Kimberly is devastatingly sweet. Her likability is only outdone by her fashion sensibility. Without fail she exemplifies her profession every time I see her—she is a stage designer. She became friends with my wife, Laura and they regularly enjoyed conversations and walks between our apartments. Their friendship opened Kimberly to not only share her joy, but also her pain. Though her husband, Sean was a pastor they only sporadically attended our church. Actually, Sean came once. Soon we discovered the weight of certain sins were too much for church leadership to help them carry. They were asked to leave. Kimberly’s wondedness was complicated by her community’s unwillingness to extend grace and understanding. Our friend felt dirty and damaged.

Like many of us, Kimberly felt shame. Her husband’s indiscretion clouded her vision of her God-given worth as his image bearer (Genesis 1:27). When we are victimized by the sin of others we feel dirty. We often feel exposed because someone we trust and love tells us a false narrative of our value—with or without words. Kimberly felt unlovely because her husband betrayed her and her church abandoned her. By no guilt of our own we can feel unclean and damaged because of others’ sins.

In response to such devastating evil, we hide and try to clean ourselves. We attempt to wash away our shame. We attempt to erase our feelings, memories, and experiences of pain in many ways, but often when it comes to shame we do what Kimberley did—we try to graduate past or minimize our pain. We believe we can silence the voices of a damaging narrative in our heads by writing a new story. Kimberly attempted to replace her shame with a bubbly personality, clothes, and self-protection by distancing herself from the church and Christians. In her case (and many others) such a response is perfectly understandable, but regretfully ineffective.

Jon works really hard. But as he sat in my office—dress shirt unkemptly tucked and lose around the collar—the work was obviously killing him. Weariness shook his voice as he described the aim of his life. He wanted to surpass his dad’s success in business but not become his dad in character. Jon’s dad was unfaithful to his mom. It tore their family apart. Jon was well on his way to reaching beyond his dad’s wealth, but a series of one-night-stands and multiple unhealthy relationships left him unable to embrace faithfulness, even though he was praying, reading his Bible, and going to church. Six months prior to sitting in my office he got engaged and his fiancé had no idea he was still finding it impossible to “settle down” in his heart and mind and behavior. He told me he felt like he was climbing a ladder that never ran out of rungs. Jon felt broken and tired.

Jon is not alone. Many people feel ill equipped to stop sinning in particular ways. Our depravity and restlessness is a result of addiction, a perpetual rebellion against the goodness and order of God. Every sin makes a promise it can’t keep—yet we keep going back. Jon needed to be restored. However his state of uncleanness was a result of an ongoing self-seeking heart and guilty actions (Jeremiah 17:9). Jon’s sin and lack of repentance made him unclean.

When we come face-to-face with the evil in our hearts, we, like Jon, try to clean ourselves. Often we just try harder. Whether we’re running from a past or a parent, we run in our own energy in order to start fresh and will ourselves to holiness and purity. However Jon was figuring out just a few months from his wedding, he couldn’t make himself clean. You see in our guilt we don’t just have problems we are the problem (Ephesians 2:1). Therefore we no more than reframe the problem (us) as the solution (us). But we can’t be our own restoration plan.

Samuel loves theology. In fact, he was born to be a pastor. His affection for community is only slightly overshadowed by his comfort on stage. And whether he’s with people or in front of them he loves talking about Jesus. His understanding of faith is informed deeply by an appreciation for phrases like “total depravity” and “original sin”. This is of course tempered with a stated love for the redemption of Jesus. However, Samuel’s articulation of the devastating effect of sin is often the most memorable bit of information from any conversation with him or any sermon he preaches. Samuel is more than aware of his spiritual filth and that of everyone else.

There’s a deep seeded issue in Samuel’s soul. In fact the subtly of his folly is often overlooked—by him and others. What’s more we often think the aim of people like Kimberly and Jon should be to become Samuel—someone more aware of what the Bible says about their filth and sin and brokenness. To be sure there’s great merit in gaining knowledge of our sin and the biblical narrative of our inequity. However knowledge only inflates an ego that is unmatched with a revived heart (1 Corinthians 8:1). You see, Samuel knows much about the theology behind his fallen state, but he regularly fails to admit his understanding of that doesn’t save him. I know this, because I am Samuel.

People like me try to get clean by growing in knowledge and Christian responsibility. We modern-day Pharisees suppose ourselves to be on the ecclesiastic varsity team because we preach for a living and have words published on Desiring God. However supposing to make myself righteous through a holy accumulation of spiritual activities and achievements only polishes my white washed tomb (Matthew 23:27). While inwardly, sin continues to damage my heart.

Kimberly, Jon, and I are all aware of sin. Our folly and pain are inescapable. Kimberly believes she is damaged by sin. Jon thinks he is trapped by sin. And I know (cognitive) I am born in sin. All of us realized a foundational truth of our corruption—sin is an issue writ with permanent ink on our hearts (Mark 7:20-21). In varying degrees we all know this stain creates distance with God (Isaiah 59:2). And so we try to get clean. The bad news we have all discovered is we can’t clean ourselves. The good news is Jesus can.

Firstly, Jesus makes us clean by living a perfect human life. Jesus must be both human and perfect in order to cleanse us. If the Son of God never sinned but also never became a human being then there’s nothing fresh to celebrate. Conversely if Jesus was “God with us” but failed to live a perfectly then he would have had the same stain as us. But as a human being Jesus never broke a single law in his thoughts, affections, attitude, or actions (John 1:14, 2 Corinthians 5:21). Therefore the writer of Hebrews could encourages us that, “we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus was holy and therefore the solitary candidate to make us clean because he was clean.

Secondly, Jesus makes us clean by paying the penalty of our guilt and shame. If Jesus merely died of old age or some natural occurrence we wouldn’t be made clean. Therefore Jesus’ death was substitutionary—he died willfully for sinners (Romans 5:8). We were destined by the stain of our soul for eternal separation from the holy God, but Jesus graciously took our punishment. That’s why Peter writes, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). We are cleansed not because of what we have done. Rather in his death Jesus takes our punishment and takes away our guilt and shame (Romans 3:24-25, Titus 3:5).

Thirdly, Jesus makes us clean by his blood. In his first epistle John paints a picture of walking in the light as a result of Christ’s work; he writes, “the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Blood is a euphemism for the sacrificial death of Jesus. From a biblical lens something washed in blood is purified. And the pure, undefiled blood of Jesus is said to wash away our stain of sin and make us white as snow (Isaiah 1:18). In other words the shedding of Jesus’ blood makes purity and forgiveness possible (Hebrews 9:22). Jesus’ blood washes us clean.

If you share Kimberly’s story, by faith Jesus washes away your shame and makes you clean (Romans 8:1).

If you share Jon’s story, by faith Jesus purifies your guilty conscience and makes you clean (Hebrews 9:14).

If you share my story, by faith Jesus gives you a new righteousness and makes you clean (2 Corinthians 5:21).

As washed, purified, and new people we can enjoy life with God. And this is not a reality we should leave at the moment of conversation. This gospel remedy is not merely the message of our salvation but the method of sanctification. Each time we are tempted by sin or become victims of sin, Jesus continues to make us clean by faith. In other words the way out of death becomes our way of life—the gracious and cleansing work of Jesus. Enjoying fresh union with Christ and restored relationship with the Father is a work of the Spirit at the start and all the way to glory. We are made clean and kept clean by Jesus.