We bought our house from John and Donna Jackson. The Jackson’s have a son named Ben. Ben is mentally and physically challenged. In Ben’s room, he wrote in ink into the drywall, "Ben has the best daddy in the world." There were also wrestling pictures in permanent marker on the same wall. When we moved in, we painted over all of this with several coats of paint. The writings still could be seen. My wife came up with the idea of covering that wall with blackboard paint. This way my children could enjoy writing on the wall with chalk and not get into trouble. It worked out great! The writing was gone and my children have a place to draw. However, if we pealed back all of this paint, the writing and pictures would still be there. When I come in with a rag and wash clean the chalk, the chalk drawings are gone forever. My friends, Christ has not covered over our sins, he has washed them clean away never to be seen again. God never sees our sins again!
On the other hand, this world is a place where sin has a lasting effect. When I wash my children’s chalk drawings away and then they start to write on the blackboard wall immediately, like I tell them not to do, then the chalk is hard to get off. I have to scrub and scrub to get the hardened chalf off of the wall. This is what Christ does with the consequences of some sin. It takes a while but the long lasting effect is finally worn away. But with the consequences of other sins, this will not be wiped clean until we get to heaven. Unfortunately, with some sins, the results will not be removed until we pass through the pearly gates. But praise God that in heaven there will be no sin and the crud of sin will all be gone forevermore!