Today I heard a story of a Princess. She was not always a Princess and had not always done Princessy things. (Not sure if that is a word but go with me folks)
A very handsome Prince had fallen in love with her and brought her to his kingdom and he loved her very much. The people of the kingdom loved her and approved of her greatly and so they married.
The people of the kingdom and all the kingdoms around loved the new Princess. She was beautiful and graceful and altogether lovely.
But some in the kingdom and neighboring kingdoms were not so happy with the new Princess. It wasn't the Princess so much that they weren't happy with so much as it was the Prince and his kingdom. They were jealous of the Prince and his kingdom and would do anything that would cause it disgrace.
Like I said, the Princess had not always been a Princess and had not always done things that were beautiful, graceful and altogether lovely. As a matter of fact, at least one time in her life she had done something so shocking, that if the Queen had found out before the royal wedding, she would surely have called off the wedding and halted it from ever happening. No matter how much the Prince had loved her he would not have been able to bring her into his kingdom if this atrocity had been made known.
But today, after the wedding, after the people of the kingdom and neighboring kingdoms had all had a chance to fall in love with her, even the Queen herself loved the new Princess, the evil people that wanted nothing more than to humiliate the Queen and her family, decided to let it be known what the Princess had done before she became the Princess.
For some reason, known only to the Princess, in her younger days, she had decided to take her clothes off and her bosoms were made known to the public. Quickly, someone who knew the young woman, took many a picture. It was scandelous. And now it was being made known.
Not only to the Queens family, but to the kingdom and to the neighboring kingdoms.
The Queen was very sad. The Prince was very sad. The Princess was very sad. The kingdom and surrounding kingdoms that loved her were sad.
But many looked at her and said, "That was not a very Princessy thing to do!"
The Princess was being judged on something that happened before she became royalty.
Wow! How much like that story can we relate to our own lives?
Those of us who call ourselves Christians at some point in our lives did things I am sure that were not very Christ like.
We were covered in sin. Clothed in filth. And Jesus in His ultimate mercy and grace covered us in His blood. Washing us white as snow.
We were now clothed in His righteousness. We have been adopted into the family of God. We are joint heirs with Jesus. We have been given fine linen to clothe ourselves in preparation of the supper of the Lamb.
So many times though people that knew us, or the devil, likes to throw in our face the times that we were still clothed in rags of filth.
They will let it be known to anyone and everyone all that we have done before. But because of our Royal Priesthood that we have been adopted into, the King of Kings will not even listen to the distortions, the accusations.
We now have liberty to stand and lift up holy hands, clean hands, and worship the one who has covered us in His righteousness.
No longer are we wearing our sad rags of sin and dispair, we have had a great garment exchange with the Lord and are now clothed in His righteousness. He paid the price for our new garments and has taken on our rags of sin and dispair. He turned our sad rags into glad rags.
Oh, but how sad it is for those who come to the Lord and put on the garments of righteousness without giving up their garments of sin.
They think that because they come to church and sing and pray and do all good deeds in front of the world that no one knows that they are still wearing their old garments underneath. The bad thing is, most times we don't.
But the word of God tells us that it when we choose to do that, clothe ourselves in righteousness or at least the appearance of righteousness, it is as filthy rags. It is like taking a bath and puting your dirty clothes back on and then putting clean clothes on over that. It doesn't matter how clean the clothes are, after a while the dirty clothes start making the clean clothes smell.
In 1st Samuel 16, although the passage does not address this point exactly, it does drive the point home. Man looks on the outward appearance. We can be fooled by what you put forth. On paper you can look like the best christian that ever walked the face of the earth. But really there is only one piece of paper that you better be concerned about, that is the Lambs book of life. Because although man looks on the outward appearance, God looks on the heart. All through His word He tells us "Nothing is hidden. Nothing is secret."
In Galatians 6 we are reminded that God will not be mocked.
I hope that the Queen in this story is as foriving as the God that I serve is.
I pray that she put the royal robe on her and says, "All is forgiven. That was before you were royalty. Though your atrocities be as scarlet they are washed white as snow." One can hope.
I know when the Bridegroom comes and I stand before the throne of God I do not want to be dressed in my rags, nor I do not want to be dressed in a form of righteousness over my filthy rags as in the story in Mathew. I want to be properly attired. I want to be dressed in fine linens. Arrayed in His splendor.
I want Him to look at me and say, "Enter in My good and faithful servant, for your name is written in the Lambs book of Life. Though your sins were scarlet they were washed white as snow."
1st John 3:1-10
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