Back in my grade school days you were told to clean the blackboards if you didn’t do your work or obey the teacher. Every time you did something wrong (breaking the rules) our teacher would write your name in the upper right hand corner of the blackboard. Mine was usually up there for talking and I had to stay in at recess and clean the blackboards. Cleaning those blackboards is somewhat like sinning. Every time we break God’s rules or fail to obey Him it is recorded in books in Heaven, (Revelation 20:12). The only way I could get the blackboards clean was with a special cleanser. Just as the only way we can get forgiveness from our sins (removed from the books in heaven) is by the blood of Jesus, (Matthew 26:28). Before we cleaned the blackboards she would review the events of the day and point out what we did wrong and we had to acknowledge what we did. This is somewhat similar to what the Bible calls confession (acknowledging or admitting) of sin. In 1John 1:7-10 it says that we must confess or admit to our specific sins before we can get forgiveness from them. It was so nice to see a clean, fresh blackboard with no names (especially mine) on it. Let us start the new year with a renewed fresh start with the Living God.

See you in Church next Sunday.

Brother J