"keep It Clean"

Keep It Clean Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

• Dirt, dust, pollution, filth, trash are a part of our everyday life.

• As a result we use soap to clean ourselves up the bible has verses that share the use of soap in Scriptures. Job 9: 30Even if I washed myself with soapB and my hands with washing soda, 31you would plunge me into a slime pit so that even my clothes would detest me.

• Jeremiah 2:22Although you wash yourself with soda and use an abundance of soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me," declares the Sovereign LORD.

• Malachi 3:2But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap.

1. Look at the Importance of Soap

• William Osler, was one of the founders of Johns Hopkins Hospital who is sometimes called the “Father of Modern Medicine,” said, “Soap and water and common sense are the best disinfectants.”

• Soap kills germs, dirt, grime, oil, Soap keeps our skin healthy, Soap avoids food born illnesses, and prevents infection

2. Isaiah basically tells Israel you need to keep it Clean

• God tells Israel because of their sins, “When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood.”

• And that’s followed by this instruction, “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil ...”

• God is saying they are being all religious but not righteous at all. Through Isaiah, God notes that people with power are carefully observing religious festivals and worship of God, but they are also running corrupt court systems that favor those with bribe money.

• They are oppressing the poor and leaving orphans and widows to fend for themselves. So God says, “Learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.”

3. We can keep it clean because Change, Transformation, is Possible

• Clean is possible, and so the Lord says, “Come now, let us argue it out: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool” (v. 18).

• They can use a Spiritual Cleansing “Don’t do the wrong thing do the Right thing”

• Why did they need to be told that? As the people of Israel, they had the laws of Moses and knew of the covenant between God and Israel. They surely knew already that God wanted them to “hate evil and love good” (Amos 5:15), avoid what is wrong, and embrace what is right and to pursue righteousness and flee wickedness. So why weren’t they doing it? Like us I guess we know but do we do

4. We can keep it clean by taking a Spiritual Bath Bath me in the blood and wash me

• The old nature need washed and become new nature

• , we make up our own rules; We lower our standards; We decide that we’re flawed and that’s okay; and We rationalize or make up excuses for our behavior.

• How will we Keep it clean? do the right thing — the moral thing,

• Here is some soap that will keep us Clean

• Bath me in Joy, Soak in Peace, saturate yourself in Longsuffering,

• flood yourself in kindness, Be washed in Faithfulness,

• like calgon take me away in gentleness, wash me in self-control,

• and Bath me in love over and over again.