For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ (Phil. 3:8-9).

When God looks at us, he does not value us based on our talents and accomplishments. Since our best works are tainted by our human imperfections and pride, any thought that God’s love would be based on our deserving will always be countered by God’s infinite holiness. 

For this reason, the Apostle Paul counts as rubbish whatever good works he had once counted to his credit for God’s acceptance. Paul now has faith that God looks at him through the lens of what Jesus perfectly accomplished on the cross – not through the lens of human performance. 

An old example reminds us that when you look at something white through a red lens, it looks red. But, when you look at something red through a red lens, it looks white. 

Similarly, when we try to hold up our works as pure to God, he observes them through the lens of the cross as bloodstained. But when we confess that our sins required the blood of Jesus, God looks at our scarlet stains through the lens of the blood of Christ, and they look as white as the wool of a lamb. 

The example is ancient, but we need the truth every day and eternally. When we trust that Jesus’ blood covers our sins, then we need not count on our rubbish to provide for our redemption. Trust that, though your sins be as scarlet, Christ’s blood will make them white as snow. His grace will cover you. 

Prayer:
Lord, thank you for covering my sin with Christ’s blood. May your lens of grace be the source of my hope and the lens through which I learn to see others’ need, too!