My debts have been forgiven
By Jessica Brodie
I was so excited about my shiny new car, with its black-gold exterior and scrumptious never-been-used scent. I’d trotted myself to the dealership, handled the negotiations and financing arrangements myself, then driven home beaming ear to ear.
A month later, the first bill was due. A few months later, the newness had worn off, and I was starting to resent the higher car payment. A year later, I’d realized my folly and wished I could just get out of the debt altogether—only, as car loans go, the vehicle had depreciated the moment I’d driven it off the lot, so I couldn’t even sell the not-so-new car anymore without having to pony up money to settle the debt.
It was a mistake, and one I had to endure month after month. So I worked hard to get out of that debt, scraped together extra money and did without, and finally I was able to pay off the car loan early. The debt was gone, and the lesson was hard.
But car loans are just an earthly, temporary debt. As humans and sinners, the wrongs we do accrue as violations against our Lord God—debts. And no matter how hard we work or how financially wise we try to be, there’s nothing we can do about them. We’re saddled with those sins, those debts, forever.
Except… for Jesus.
Because God loves us and doesn’t want us to waste away in debt for eternity, He created the ultimate “out.” He became flesh, as Jesus the Christ, and allowed Himself to be nailed to a cross. He paid the price for our sins by dying and then coming back to life, a triumph over the grave. And when we choose to believe in him, when we repent of our sins and accept Jesus as our savior, we get to leave those sins behind forever and stand in the glorious light of eternal life.
As the apostle Paul wrote to the early church in Colossae, “He destroyed the record of the debt we owed, with its requirements that worked against us. He canceled it by nailing it to the cross” (Colossians 2:14 CEB).
Like my unwanted car payment, Jesus nailed my eternal debt to the cross, paying it off for good. He does this for all of us, not just me!
It’s the most wonderful gift imaginable. We do not deserve it, and yet because of God’s goodness and great love, it is ours.
All we have to do is accept it.
Thank you, Lord, for canceling my debt. I am yours, and you are mine. Forever.