Icyness

I am warm; I see the fire (Isaiah 44:16).

During the cold months, ice is a constant danger. It is easy to slip on ice and fall, resulting in bruises, sprains, or even broken bones. Driving on ice is hazardous; it is easy to lose control of your car, resulting in damage, injury or even death. And ice can disrupt your life even if you stay inside; accumulated ice can bring tree branches crashing down on your roof, and knock out electrical service for hours or even days.

Ice is hard, cold and slippery. When you think about it, ice is a pretty good illustration of what sin is like and how it affects our lives. Sin is slippery. When teasing someone, it is easy to slip and go too far. Sins committed occasionally can slip into regular habit. When you have something negative on your mind, it only takes one moment of carelessness to let some hurtful words slip from your mouth. The slipperiness of sin can get us into trouble before we realize it, or can stop ourselves.

Sin is hard. It toughens us to the point where we become unable to feel pleasure. People who abuse drugs find themselves taking larger and larger doses in order to get high; people who abuse sex find themselves experimenting with increasingly risky types of behavior. When sin hardens us, we become inflexible. Sin makes it hard for us to admit that we’re wrong or need to change; relationships are difficult because we’re unwilling to negotiate or compromise on things. Sin makes a hard life even harder.

And sin is cold. It chills hearts that should be warm with love; when sin dominates your life, it is hard to notice good things or appreciate them. The coldness of sin numbs our sensitivity towards others. We become so wrapped up with our hurt, our frustrations and our worries, that we are unable to sympathize with the pain of others, nor are we willing to set aside our concerns to help them with theirs. Sin chills our ability to relate to others.

Ice can be melted or chipped away, but only in small amounts and with a great deal of effort. The only complete solution for the problem of ice is the coming of spring. Sin in our world is just as pervasive as ice in winter; while sin can be melted or chipped away here and there by law enforcement or through participation in counseling, the only complete solution is found in Christ. Only the Son of God can warm our frigid hearts and free us from sin’s icy grip. It is Jesus who brings the warmth of God’s love to a world that is iced over by sin.