Only Jesus can Purify Us from Our Sins – (Proverbs 20:9)

Daily Bible Study
In this passage the author gives us a rhetorical question, the answer to which is obvious and that is no one. Everyone has sinned and every person will sin again. As the Bible tells us in Romans 3:10, "There is none righteous, no, not one." And that is indeed the point the writer is making. Because of our sin nature, we cannot purify ourselves before God, therefore we cannot save ourselves. There are no deeds a person can perform that will erase their own sins. There are no deeds a person can perform to erase past sins and earn their way into heaven. In addition, we have to understand that there are two kinds of sin. There is the sins of commission and the sins of omission. The sins of commission include the things we do, as well as the thoughts, motivations and desires behind the things we do. For example, if we did something nice for someone, but we did it for selfish reasons or for gain of any kind, then that deed is a sin in God's eyes. This is because God looks not just at what we do, but why we did it. Then there are the sins of omission. The sins of omission far outnumber the sins of commission. The sins of omission include those things we should do or be doing, but we don't. Sins of omission include many, many things like walking past someone in need and doing nothing. Another example is failing to give God thanks or give God the glory over a blessing we receive, or putting ourselves ahead of others. Sins of omission include all those little and big acts of kindness which we call good deeds. Things, which are in our power and ability to do, but we just don't do them.

And here is the hardest part, good deeds do not erase past sin. What we call good deeds are God's standard operating procedure for our day to day lives. They are not something extra and they certainly do not erase the guilt of past sin, regardless of how we feel about them. And one of the hardest things for us to understand, especially in this world today, is our feelings do not determine right or wrong. Our feelings do not determine reality or how we should treat others or behave. However, for the Christian there is hope. What is impossible for mankind is possible for God. Because of our faith in Christ, we are not lost. And that's the point the writer is making here in these passages. We cannot save ourselves, but we can place our faith in Christ Jesus our Lord for the remission of sins. And when we do, we become children of God, through our faith in Christ. Why? Because of God's mercy and the grace, which is only available through Jesus alone by faith in Him alone. And why Jesus? Because Jesus is the living God of Heaven, who stepped out of eternity and took on humanity. He lived a sinless life and died on the Cross to pay the price for our sins, a price we ourselves could not afford to pay. Therefore, we live by faith, adhering to the words of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Ephesian church, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." This one statement should make all people shout in praise and joy to the Lord! Because God did for us, what we could never do for ourselves.