Many people have lower than normal ability to distinguish colors or hues. Those who can see the various hues, but have certain difficulties in distinguishing them, are said to have a color weakness. The color blindness or weakness which we hear about most frequently is red-green color blindness. Incidentally, a much larger percentage of males than females is red-green color blind.
The above becomes of extreme interest to us in our desire to visualize spiritual things from God’s Word. Take for example the work of the Levitical priests in detecting and treating leprosy. Read carefully Leviticus 13:49-59, taking special note of the fact that the priest had to distinguish the color of the sore in order to determine whether it was leprous or not. In verse 49 we read:
“And if the plague be greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin, either in the warp or in the woof, or in any thing of skin; it is a plague of leprosy, and shall be showed unto the priest;”
Then in verse 55 the Word states:
“And the priest shall look on the plague, after that it is washed; and behold, if the plague has not changed his color, and the plague be not spread; it is unclean; thou shalt burn it in the fire, it is fret inward, whether it be bare within or without.”
Now, considering the well-known Scriptural fact that leprosy is a type of sin in the Word, these truths take on an added significance. Genuine Christians should be able to distinguish sin at a glance, but the tragedy sometimes is that we are blind, or at least weak, to Satan’s attractions. Also, tragically true is the fact that many people with defective color vision do not recognize their defect. The reason that they are not aware of the deficiency is that they have learned to give color names to familiar objects in terms of the most characteristic brightness of these. Thus, red to one type of red-green defective, is equivalent in stimulating value to dark gray. He does this, because, when earlier stimulated by the “red” object, he has heard it called red. Yes, Satan starts early on a person to get him to “learn” defectively. God’s admonition is to:
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6)
The only way to recognize sin as to its true nature is to accept God’s definitions and descriptions. Satan is a master of shading or cloaking sin in low illumination until it looks harmless. We must “see” everything through the “light” of God’s Word.
In verse 58 of Leviticus 13 we noted that after complete washing, the leprous sore became clean. Of course, the skin is restored to its natural color. Meditate upon Isaiah 1:18 for a moment:
“Come, now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
Note the color of crimson and scarlet; yet God is able to make them “white as snow,” and “as wool.” Revelation 1:5 says:
“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood.”
Think of the remarkable phenomenon of the crimson blood of the Son of God. Applied to our scarlet sin, it makes us white as snow and clothes us in His perfect righteousness. How is this accomplished? We can’t explain—we only believe! But we do advance this thought in closing:
“Being born again; not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” (I Peter 1:23)
The glorious Word of God sheds such extreme, wonderful light upon our souls that it clears away and cleanses us from all the discoloration of sin.
