This is too important to gloss over.
Isaiah 64:6 informs us that our garments are polluted.
Let’s take a look at that in real life. You’ve worked hard.
Your clothes are dirty. You haven’t done laundry, so you rummage through the
dirty clothes and check for some that don’t smell.
I had a friend who traveled out West one summer. When you’re
alone, you don’t bathe much. The benefit is you aren’t as aware of your own
smell as others are.
If you’re a germ freak, you realize that once you wear a
shirt, you contaminate it. But since the germs aren’t big and ugly, we ignore
them.
The garments of our own good works are polluted. They are
because we’re stained from birth with a sinful nature. No matter how much we
wash, we can’t come clean. And even if we get better for a while, we just get
dirty again, right?
Some versions use the term “filthy rags” to describe these
clothes. Have you ever tried to clean anything with a filthy rag? Would you go
to a banquet dressed in filthy rags?
If you apply this analogy to dry cleaning, then you get a
picture of what it takes to clean us up. Like a rented tuxedo, we need help
from outside ourselves to become clean enough to go the marriage supper of the
Lamb. Extra effort is required to get the stains of sin out.
And only Jesus can do it.
The crazy thing He asks of us is to come to the banquet with
our rags on.
If you’re confused now, let’s see if we can clear the
clutter.
The only way to be invited to the dinner is to recognize
that you’re not worthy to come.
That’s the gospel. Come to Jesus as you are.
Without Christ, you’re wearing filthy rags. The outfit He
provides is His righteousness. This is the guarantee of the promise of complete
redemption that we’ll have in full in Heaven. Being clothed in Christ’s
righteousness is proof that God has cleared the books, paid all our debts to
Him, and stopped keeping records of everything we’ve done wrong.
That’s being dressed for success.
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