And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
Colossians 2:13-14
When God saves us he gives us life, spiritual life. He takes a person who is spiritually dead and makes them alive with the life of God. And at the heart of this life-giving salvation is forgiveness: “Having forgiven us all our trespasses.”
“All our trespasses.” That’s strong language! Every thought, word and deed that’s displeasing to God. Every single one. Past trespasses, present trespasses, future trespasses. “All our trespasses.”
What did Christ do with all those sins? He paid for them with his own death. He canceled the record of debt that stood against us, nailing it to the cross.
In the Roman Empire, when you had a financial debt and you paid it off, there was a record of debt that was canceled. Paid in full. That’s what Jesus did for our debt of sin. He paid it. Paid in full. He canceled the record of debt.
God tells us that Christ nailed that debt to the cross. All your sins are written in a large book, and Christ is on the cross nailing that book of sins to the cross. Canceling the debt. Paying the debt with his own blood.
If we wallow in guilt and self-flagellation for sins that Christ has already paid for, we despise Christ’s sacrifice! We waste it!
A few years ago, on a rainy, cold February day, a limousine traveling down the New Jersey expressway got a flat tire. The limo driver got out to change the tire only to discover that the spare was flat. Before he could summon road service, a man in a pickup truck stopped and offered to help. Among the equipment on his truck was an air tank. As the man and the driver finished up, the car window slid down and the man was shocked to see a well-known celebrity sitting inside. “This was very nice of you to stop and help,” the celebrity said. “What can I do to thank you?”
The man thought for a moment and then said, “Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. My wife would really get a kick out of receiving a dozen roses from you.” The man agreed and drove off. The next day, a messenger arrived with a box. Inside were two dozen roses and a note: “Happy Valentine’s Day from a friend of your husband. Thanks for helping us out. By the way, I paid off your mortgage.”
If the mortgage is paid you are free of the debt. You don’t do anything to earn it or pay it back. You simply say “Thank you!”
If the debt of sin is paid you are free of the debt. You do nothing to earn it or pay it back. You simply say “Thank you!”