The Land Rover Defender is an off-road machine many people in America have never heard of. Yet, it is iconic in much of the world as a vehicle of supreme capability and exceptional durability.
After 67 continuous years in production, the Defender owes apologies to no one.
This machine is designed to be thrown into the direst of situations and come out with its occupants fully intact on the other side. It might be mud splattered, coated with grime, and battle worn, but its occupants will reach their destination safely and securely. It’s Defender tradition.
Other off-road vehicles, by definition, are only imitators of the Defender.
Even so, line up a battered and trail-worn Defender, still wearing its mud and dust, against half-a-dozen other off-road machines, and they begin to carry the same look. We see the dirt, not the machine underneath.
We’re the same in our Christian walk. Life is a rough trek through dusty deserts and squalid swamps. We get beat up along the way. Pretty soon it becomes difficult to tell us from the worldly knockoffs at our sides. People see us and only notice our scrapes and bruises. They see what life has done to us, not the provenance of Christ, the cross, and our salvation underneath.
We need to let God’s angels minister to us and wash the grime of the world away.
Let’s look at three verses in Revelation.
Revelation 22:14 talks about taking out our soap bucket and water hose, and washing the grime of life away.
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.”
Revelation 21:11 tells of the home that will welcome us in.
“Having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.”
Revelation 21:2 says preparation is important to our Lord.
“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”
Land Rover’s Defender hasn’t become different just because it’s covered with grime. Kick its wheels, pound its fenders, and pull it into low range, and its ability to do its stuff hasn’t changed. It’s simply a matter of cleaning it up, and it will stand out anew like the masterpiece of machinery it is.
Hebrews 1:14 tells us:
“Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”
We’re not alone as we walk through life, and when we feel grimy and abused, we can rest assured that the filth is not us. We are still God’s masterpiece underneath. All he needs to do is polish our fenders, and we are recognizable once more as his.
We can trust our ministering angels to help us shine when we step before the King.
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Code: FGO.D.21.15.vp.esv