…. nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped (Swaddled) in cloths.  Ezekiel 16:4 

 

How come only one in ten people who make a commitment to Christ are still serving Him five years later? Ezekiel gives us some answers: (1) You must be washed! Your spiritual protection against dirt, disease, and death is '...the washing of water by the Word' (Eph 5:26). It's not enough to step into the shower every morning - you've also got to step into the Scriptures. Jesus said, 'Now ye are clean through the Word' (Jn 15:3). Sin will keep you from your Bible, and your Bible will keep you from sin. (2) You must be salted! In Hebrew culture, they rubbed salt on newborn babies to toughen their skin, so they could be handled without bruising. Too many of us need 'special handling.' We're touchy. If we're corrected, we get defensive. Only when you've been 'salted' by mature love and non-legalistic acceptance can you be really open and honest. (3) You must be swaddled! When we're first born into God's family we're vulnerable. We need to be covered and protected. That's the value of Christian fellowship; it wraps us up in the arms of love and says, 'You don't ever have to go back to the old life again! You can begin afresh. You can be healed of your painful past. You can have good times and good relationships instead of bad ones.' Have you been washed, salted, and swaddled?