Hopeless Debtors

We need daily bread that we might live. We need daily forgiveness that we might not die. 

How have we fallen short of the glory of God? Let us count the ways.

With little sleep and pressing responsibilities, you fire a harsh word at your children, “Stop it! You’re driving me crazy!” 

Feeling hurt by your wife, you let loose a biting remark, “You’d hate to be helpful, wouldn’t you?” 

Imagining yourself all-important and all-knowing, you pout at your parents for setting boundaries in your life. 

The apostle James is right: We all stumble in many ways (James 3:2). We need forgiveness every day because we rack up debts every day. 

On our best days, our perfect God gets only imperfect obedience and imperfect worship from us. We are hopeless debtors.

“But,” you may ask, “I thought when I repented of my sins and asked Jesus into my heart, my sins were forgiven and I was declared right with God, so why do I need to ask for forgiveness? 

Aren’t all my sins-past, present, and future-already taken care of in Christ?" 

The answer to that last question is yes and no. In a legal sense, all my sins were nailed to the cross. 

My sin was imputed to Christ while Christ’s righteousness was reckoned to me. That’s what it means to be justified. 

I stand before God the judge and He declares, “You, (fill in the blank), miserable sinner, are innocent and pure because you are in Christ.” In a legal sense, I am declared righteous.

Adapted Excerpt From: Kevin L. DeYoung & Jerry Bridges. “The Good News We Almost Forgot.”