Removing the garbage
I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ.
Philippians 3:8 NIV
Have you ever heard the story of the ‘fairy garbage man’? If so, you’ve probably talked with Pastor Fraser Pearce, or someone who learned from him like I did. If not, you’re in for a treat! To the best of my ability, let me tell you the story of the fairy garbage man…
Imagine you are sitting at home and there’s a knock at the door. You go and pull aside the curtain to check who it is, and are a bit horrified at what you see. There’s a short man, greasy and grimy, and he is waiting on your doorstep. So, you head to the front door and open it just slightly. As you open the door, you immediately get a strong whiff of the worst garbage smell you’ve ever experienced, but that soon seems insignificant as you notice the man has two little translucent wings sticking out behind his back, fluttering furiously, and he is actually hovering a few centimetres above the ground!
Before you can even speak, he looks at you with a wide and genuine grin, and says ‘Hi! I’m the fairy garbage man, and I’m here to buy your garbage!’
Logically, you try to close and lock the door! But, before you can, he cries, ‘Wait!’ From his back pocket he pulls out a thick wad of clean $100 bills bound in a shiny golden clip. He pulls one out and asks, ‘Got any garbage?’
You hesitate, but your mind goes to the kitchen bin sitting nearby. Looking over, you see it is overflowing, and on top is a particularly brown and slimy banana peel. Hesitantly, you move over and pick it up between finger and thumb, and gingerly bring it through the crack in the door. The moment the man sees it, his face lights up! ‘Yes!’ He flicks you the $100 note and takes the banana peel. But then, he pulls another $100 note out of the wad, and asks, ‘Got any more?’
You’re no fool. You bring the bin to the door and start handing him things one by one. Yet, every item you hand him, without fail, he gives you another fresh $100 bill and asks for more! Soon, the bin is empty. You realise though, that the bin bag is still there. He takes that, another $100. You look at the bin itself – it was only a $5 cheapie from Kmart, so you try handing him that too – and sure enough, he gives you $100!
Within moments, you’re running to the cutlery drawer, handing him every single spoon, fork, and knife! Even your collection of fine plates that could sell for at least $50 each suddenly look like garbage in comparison to those $100 bills. Before, you were pretty proud of your house, but now? Suddenly everything in your house has changed value. Anything worth less than what the fairy garbage man gives is just… garbage.
This is what Jesus has done for us! He has come, and to be honest, our lives are full of garbage. Some of it is the obvious kind, the overflowing garbage bins, the stuff that we try to hide away when people come to visit, the sins we don’t want anyone to find out about. Other things are like the cutlery, or even fine plates – the world tells us they aren’t garbage. They seem fine, they do the job, they might even look nice. Yet, when compared with what God gives, their value is clearly less. These are the sins that we struggle to admit are truly sinful, and perhaps even the good works we have done. Our fancy house, our expensive car, our awards and medals - they might look pretty good, but compared with what God offers? They are simply garbage.
This is what Paul expresses in Philippians 3; ‘If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more… But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him.’
Jesus has given us the way to get rid of the garbage. To give us life, He gave His life to clean our garbage, He took it on Himself. All the sin, all the guilt and shame and filth – He invites us to hand it over to Him and receive righteousness instead.
Let’s pray;
Lord Jesus, thank you for paying the ultimate price so that you could buy our garbage. Send us the Holy Spirit to give us your grace and to reshape our perspective. Show us the garbage and sin in our lives, and help us to joyfully hand it all over to you. Let this all fill us with such joy that we can’t help but want to share what you have done with all the world, so they may have their garbage removed too. Amen.
Pastor Lee van Rossen
Christ the Redeemer Lutheran Mission Callington