THURSDAY March 10, 2022
Debt Free!
...He [Christ] has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Colossians 1:21-23
Before we became Christians, we remained enemies of God and were separated from Him because of our sin. Christ died for our sins to cleanse us, wash us, and make us as white as snow. He is the One who came out of all eternity to reconcile us to God. No one can come to the Father except through His Son.
As Christians, we need to understand five important terms theologically: justification, redemption, forgiveness, reconciliation and sonship. Justification is when the sinner stands before God and is declared righteous in Christ. It is as if we had never sinned––justified. Redemption of a sinner is understood when he stands before a holy God as a slave of sin, and is offered freedom by a ransom paid. Jesus paid the ransom by His blood when He went to Calvary and was crucified on the Cross.
The sinner stands before God as a debtor, but for the Christian, the debt has been forgiven––paid in full. We owe nothing! How beautiful it is to be a believer in Christ. The sinner stands as an enemy before God, but after Christ’s reconciliation, he stands before Him as a friend. The sinner stands before God as a stranger, but Christ acquired the repentant sinner’s sonship, so now he stands as a son of God.
The resurrection of Christ is one of the foundation stones of Christianity. It was the seal of the great work that He came on earth to do. It was the crowning proof that the ransom He paid for sinners was accepted, the atonement for sin accomplished, the head of him who had the power of death bruised, and the victory won.
~J.C.Ryle~
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