6 Words That Will Change Your LifeSample

As I mentioned earlier, I used to be a roofer. In general, it’s safe to say that roofing is a hot, sweaty, demanding job—one you definitely want to clean up from after a hard day’s work. But there’s one particular roofing crew assignment that beats all the others when it comes to getting dirty. It’s called being the “kettle guy.” That’s what we called the person who was assigned to work the tar kettle when we were putting on an asphalt roof.  The guy would melt down 100 pound kegs of tar in a kettle, and the tar would get on everything... especially the "kettle guy". When I was the “kettle guy,” I would leave work at the end of the day covered in tar and grime.  

During the time that I was working as a roofer, I was dating the girl who would later become my wife. I wouldn't dream of going out with her while I was filthy with the tar and grime from my day’s work, so I scrubbed to get cleaned up before I presented myself to her.  

Sometimes I think we try to take that same sort of approach with God. We think we can scrub off the filth of our bad deeds with our good deeds. The problem is that with God, even our good deeds come up short. Which is why Isaiah says, “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” 

Have you ever done something nice for someone and then given yourself a mental pat on the back for your good deed? Maybe you’ve even found your thoughts drifting in a direction that goes something like this… 

• “Well, that should make God happy with me…”  
• “I’m glad I did that. It makes me feel good about myself…” 
• “I’ll bet that impressed them! Now they know what a nice person I am…” 

Those kinds of thoughts have one thing in common: a self-righteous attitude. Because even our “good deeds” are tainted by an inner core of selfishness that bleeds into everything we think, say and do, so that compared against the standards of our holy, pure and perfect God, our BEST efforts measure up to nothing more than filthy rags.  

We have absolutely no grounds to approach God and enter into a personal relationship with Him on the basis of our own efforts. But through the work of Christ on the cross, God washes us clean and embraces us with open arms. 

As you go through your day, every time you wash your hands, think about your conversation with God and about being washed clean by Jesus.