Read
Colossians 2:13 – 15
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (NIV)

Matthew 6:12
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (NIV)

Reflect
One day I was in a big hurry. I jumped in my van, reversed from my parking spot, and heard a big CRUNCH! I had not looked behind me and this beautiful Cadillac had pulled up behind me. It was my fault, my offense and it cost me a good bit of money to have that CRUNCH repaired. That is the way of simple justice.

Any offense we commit puts us in debt to the person we have offended. They have a right to demand a penalty from us. That’s simple justice. The penalty could be a fine, replacement of property, dismissal from a job, or alienation from family and friends, or even a prison term. When prisoners are released after serving time, we often say they have “paid their debt to society”.

Sinning against God places us in a debt that is both un-payable and according to the account in Genesis 2:17, life-threatening. God warned Adam and Eve that disobedience against him would lead to certain death – physical, spiritual, and eternal. But when Adam and Eve incurred that debt, God showed mercy and promised to send a deliverer so that death would not have power over them forever (Genesis 3:15; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57). Now that is forgiveness!

The release from our debt to God is available through Jesus Christ. He willingly took the debt we owe onto himself and died in our place. Now we can live without guilt and without the burden of paying that debt

Have you ever considered how much debt God has removed from you? I don’t know about you but for me it almost seems too much, and it certainly is nothing I have deserved from Jesus. To be like Jesus is an impossibility but being willing to forgive others is a great place to start.

Pray
Thank you Jesus for your willingness to pay the price for my sin and to set me free from the burden of sin and the fear of eternal death. AMEN!