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Imagine for a second you are fully geared up and ready to hit the ice for your first NHL game.

All you can think about is stepping on to a smooth, clean sheet of ice in front of a roaring crowd. Right before you step onto the ice, you are told that the ice conditions are too poor and that the game will be canceled.

This is exactly what happened in 2016 between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Detroit Red Wings. The rink attendants could not get the ice conditions where they needed to be in time to play, so the game was postponed.

Without the Zamboni, hockey wouldn’t be the same game it is today.

The machine features a series of blades and scrapers that shave the top layer of ice and collect the shavings, while simultaneously laying down a thin layer of hot water to create a smooth and level surface for play. The Zamboni is what helps keep the puck and players moving fast. It helps create the excitement we are all so familiar with. But just like the ice needs to be cleaned, so do we.

Our lives are broken, much like a torn up, messy sheet of ice. The Bible calls this sin. The Bible says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). According to the Bible, sin isn’t just the things we do like lying, cheating or stealing, but can even include just thinking about doing such things. Jesus said “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” (James 2:10). We are all covered in filth just like the ice at the end of a game.

The problem is that you and I are guilty of sin. Our sin separates us from God, making it impossible to have a relationship with Him, and there is a consequence for our sin. The Bible says, “For the wages [payment] of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23). This means eternal punishment in Hell.

But God loves us so much He sent His Son to wash us clean. “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Jesus sacrificed His life for YOU. He took the punishment that you and I deserve by dying on the cross for our sins so that we do not have to spend eternity in Hell. The Bible says, “By grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Eternal life is a free gift, not something you can purchase or earn.

In Ezekiel 36:25-26 we see a form of the Zamboni happen to the nation Israel and this was a foreshadowing of God’s plan to send Jesus to cleanse us once and for all. God tells Israel, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” The same applies to those who believe in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Just like the Zamboni covers the cracks in the ice, Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross through the shedding of His blood covers our sin.

On the cross, Jesus’ last words were “It is finished” (John 19:30). That means all past, present and future sins have been paid for. And because of what He has already done, those who put their faith in Jesus are like that fresh clean sheet of ice. All of your sin has been wiped away by the perfect, spotless lamb!

I challenge you to consider:

If you were to die today, where would you spend eternity?

The Bible says that Jesus is “the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me [Jesus]” (John 14:6)! God wants a personal relationship with you. He is knocking on the door of your heart.

Will you accept this free gift He offers you?

Will you humbly admit your need for a Savior, to be washed clean from all your sin? Jesus is offering to wash you completely clean once and for all—He is the ultimate Zamboni!

In your best words, tell Jesus that you are sorry for your sin and tell Him that you believe in what He did for you on the cross. If you are willing to trust Him, Jesus promises that you will be forgiven, all your sin will be wiped away, and you will have eternal life.

I hope that every time you see a Zamboni from now on, you will be reminded of Jesus and the sacrifice He made for you. If you haven’t made Jesus your Savior, do it today—“today is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2, NLT).

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