gentiles -- that's the forests and the field -- the ocean and the land -- the animals and all the rest of creation
-- when Adam and Eve sinned, the stain they created from their disobedience affected all of creation -- so, Jesus died to redeem it all -- He didn't come just to save us, but to save all of creation from the curse that came at the Fall in the Garden
-- and so He didn't come to serve in the tabernacle or the temple made by human hands -- Jesus' work was done in the perfect tabernacle -- the sanctuary that is in the presence of God in heaven

-- verse 12

12. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.

-- under the old covenant, the high priest was allowed to enter into the Holy of Holies on only one day of the year -- on the Day of Atonement -- Yom Kippur -- on that day, the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies -- where the Ark of the Covenant was kept -- to make atonement for the sins of the people
-- the only way he could enter into the presence of God in that place was to carry before him the blood of goats and bulls that were slain as a sacrifice for sin -- to go before God without the blood of the sacrifice would result in death
-- that's why the high priest had bells on the bottom of his robe and a rope tied to his ankle -- the other priests would listen for the bells on the robe -- if they quit hearing them jingle as the High Priest ministered, they would pull his dead body out with the rope because no one could go in to get him
-- year after year, the same thing would happen -- the priest would slay goats and bulls for the sins of the people and would enter the Holy of Holies to make atonement
-- but Jesus only entered once, carrying His own perfect blood as the perfect sacrifice for sin -- the writer tells us that Jesus' offering was once for all -- one time for all people and all creation
-- there was no need to enter the Holy of Holies again, year after year, because Jesus did it all -- He paved the way to the Father with His body and blood and so the veil was torn to show that He had paid the price once for all and that no more sacrifices were required

-- verse 13

13. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean.

-- the only thing the blood of the goats and bulls that were sacrificed for sin could do was to cover it up -- their blood couldn't clean the stain -- their blood couldn't remove it from our hearts
-- it worked for a while, but it's effect was only temporary -- it only made them clean on the outside -- that's why the high priest had to keep coming back year after year after year
-- let me give you an example of what this looks like -- I had a couple of friends who were going deer hunting a few years ago -- and they had bought some skunk scent to cover up the human scent so the deer couldn't smell them when they got in the woods -- they were riding along in the truck and one of the guys got curious and he opened the bottle just to see what it smelled like -- just about that time, the driver hit a bump, and my friend poured the whole bottle of skunk scent in the top vent on the dash of the truck
-- they poured chlorox down there -- they bought air sanitizers -- they cleaned and cleaned -- and the trunk really didn't smell that bad, until you turned the heater on -- and then that skunk scent would come wafting out of the vent and you couldn't stand it
-- for most of the year, the scent was hidden -- you didn't know it was there most of the time -- but during the winter months, when you ran the heater, it came back with a vengeance
-- that's what the situation was with sin in the Old Testament covenant

-- verse 14

14. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!
15. For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance--now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

-- if you want to get rid of a stain, you don't just cover it up -- you get a stain remover -- you get oxyclean -- and you get rid of it once and for all
-- the blood of Christ is our stain remover -- where the blood of goats and bulls wouldn't work -- where our acts of piety and goodness wouldn't work -- where following the law and doing the best we can wouldn't work -- Jesus could
-- His blood didn't cover our sin -- it removed it -- it purged the power of sin from our lives -- Jesus cleansed our consciences and set us free from the stain of sin in our lives
-- His blood made us unblemished in the eyes of God -- without sin -- without stain -- just as if we never sinned

III. Closing
-- several years ago, I saw a copy of the comic strip B.C. in color in a Sunday edition of the paper -- one of the cavemen in that series was standing out in the water wearing a brown robe with an ugly stain on it -- the next panel showed him washing and washing and trying to get that stain out
-- in the third panel, he looked up and saw this flow of red liquid coming towards him on the water -- it reached the spot where he was standing, and when the red touched his robe, it turned as white as snow -- not only was the stain gone, but the whole robe was made clean and new
-- in the final panel of the cartoon, the caveman looked up to see the source of the red liquid -- and it was flowing down from the cross and into the water where he stood

-- stained robes -- stained sofas -- stained shirts -- stained hearts -- we've all got stains in our lives that we need to have cleansed -- 1 John 1:8 says, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" -- that's a word for Christians as well as non-Christians
-- we've got stains, and we need to get rid of them

-- 2 Peter 3:14 says, "Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with God." -- that's what we're going to do today -- there's no reason for anyone to leave here with stains on their hearts -- there's no reason for anyone to leave here with unforgiven sin in their lives

-- as we close the service today, we're going to apply God's stain remover to our lives -- God promised us in Isaiah 1:18 that even though our sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow -- that even though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool through the cleansing blood of Jesus
-- so, as we close, we're going to share in the sacrament of Holy Communion and let the body and the blood of Christ Jesus cleanse us from any sin or stain that we might have walked in here with so that we can leave spotless and blameless -- at peace with God -- and with our spiritual robes made as white as snow
-- let's close in prayer and then we'll share the Lord's table together