“‘Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.'” — Isaiah 1:18
My experience with swimming as a child was not a good one, so swimming is not one of my hobbies as an adult. But I constantly find myself in a swimming pool, as I conduct water baptism for new believers. In my several visits, I have noticed there are always bathrooms close to the swimming pool, and swimmers always take a shower before they go into the swimming pool.
Out of curiosity, I went searching to figure out why swimmers take a pre-swim shower. And I found out that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise swimmers to shower with soap before entering the swimming pool. “When swimmers shower away impurities, they help reduce the risk of waterborne illnesses.” So, taking a pre-swim shower does not make someone swim better, but is a precaution against illnesses.
This definition left me wondering about the phrase “shower away impurities.” This is exactly what many of us tried to do before coming to Christ. We wanted to shower away our iniquities and come without any impurities. We really wanted to stop sinning before we came to Christ for salvation. Although a shower can take away the swimmer’s impurities, nothing that can take away the sinner’s sin like jumping straight into the pool of salvation.
A sinner cannot stop sinning until he experiences salvation through Christ Jesus. There are many sinners who are waiting until they stop sinning before they come to Christ. They fail to realize that if they can stop sinning without Christ, they don’t need Christ in the first place. God is not waiting for the sinners to shower away their iniquities before they come to Him. He wants them to come as they are, with all their iniquities and impurities.
The pool of salvation cannot be contaminated by the impurities and the iniquities of sinners. God is waiting for sinners to come as they are and jump straight into His pool without a pre-swim shower. As Christians, we must share this with others. Will you speak to someone this week about their salvation?
— Rotimi Oluwaseyitan
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