Warts.  The word itself makes me cringe.  They’re ugly. Even the word sounds ugly.  No doubt most of us have dealt with them at some point in our life.  I didn’t expect them to pop up on my itty bitty boys, though.  But they did.  When my oldest was about 3 years old, a couple warts popped up on his chest and neck.  I thought, “Hmm, that’s odd.”  Those few multiplied into a small army peppering his upper neck down to his upper thighs.  Then the baby got them too.  His were primarily on his back, and there were a lot of them. 

It turns out they weren’t really warts, but pox from a virus called molluscum contagiosum.  It’s not some easy-come-easy-go virus.  It can last for a few months to a few years.  The warts didn’t bother the boys other than occasionally getting snagged.  Ouch!  After over a year of no improvement we were referred to a dermatologist for treatment.

Our appointment was still about a week out when I was snuggling with the youngest.  This was a rare moment.  He was the kind of toddler you just wanted to pick up and squeeze like a teddy bear.  But he wanted none of it.  He was perfectly happy on his own.  So, I was delighting in this precious snuggle time.  We were rocking in the recliner.  He had his shirt off and his head was resting on my shoulder.  We were heart to heart.  It was a peaceful moment of pure motherly bliss.  I tenderly scratched his back, being careful as to not snag one of the many warts.

In that quiet, blissful moment a disturbing thought invaded my mind.  It said, “You must not love him as he is covered in all those nasty warts.”  I was indignant in my spirit and adamantly replied in my thoughts, “Of course I love him!  I love him with all my heart!  Those warts aren’t him.  They are on him, but that’s not who he is.  Oh, if I could rid him of them I would.”  Once I finished my offended rant, I sensed a nod in reply.  It was a gesture or feeling that seemed to say, “There. Now you understand.”  I was still indignant.  I responded with a rush of outraged thoughts all within a split second, “What do you mean, ‘Now you understand.’?  I don’t understand at all!  That was the most preposterous statement I have ever heard about not loving my child!  Oooohhhhhh…  now I get it.”

Sin is like warts.  Sin is a real problem we all experience.  Sin is ugly, but sin does not make you unlovable to God, even if you’re covered in it.  You are a treasured creation of God.  He loves you deeply with all His heart.  He knew you before you sinned, before the virus took over.  He knows you better than you know yourself.  Because honestly, we can’t picture ourselves without sin.  We can’t entirely grasp what that looks like.  But God can.  His desire is to rid you of that ugly sin, to remove it completely.  He provided a way to heal you through Jesus Christ.  But like a disease, the sick person has to choose to go to the doctor and accept healing.

Satan is known as the accuser and the deceiver.  He loves to convince us that we are bundled with our sin, inseparable.  He delights in nitpicking and condemning, and is really giddy when we beat ourselves up into a state of despair.  He tells us that we are defined by our sin, making us unlovable and ugly: worthless.  His specialty is taking a bit of truth and twisting it just enough so that it is still believable but wedges us further from God.

So what is the truth?  Sin separates us all from having a close amicable relationship with God.  God hates sin.  God loves and absolutely adores you.  You are not sin.  Keep the two separate.  You do sin, but you are not sin.  Sin is removable through Christ. 

Next time Satan is beating you up about your failures – you tell him the TRUTH! 
You are loved. 
You are not sin. 
Jesus is ridding you of every last bit.

Meditate on these verses this week.  At least read Psalm 103, even if you’ve never looked up one of these references before.  There are links embedded in the references.  Simply click and read.
-> Psalm 103
-> 1 John 1:5-2:2
-> Psalm 86
-> Micah 7:18-20
-> Ephesians 3:14-21

Originally posted January 21, 2019.