#50 Absolute Zero?

1 John 3:5 NASB "You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin."

Having been raised in North Carolina (N.C.) gave me a background to not fully understand what cold weather is. Sure it gets cold in N.C. and I have had jobs that required me to work outside in 20 and 30 degree temperatures, but coming to Michigan was new experience for me and my family. We are now on our second year here in Michigan and facing a fast-approaching winter. I recall last year’s winter when one evening I was on my way home. I looked at my in-car thermometer and when I reached the stop sign in Coleman were I turn to head home my car showed it being -3˚ F. By the time I drove the 6 miles to my house the temperature had fallen to -8˚ F. I am not sure how it dropped another 5 degrees in less than 10 minutes but I was sure thankful to get home where it was nice and cozy.

Back in my high school years I took physics. I recall studying a concept called “absolute zero”. Absolute zero is the theoretical temperature where absolutely no heat exists within a given substance or system. I say theoretical because to date no one has been able to reach -273.15˚ C or 0 K by either natural or artificial means. Scientists have come very close but have fallen short so far. Why would anyone want to reach such a state? Studying our world within a zero-heat environment allows scientists to observe matter in a new way and perhaps discover new properties about the elements that make up our world. Absolute zero is said to be measured at 0 Kelvin. This measurement is named after Lord Kelvin of Britain who did pioneering work in thermodynamics; which is the branch of physics that deals with conversion of different forms of energy.

So why does a Christian need to be concerned with absolute zero? Because like all objects on this earth that contain heat in some capacity or another, we humans have sin in us in some capacity or another. Some of us have lots of sin either because we choose to live apart from God or because we are not aware that we are sinning against Him. Other have less sin because they have surrendered to the Lord and are striving to let Him lead in their lives. As we come to Christ we have to allow the Holy Spirit to mold and shape us into the image of Christ. This is, of course, the process of sanctification. When we accept Jesus as our Savior we are justified with God because our offense against God is wiped out by the blood of Jesus—can I get an Amen? But after we are justified we must work with the Holy Spirit to overcome ingrained sinfulness.

This is not an easy process but it is one in which the Christian must engage. As the Spirit of God works through us, sin is purged from our lives unless we reject the prompting of the Spirit. As we are purged of sin God replaces that sinful nature with one that more closely resembles that of Jesus. Eventually we should reach a state of absolute zero as it relates to our sin. This happens not because of us getting more and more holy on our own, but because of the indwelling of the Spirit of God. Paul told us in 1 Corinthians 6:19 that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Today I would ask you to consider your temple. Is it defiled as you cling to the world or is your temple moving closer and closer to absolute zero? Do you eagerly accept correction when the Lord brings it or do you resist and struggle to cling to last vestiges of the world that will ultimately serve to separate you totally from your God? It is my prayer today that you will pause to examine your life and ask the Lord to show you where you need to make changes in your Christian walk. Ask of the Lord and He will cleanse sin from your life. Ask the Lord to move you closer to absolute sinlessness and He will have mercy on you and give you victory over sin.

Dear Father God,

We pause just now to thank You for Your goodness and mercy. Thank You for sending Jesus to give us victory over sin. Please give us the courage to examine our lives honestly and openly that we might not hide sin in our lives. Help us cling to Jesus that He might take away our sins. For we pray in His holy name, Amen.