Preparing for Christmas part 3

"Come now, let us reason together," 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)

Jenny was excited to help her mom decorate the tree. Like most four-year-olds, she would help for a while and then get distracted. Trying to keep the little girl focused on what they were doing, Jenny’s mom said, "my favorite decoration is the snow-white tinsel—it just makes everything beautiful."

As they decorated, mother and daughter sometimes had to step over Rusty the family dog. He didn’t mean to get in the way; he was a good dog, most of the time. But that Saturday afternoon was an exciting day with all the activity and things to sniff. Although he was housebroken, Rusty got so excited that he had an accident, right there on the living room floor.

"Rusty!" Jenny’s mom shouted. Angrily, she stormed out of the room to get her cleaning supplies. When she return, the scene in the living room stopped her in her tracks and made her break out in giggles. Jenny had covered Rusty’s mess with a heap of snow-white tinsel. Clearly Jenny had been listening when her mom said, "it just makes everything beautiful."

Many people like to put some snow-white tinsel on the tree; it creates the same dramatic contrast that real snow brings to the trees outside. Why do we like the cold white stuff so much that we look for ways to decorate our homes with it? Part of the reason is that snow changes how everything looks. With just a little snow, the world seems transformed into an entirely different place. Tinsel and snow fill areas that are bare and discolored. The whiteness covers up imperfection, and gives everything an appearance that is soft and peaceful.

God says, Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Those are wonderful words to hear as we celebrate Advent and Christmas. It is easy to think of Snow-White Tinsel as a symbol of Christ. Like white snow or tinsel, Jesus changes everything; He can even change scarlet sin and make it white.

Scarlet is a bright, garish red. It is a type of color that can easily be overwhelming. If you were to enter a room whose walls were all painted scarlet, it would quickly strain your eyes. If that scarlet room had a mirror, when you looked into it even the whites of your eyes would be tinged with red. Some of you reading this might be familiar with Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter. Set in New England 300 years ago, it tells of a woman who cheated on her husband and was made to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her clothing to mark her as an adulteress. The letter "A" was in scarlet to make sure everyone in town could easily see her disgrace.

Our scarlet sin is a glaring reality that is impossible to hide. It shows itself in our thoughts—thoughts that waste time in endless daydreaming, that are consumed with plotting revenge, that find pleasure in the discomfort and humiliation of others. It shows itself in our words—words that make unreasonable demands, put other people down, and distort the truth. It shows itself in how we act—ignoring people who need our help, wasting money on luxuries, and taking foolish chances with our health. We look at the law of God and we see failure—failure to love the Lord above everything else, and failure to love our neighbors as ourselves. Our sin is a redness that discolors our appearance and paints a letter of scarlet shame on our clothing that is impossible to anyone to ignore.

TV reality shows are quite popular these days. What if a camera crew injected you with truth serum, asked you to reveal you most secret thoughts and desires, then aired the result on national television? Just the idea makes us squirm with discomfort. But God knows it all. Nothing escapes Him, and He will punish those who sin. Paul says that the Lord will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts (1 Corinthians 4:5).

As we shudder at these strong words of Law, we also need to hear powerful words of Gospel. Deep down inside, we know who we are and what we have done—the thought of it all being brought to light makes us want to crawl into a hole so that no one can see us. And so we breathe a huge sigh of relief when we hear these comforting words from God: I am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more (Isaiah 43:25). This short verse is rich in the power of God’s love and mercy. For those who feel terrible about their sins, the words and remembers your sins no more are like a breath of fresh air to a person who is drowning. These are words that we need to hear over and over again.

Even though we have offended God with our scarlet sin and deserve His eternal punishment, He has decided to blot out our transgressions. To blot something out is to cover it up completely and permanently; it’s like making a mistake in ink, then covering it up using White Out. Imagine a thick book that tells the story of who you are and what you have done, down to the finest detail. As you leaf through that book, you find that it is written in red ink—every moment of your life has been made scarlet by sin. Although God does not owe us anything, He chose to blot out every speck of red through the saving work of His beloved Son. Because Jesus lived a perfect life for you and me, and because He suffered the punishment for our sins on the cross, Christ has the power and the authority to blot out all record of sin that is written in your book. By grace, through faith in all that Jesus has accomplished, your sins are remembered no more.

In the last book of the Bible, John uses picture language to describe the head and hair of Jesus; he says that they appeared white like wool, as white as snow (Revelation 1:14). The color white represents holiness. The head and its hair are symbols of authority and strength. Put these elements together, and you see Jesus as the holy one who has the authority and strength to make others holy as well. Because He is both God and man, His holy life was lived for our benefit, and He is able to touch us and make our scarlet sin as white as snow.

Bleach is used when washing clothes to remove stains and color, leaving the garment white. In baptism, the Holy Spirit applies bleach to us—the bleach of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Miraculously, Christ is applied to us in such a way that our scarlet sin becomes as white as wool. In 1st Corinthians chapter six Paul writes, you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Having been washed in the name of Christ, we are bleached clean of sin and are regarded as children of God. We have been clothed with the righteousness of Christ, so that when God the Father looks at us, He no longer sees our sin but only the holiness of His Son. We are members of the great multitude that John sees in the book of Revelation chapter seven: These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

But these words from Revelation speak of more than just hope—they also warn of trouble. These are they who have come out of the great tribulation. The Christian lifestyle is not easy. As long as we live in this world, there is constant danger from scarlet sin. It confronts us everywhere we turn; it haunts our thoughts and twists our desires. Sin clamors for our attention and results in many sleepless nights. Sin causes stress and tribulation every day of your life. Thankfully, God sends His Spirit to give you strength, and in baptism you have Christ’s promise to forgive every red mistake that makes you hang your head in shame.

The book of Revelation also warns of a scarlet beast. On his back rides a prostitute who is dressed in purple and scarlet. These colors symbolize royalty and sin. The beast and prostitute are opposed to God’s authority and purity. They hold up sin as something to enjoy and be proud of; they invite God’s people to embrace evil and call it ‘good.’ We must not listen to their lies or desire the pleasures that they offer; instead, we need to make prayer a daily part of our routine, confessing our sins to Christ, begging for His mercy, and seeking His guidance. Only Jesus can save us from the scarlet beast and the prostitute dressed in garish red.

The days ahead will not be easy for the people of God. The struggles and tribulation will only get worse as we get closer and closer to the end of time. But we have hope to cling to; Jesus says, Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer…Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life (Revelation 2:10). Sin and Satan are terrible adversaries, but Christ overcame them on the cross; so long as we trust in the Savior, they do not have the final authority over us.

A day is coming when the Lord will call you from this world to stand before Him in judgment. When God looks at you, what will He see? He will see white, because you will be covered with righteous purity of God’s Son, as Isaiah tells us (chapter 61:10): he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness. That is why Snow-White Tinsel is a good symbol for Christ. Our scarlet sin has been covered over by the perfect whiteness of our Savior. And so, whenever you look at Snow-White Tinsel during this advent and Christmas season, remember that it is Christ who makes us clean. He covers up our scarlet sin and makes us white as snow. He makes everything beautiful.