Sins of the Nail

A few years ago, I experienced one of the most dramatic spiritual experiences of my walk of faith. It was a Good Friday service at my church. Each of us had been given a nail, a roofers nail, a replica of the spike’s driven through Jesus’ Hands and Feet. We also had been given a piece of paper where we were asked to write something we needed forgiveness for. As a slow dirge, a chant of sorts was sung over and over again, as pew by pew we were led to the back of the church and asked to nail this piece of paper, holding our written cries to a wooden Cross.

It was dark in the church and sounds of crying, even sobbing was heard throughout. Person by person pounding seemingly non stop as everyone shuttled to and from their seats, the song, over and over, sounds of sinners pinning their hopes for salvation on a wooden Cross….

On Resurrection morning the Cross stood, freed from all the pieces of our hearts, bare to the truth that redemption and forgiveness is given to believers. There it stood on the Altar of God, clean of all the sins that had been pinned to it. From the darkened despair of Friday’s church to Sunday morning’s SON lit sanctuary, the church rejoices its redemption.

Beginning with Ash Wednesday, I try to carry this nail of Christ, wearing it through my ring band. It is annoying and irritating, scratching and poking at me, a constant reminder. It is a reminder that I am a sinner in need of God’s grace and love everyday. It is a reminder that it is my nail that, because of my sinful nature, that pounds through the same hands of love through which Christ offers me forgiveness.

When I first place the nail under my ring it is extremely annoying. For some reason it was really bothering me this year, not exclusively physically, but spiritually. I know that by virtue of being human, I am a sinner but its this nail, the same nail every year, the same representation of sins upon sins. As the nail pokes and scratches, I understand its representation on the Cross. This year though I find myself curious to know if it is the same sin. Proverbs 26 says like a dog returns to it’s vomit so too does a sinner return to his folly. As I reflected on the past, I realized that I had changed somewhat, moving from some of my failures to temptation so perhaps these were new sins that were plaguing me. Romans 7 says that by nature I do the things I know I shouldn’t do and don’t do the things I know I should do. It surely indicates that just by virtue of being me, sin is unavoidable. Finally James says that if I were to keep the whole law but stumble on one point, I am guilty.

Given that verse in James, it appears that it doesn’t matter if I am able to differentiate between the sins of the nail. It is enough to say, to admit my role as a sinner and my role as one who pounds the nail through the Hands that want to save me. And thank God, it is through the blood of the nail that He forgives me, as long as I keep asking Him too.