The Smell of a Fire

I was over at a friend’s house yesterday and noticed a smell from the house next door.  They had a fire that destroyed most of the structure back in October.  The fire was almost four months ago, but I could still smell the charred wood!  Years ago, another friend, Joel K. worked with a contractor to mitigate the results of house fires.  After cleaning out the materials in the home that had to be replaced, Joel sprayed the remaining structure with shellac to encapsulate the usable, charred wood.  The smell could not be removed, but it could be sealed in.  After the structure was sprayed, Joel went back with new insulation, sheet rock, wood trim, and finally paint.  The house looked and smelled brand new.  The charred smell was no longer detectable … but it was still there.  It was just sealed and covered.  So it is when we sin.  We are forgiven by the dear Lord, and He puts our sin away, never to be remembered by Him.  But the stench and the memory of that sin is still there in our memory.  Only the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ can mitigate the stench and the scars of our sins.  John said in I John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”  We are as pure as a newborn baby and forgiven by the grace of Jesus Christ!  Hey, have you experienced that grace of God in your life?  If not, you can experience it right now.  Let Jesus remove the stench of sin in your life!  Let Him make you brand new!