Have you been Washed?

Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of the water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. Ephesians 5:25-27

As a mother I remember the care I took in bathing my beautiful baby boys when they were infants, making sure to get soap and water in every crevice and wrinkle on their chubby baby legs, and also making sure they were well rinsed in every crevice. As my boys are growing into young men, I now have to trust them to bathe themselves. Now I try to remind them before they shower, “Use soap all over and wash in all places.” Other times I ask lovingly when they have finished, “Did you use soap all over?” Sometimes they have to return to the shower because they did not use soap. This is not an uncommon happening among children because I have heard the same kinds of stories from my friends and other mothers. I have even heard that some children will go as far as washing their arm but nothing else because they know their mother will smell their arm to see if they have bathed.

These bathing experiences bring the scripture above to mind. Do we use our “soap”, which is spending time in the word, to allow God to cleanse us in every wrinkle and crevice of our hearts? Do we allow His word to wash us clean as Christ wants? Or are we like some children, just showering without soap or just washing our arms only to live a life of hypocrisy?