Spring cleaning

Today, I wanted to sow flower seeds into trays, but firstly I needed to spring clean my greenhouse. Over the winter, I had stored plants in it, to protect them from frost, and had dumped plastic pots, trays, bamboo canes and trellis, topped off with a disintegrated hanging basket. Spiders and woodlice had taken residence, and the glass was dirty. I removed everything, hosed it down, inside and out, leaving it to dry in the sun. Job done, with a huge sense of satisfaction.

Spring is traditionally a time for cleaning. After staying in our homes more during the cold weather, we notice how the seasonal sunshine highlights the dust and smears. Meanwhile Lent is an opportunity for a spiritual spring clean, to get rid of those bad habits or indulgences which threaten to distance us from God.

David asked God to give him a clean heart and to renew a steadfast spirit in him, after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and indirectly caused the death of her husband (2 Samuel 11). The memory of his sinful actions tortures David, who is overwhelmingly aware of his need to be purified, “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” (Psalm 51: 7).

Hyssop is a Middle Eastern herb akin to mint or marjoram, with long, leafy stalks. In the Bible, it was used for the ceremonial cleansing of people and homes. Priests would tie hyssop stalks together, dip them in sacrificial blood and sprinkle the person with a skin disease or the house with mould.

The Israelites used a brush of hyssop to paint their doorposts with lamb’s blood at the first Passover, marking them as pure, clean and under God’s protection. In the Gospels, Jesus is the sacrificial lamb whose blood is shed for our sins. The Roman soldiers offer Jesus a sponge dipped in vinegar as he is upon the cross, and they lift it up on a stalk of hyssop. (John 19: 29).

Cleaning a greenhouse is easy compared to cleansing our souls from sin. Just as David discovered, we can’t do it on our own. For a pure heart, we need Jesus.

First written 27 February 2021