“Christ Leads Everyone As New! (C.L.E.A.N)"

By Ramesh C.Reddy
Pittsburgh Standard

June 17, 2008

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Observation:
I asked myself what interaction Jesus has with the crowds?

Jesus had four points of interaction with the crowd:

1. Listen to me everyone,

2. Understand this….

3. Nothing outside a man can make him ‘unclean’ by going into him.

4. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him ‘unclean’

Interpretation:
I asked myself what Jesus meant by points of interaction 3 & 4?
The answer was revealed to the disciples who took the initiative and asked Jesus about the parable.

“After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'? For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.") (Mark 7:17-19, NIV)

I asked myself the significance of Jesus’ statement?
Jesus was telling his disciples that the food they eat will not make them unclean but they should be more concerned about what goes into the heart for whatever goes into their stomach comes out of their body but what goes into the heart stays there until it is cleaned.

Implications:
I saw important implications for my own life. Jesus was declaring all foods Kosher and blessed by Him. When Jesus declared all foods “clean”, Jesus was showing His disciples that He has the authority to do that. That is so awesome to know for God is the One that gave the law and it is God-incarnate that is speaking to the disciples to make them realize there are more things to be concerned about when it comes to ‘cleanliness’ or ‘un-cleanliness’ than the food that goes into a person’s body.

It was important for me to realize that Jesus started addressing the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law first regarding their questions of ‘cleanliness’ regarding His disciples. They felt that the disciples did not wash their hands as tradition states so if they touched any food, that food would become automatically unclean. However, Jesus told the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law that the ritual they did for the sake of keeping their own traditions had nothing to do with whether a person remains clean or unclean. It is not even the food that goes into them that makes them unclean

Jesus is more concerned with my heart than what I eat or don’t eat. However, Jesus still does not want any of us to engage in gluttony thinking we can eat whatever we want.

I ask you now dear friend, what makes you clean in life?
Dear friend, what makes us clean is not the food we eat according to God’s standards but what is in our heart. It is the heart life that can pollute us if we are not careful where we have our thoughts focused on. The best way to be clean is inviting Jesus Christ into our heart and having Him clean it out for us. He will do that for us!  When we mess up or make boo boos, He can vacuum our heart for us and bring it back to where it should be as we confess and repent of our sin.

Friend, He wants to do that for us. He wants to make us clean and renew a right spirit within us. However, we need to ask Jesus to clean us His way. It will not always be easy but Jesus is the only Way to be truly clean.

For only Jesus can make us clean the way we need to be clean. Even a shower from a earthly point of view won't make us clean on the inside though a shower is important for hygienic purposes. It is only having Jesus that will make us clean.

This is because only Jesus has the power to cleanse our wicked hearts of its wrong desires, inclinations, lustful thoughts, wicked aspirations, etc. When we have these things in our hearts, we can never be clean.

You may say that you don't have wrong desires, inclinations to do wrong, lustful thoughts, wicked aspirations, etc but live to  serve and love your fellow human being and God.

Is that so?

I have bad news and good news for you. The bad news is that you and I are wicked to the core. When sin entered the world through Adam and Eve, that sin began to infect all human beings from their offspring and on. There has not been anyone that has not been affected by sin except the sinless Lamb of God.

This means you and I very never be clean because of sin in us. This means this sin will rule us and guide us, taking us to places and situations that we will regret later on. Even when we have been good 99% of the time by the world's standard's, all it takes is 1% or less of the time to mess up and I assure you that we will mess up.

God knows that and told the prophet Isaiah to the effect that all our good deeds are like filthy rags to the Lord. That is a powerful statement to be made that all the good that is done is still seen as filthy rags. A filthy rag is unclean. Also, God reminds us in Psalm 24 and Romans 3 that 'All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God'

This means we are unclean and can never approach the throne of grace and find help in time of need if it were not for the Gospel.

Yes friend, the Gospel means Good News.  It is because of the Good News you and I can be made clean and also feel clean on the inside. When we hear the Good News and put it into practice, our lives will be changed and transformed. Putting into practice means 'Walking in the Spirit and we will not fulfill the lust of the flesh' 

Jesus offers this Good News to you because He is the Good News.

While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us!

Jesus did that for us upon the altar of the cross to set us free from the bondage of the bad news that corrupts us, captivates us, and capsizes us in the form of sin.

No amount of soap could clean us on the inside as we get ourselves cleaned on the outside. We can rub our body for the dirt to go away, for the un-cleanliness to go away, for the stench of the stink to go away covering ourselves with the smell and aroma of the soap making us clean on the outside but that will not work for the stench of sin on the inside.

There are secrets sins people are guilty of that only they know but the Word of God says whatever is done in the dark will come out in the light. We cannot hide ourselves and our stinking heart from God or even people, for eventually whatever is in our heart will pour out in speech. This will confirm again how wicked we are because of sin.

But God made a way for us through Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ came to clean us on the inside and give us a freshness of smell on the inside from the stench of sin. This means no matter what your sin is or has been, Jesus can clean you with His solution. His solution is the most powerful solution that cannot be bought with money, gold, silver, bargaining, bartering, etc. He alone has the rights to this solution and offers it to you and me for free to clean us.

I am talking about the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross at Calvary for you and me and came back to life to save you and me so we can be made clean.  Yes friend, Jesus will clean us no matter how many times we mess up when we turn to Him and ask Him to clean us and wipe our slates clean with His precious cleansing blood.

Now when God looks at us, He does not see the stench of sin covering over us but the precious blood of Jesus Christ covering over us. We have been cleaned by the most powerful solution.

For that to happen, you and I need to acknowledge that we are sinners and in need of a Savior who alone can free us. Whether we are rich or poor, academically focused, career focused, etc, we all need to be freed from this stench of sin by asking Jesus to clean us. When we come to Jesus and bring our sin before Him, He will clean us and make us white a freshly fallen snow even though our sins are red as crimson and make us white as wool even though our sins are scarlet red.

Yes friend, He will but won't force Himself upon us. If you have clothes that are dirty, you either take them to the dry cleaner, laundry, etc to get them clean with detergent soap but you can also have someone else do the cleaning for you.

Well, when it comes to our heart, it works in a similar way but a major difference. You have to bring yourself to Jesus and ask Jesus to clean you to be cleaned. Others can take you to Jesus but Jesus won't clean you unless you acknowledge your sinful condition before the Lord and realize that Jesus alone has the answer to be right with God.

Confess and repent of your sin and accept Jesus Christ into your heart to begin the transformation. He will my friend. Believe in your heart that God Christ died for your sin, was buried, and  raised on the 3rd day  from the dead and He sits at the right Hand of the Father to receive all those who come to Him.

This means you too no matter where you have been or what you have done, He will not abandon you. No one, no matter how their sin looks to the world is a prisoner in Christ for Christ forgives all sin no matter what sin it is when we come to Him as we are and ask for Christ to transform us.

Jesus gives us wonderful promises in John 14, John 15, and John 16 to claim and prays a wonderful prayer even for us in John 17. You should come to Jesus and be clean.

Maybe you are already a believer in Christ but have backslid and done things you feel the Lord will be ashamed of  you but you need to know, 'There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, for the life giving power of the Spirit has freed us from the law of sin and death'

This means no matter how many times you have messed up, you can go to Jesus in sincerity of heart and find help in time of need. Christ can set you free from any bondage so do not give up whatever you are going through.

Satan will make you feel that you are not worthy to be a child of God. That is true for none of us is worthy on our own but because of what Jesus already did for us, we can confidently approach Jesus to have a personal relationship with Him and be transformed.

Won’t you do that friend?

Won’t you allow Jesus to come in and transform your heart?

When that happens, you will come to see the differences between the heart that does not have Jesus ruling and the heart that has Jesus as the title deed owner of our lives. I know I want Jesus to be in me and guide and lead me. He has already through the years and when I have messed up and gone to Him, He has cleaned out my messy rooms. He can do that for you too. Yes, He can friend!

May you come to realize Christ leads everyone as new!

“Christ Leads Everyone As Now!” (C.L.E.A.N)/”What makes you C.L.E.A.N in your life?”

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you so much you wanted the crowds to listen to you and understand, for you had important things to tell them. Later on, when your disciples asked you about it, you explained to them to help them see the food they eat is not what makes them unclean. Thank you so much Jesus, you love us so much and want to be there for us. Thank you for dying on the cross and coming back to life to save us. Help me Oh Lord and each of us to hold on to you. Thank you for your cleansing blood to wash us whiter than snow. When a carpet is dirty, people use carpet shampoo to clean it out. When our heart is dirty with yuckiness, we have your blood to cleanse and us make us pure as we allow you to clean us. So, Jesus right now please forgive us all our sins and clean us Oh Lord. Create in us a clean  heart Oh Lord and renew a right spirit within us. We are sorry for the times we have messed up! We need your help. Thank you for helping us. We ask you now Jesus to come into our heart and make our heart your home. Live in us Jesus and help us to live for you and serve you the rest of the days of our lives. Thank you so much Jesus for doing that. We entrust our lives to thee and acknowledge thee as our Lord and Personal Savior! Thank you for being our Lord and Personal Savior! Thank you for hearing our prayers and answering us! In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer will! Amen!

Prayer:
Jesus, I thank you for being the Bread of Life. You are the Living Bread of my life. Thank you for coming from Heaven and giving your life for the life of the world. You sacrificed yourself for humanity. Thank you Lord when we eat of you symbolically making you part of our life, digesting what you teach us by following you, we can be living Eternally, and the fruit that comes will reflect and resemble your life. I want that Father God. I want that Lord Jesus! I want that Holy Spirit! I know of a lot of people who partake of Holy Communion where the bread represents your body broken for their sin and the juice represents your blood shed for their sin. When we partake of Holy Communion, we are reminded that we are remembering you. I want to remember you always Lord Jesus. But for me to remember you always, I need to know you and acknowledge everything you said you are. So right now I acknowledge that you are my Lord and Personal Savior who died and rose again to give me life from sin. So right now, I come to you and say how sorry I am for my sin and living a life on my own. I repent of my sin and ask you to forgive me of my sin with your cleansing blood which I accept. Wash me and I will be clean from this infection of sin. Come Lord Jesus and please become part of my life as you live in me and I will live for you. I thank you Jesus for coming into my heart and making my heart your home. Thank you for living in me Jesus and I will live for you and serve you the rest of the days of my life. I do need your Spirit to reside in me and work in me and through me so I surrender all that I am and will be to you. Whatever your will is for me, please give me the strength and willingness to bear it and rejoice in you. Thank you so much Jesus. I thank you Jesus for becoming my Lord and Personal Savior. I thank you Jesus you have heard my prayer and have answered me. I thank you that I am your child Oh God. I thank you for becoming my only Way to Eternal Life. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!