Reflections on Stainless Steel

Sometimes, I talk to the television. Other times, I yell at it. I used to do this a lot in Columbia when House Hunters came on. While I enjoyed watching the show and seeing all of the different houses, I often got really ill with the nitpicking of the people looking for the houses. The floor plan wasn’t open, the floors weren’t hardwood, the closets and/or bathrooms weren’t big enough, the kitchen appliances weren’t stainless steel. So often, I’d see the show and think, “This is such a sickening example of American entitlement.”

Even so, as of yesterday, I am a true fan of stainless steel. When the product description says “stainless,” it really means stainless. Even after years of grease build-up, stainless steel will eventually come clean. But the same isn’t true for what may look like stainless steel. Imitation products do stain and no amount of scrubbing can get them clean.

Last night, as I pondered my newfound discovery, I had two theological thoughts:

The first thought was very traditional Christian theology: Our lives in Christ are like stainless steel. Sin is the grease build-up. Jesus is the owner and handler of 409 and steel wool. When we confess our sins, we give Jesus permission to come in and scrub us clean.

The second thought was less traditional Christian theology but equally as powerful an image: We are us. Jesus is the owner of the 409 and steel wool. God in God’s fullness is stainless steel. Solid. Steady. True. The world is grease. Thoughts, emotions, lies, materialism, legalism, greed, guilt, shame, hatred, ignorance, limited knowledge, out of control arguments of morality, mind games, justification, anything that obstructs our view and/or understanding of God. It is up to us to ask Jesus to lend us the tools and help us do the hard work of keeping our view and/or understanding of God unobstructed. It is up to us to use the tools we’ve been given through and with Christ to slowly get rid of everything that is not in line with the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness of God.