All Paid Up, But Not in the Way You Think!

By Rod Johnson

“Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.” Romans 8:8 (NIV)

Many stores have signs that say something along the lines of, “You break it; you buy it.” So when little Johnny sends a rack of antique dishes crashing to the floor, I wouldn’t expect his parents to laugh and say, “That’s okay. We’ll pay for it.” Pay for it they probably will and it will be extremely costly, but the laughter and the “okay” bit – I doubt it.

Yet as Christians, when we sin we seem to envision God as saying, “That’s all right. I have forgiven you.” If that’s what you believe, you’re only half right. God has forgiven you, but IT’S NOT ALL RIGHT! How can our sins be okay when they cost Him His Son’s death on the cross?

Are we going to sin? Absolutely. (1 John 1:8) But do we have to? Absolutely not! (1 John 2:1)

All that God is lives inside every believer. That includes the ability to resist and defeat sin through His power. Through Him we can conquer any particular temptation at any particular time (James 4:7). And in finding victory “one temptation at a time” we will realize a much greater possibility to live more freely from sin. It’s precisely because God has provided us with His power over sin that it’s never okay to commit sin. But it’s also precisely because He knows we will sin that God has already forgiven us!

Think of it this way. When we get saved it’s as if God gives us a credit card with an unlimited line of credit. But in contrast to what we would like to believe, the purpose of this line of credit isn’t to buy all the pleasures that sin can offer us without consequence. Rather, the purpose of this line of credit is to pay for in advance all the things we are going to break! It’s sort of like liability insurance. Our freedom is not intended to be an excuse for sin or a resignation to token resistance to temptation. Rather this “line of credit” is a means to get back on track in our walk of faith. By paying for and forgiving all of our sins in advance, God has given each of us access to our line of credit to restore our fellowship with Him as needed.

Giving our hearts to Christ is when we tap into that line of credit for the first time. But to have continued perfect fellowship with God and one another we must confess our sins daily and repent. True confession isn’t possible without repentance because “confess” literally means “to agree with.” So to agree with God about our sin means to say that it is “Sin” and not a blunder; that it is a barrier to right fellowship with our Father, and that it is what God sent Jesus to the cross for – not only to pay our debt but to empower us to accept His “deposit” (the Holy Spirit – 2 Cor. 1:21-22) as a means to have victory over sin daily.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense — Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” - 1 John1:7 – 2:1 (NIV)