Signpost: Institute of Faith Work & Economics - God covers our sin with a paint that matches
I had to do some touch up painting on the exterior siding of our house since we had some planks replaced recently. In my first attempt, I used a color my wife and I picked out called Grey Sanctuary. We thought it was going to be a good match. Not so much. It was too light.
We went back to Lowe’s, and they did a digitized color match using a small piece of the old siding that Linda found lying around. This morning, I painted over the light places and it blended in perfectly. You can’t easily tell what was painted and what was not.
The dramatic results of the two different paint colors I had used was a great illustration of the contrast between what it looks like when we try to cover our sin versus how it looks when God covers our sin. (I realize that human illustrations fall apart if we try to take them too far.) Maybe there isn’t any direct mention of the word “paint” in the Bible (at least not in the NIV that I use). However, the concept of covering is actually a predominant theme, so the function of paint as a covering might be helpful. I know the power of a good illustration to help God’s people see an abstract concept more clearly and how this greater understanding can be applied in their own life.
This got me to thinking more about what I reflected on a couple of weeks ago. In a previous article, I looked at Psalm 32:1-5. What stood out is the contrast between what God does and what man does with respect to sin. In verse 1, David boldly stated, “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.” (Emphasis added).