Have you ever seen a kitten in a sugar bowl? Of course not! Neither have I! But I did see something very strange in a sugar bowl one day. Would you like to hear about it?
One Sunday morning a Sunday school teacher brought a sugar bowl to Sunday school with her. As the boys and girls looked at it curiously she asked, “Don't you think this is a nice sugar bowl? See how clean and shiny it is; how pretty with its two handles and nice little cover. But I wonder what is inside the bowl. Does anyone know?”
“Sugar!”
“Sugar lumps!”
“Brown sugar!”
The teacher smiled and shook her head. “Perhaps, at least that is what ought to be in this nice sugar bowl if it were to be on your breakfast table at home. Let's hurry and see what really is inside of this one! If anyone thinks he would like some of whatever is in this bowl he may come up and peek inside!”
Little Sally quickly slid from her chair and going to the teacher's side lifted the cover.
“Oh, no!” she cried, and hurried back to her chair laughing.
Then Bobby, curious to see too, took his turn; but was soon going back to his chair, shaking his head and grinning.
After several had peeked inside the teacher took off the cover to let them all see. What do you suppose was inside? Instead of nice clean white sugar they saw sticks and lumps of dirt all mixed in with the sugar. Then she said, “But there is some sugar in this bowl. Why don't you want it?”
“It's dirty!” they cried.
“Of course,” their teacher answered, “and before you will want anything at all from this bowl I must empty it all out, wash it clean, and fill it again with good sugar. Boys and girls, I wonder if any of you have hearts like my sugar bowl?”
As the children looked at one another she went on, “God would like to find nice clean hearts filled with love, unselfishness, and clean thoughts within each one of us. But instead He finds bad tempers, greediness, mean thoughts, spite—and oh, just all kinds of naughtiness.”
“What will God have to do with our hearts? He must take away the old heart with all its sin, and give us a new heart, washed clean in the blood of the Lord Jesus, and filled with the things that please Him? David prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God!” (Psalm 51:1010Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10)). We can ask Him to do that for us too! In Ezekiel 36:2626A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26) God says, “A new heart also will I give you.”