Dust

Genesis 3:19 – In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. (KJV)

Logging and lumber trucks travelling the roadways of my dad's sawmill camp stirred clouds of dust that settled within our humble cabin. My job as a child was to dust our rooms daily, and I was mesmerized at times while watching flecks in a ray of sun streaming through the living room window. The microscopic-sized pieces of dirt floated downward and drifted sideways with the movement of a gentle air current. The importance of dust is infinitesimal at first glance, but through the illumination of the gospel, we see that God used it as one of His unlimited tools.

One way that God used dust was to represent life and death in creation. Scripture tells us that from dust, He formed Adam, who represented humanity; and then to dust, Adam returned. For those of us whose chores include the job of dusting, we may think of the thin, light film as simply a nuisance. However, our minds can be changed as we view the substance through the eyes of God's plan and purpose.

I believe that a most precious and meaningful dust was that on Jesus' feet as He laboured to carry His cross to Calvary, where He died for our sins. The blood-caked dirt on His body was caused by the thorn crown and the beating that He received. As it dried and disintegrated, particles of the stained dust fell into the breeze to scatter throughout the world onto the feet of apostles, missionaries, and other disciples, while they walked dry, dusty roads to share the gospel of Jesus Christ as an offer of salvation for the sins of the world.

Jesus was both God and man. He lived a perfect life and then died a physical death, to be raised in glory. Because of Him, when believers die, our dust returns to earth, while our spirits are bound for glory, to live with Him forever. If you have not yet chosen Christ as your Saviour, choose Him now, for time is fleeting.

Prayer: Dear heavenly Father, help us to continuously remember Christ's sacrifice for our salvation as we travel dusty roads to share Him with others, while keeping in mind the price that He paid on Calvary. Amen.

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