Read Psalm 103:6-12. 6The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. 7He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. 8The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. 10He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. 11For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
These words fly in the face of how so many people, including many Christians, see God. Too many of us worship a God who is petty and whose anger is not from love but from vengeance. But what God made known in the Exodus is forever confirmed in Christ – he is slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love (Ex. 34). He does not pay us back for our iniquities, but rather his boundless love removes all guilt from us as far as east is from west (infinitely).
But Exodus 34 also says that God will punish every sin. How can Yahweh be a God that justly punishes every sin in Exodus 34 and at the same time be the God of Psalm 103 who does not repay iniquities and removes all transgressions?
Christ is the answer. At the cross, at great cost to Jesus, every sin was punished and every sin was removed. If you are in Christ, therefore, God is no longer dealing with you according to your sins. He is not counting them against you. His love keeps no record of wrong. Just as east and west never meet, so too you and your debt to God have been separated infinitely.
The question is do you actually believe this? Christian, is your life of service motivated by a debtor’s ethic whereby you are paying God back for his mercy and grace, or are you motivated by mercy and grace to live in true freedom from sin’s condemnation allowing wholehearted delight to replace heartless duty?
To live is Christ is to live free from all condemnation, guilt, punishment, and pressure, and to embrace the radical forgiveness of God in Christ paying it forward as Christ’s eternal kindness brings true daily repentance and self-sacrificing love to the forefront of your heart.
You: Why do you serve and obey God? Is it a debtor’s ethic?
You in Christ: How should knowing that every sin is removed from our record empower us to obey God rather than sin even more?
Christ in you: How can you pay the love and mercy of Christ forward today?
Pray: Father, I can’t even comprehend how you could forgive me of all my sin. But I know I’m grateful and want to live a life of grace. Help me today to live within your kindness. Amen.
To Live is Christ 