All physical systems, over time, accumulate debris. It’s an unfortunate fact of life. They get cluttered, and clogged, and congested, and that hinders the operation of the system. Let me give you some examples. As we age, plaque tends to build up in our veins and arteries, which gradually restricts the flow of blood. Many rivers have to be dredged periodically, so that the mud and silt won’t build up and make them impossible to navigate.
What I’m talking about is a universal problem. Any physical system, whether you’re talking about arteries, or ships, or rivers, or garages, will eventually get filled with rubbish and sludge and junk, and will need to be cleaned out. That may not be a pleasant process, especially if the debris has been accumulating for some length of time. It may be dirty, and smelly, and time-consuming, and just plain hard work, but it has to be done. Otherwise, the whole system breaks down.

The same principle applies to other, non-physical, types of systems. Marriage relationships, for example, can become clogged with unresolved conflicts and unforgiving offenses. What I’d like to focus on is how this principle applies to the spiritual life. Because over time, if we’re not careful, our lives can get cluttered up with the debris of sin. Our minds and hearts can become encrusted with the gum of ungodly beliefs and attitudes. And that hinders our relationship with God. It hinders our fellowship with one another. It hinders our ability to experience joy, and peace, and power in the Christian life. How can we prevent that from happening, and how when it does happen, can we clean out the muck and the mire, so that our fellowship with God and one another will be free and unobstructed; so that we can enjoy the kind of abundant life that Christ intends.

Sin gradually infiltrating our lives and gumming up the works, is common to all of us. None of us is immune; none of us can afford to go merrily about our business, unconcerned with matters of sin and unholiness. We must keep the junk out of our spiritual lives. Jesus told us that we are cleaned by the word of God (John 15:3) Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

So if we want to stay clean we need to stay in His word. We can do this by going to His house to Sunday school and bible study, reading His word on a daily basic.