by Ronnie Hewitt
The New Testament is filled with assurances of God’s forgiveness to those who have trusted in Jesus Christ. Paul shares a passage of Scripture that shows the contrast between our dreadful condition and God’s love, mercy, and grace in reaching out to us. “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.” (Col 1:21-22, NIV)
I want to call your attention to the last phrase, “free from accusation.” Does this describe the way you think about yourself? Or do you often find yourself standing before God hearing His pronouncement of “Guilty”? If you resonate with this question more, you’re probably not living by grace. If you have never received the free gift of salvation by trusting in Christ Jesus and being obedient to the Gospel, then of course you are guilty, and are subject to the wrath of God. Your greatest need is to trust in Jesus for your salvation, for the forgiveness of your sins, and to receive the free gift of eternal life.
On the other hand, if you have trusted in Jesus as your Savior, then all the expressions of God’s forgiveness are true of you. He has removed your sins as far as the east is from the west. He has blotted them out of His record book and promised to never bring them up again. You are free from accusation, not because of who you are or how good you are, but because of His grace through Jesus Christ.
Are you willing to accept and live by this truth today? Do you accept the fact that the Bible’s definition of grace (God’s unmerited favor shown to people who are totally underserving of it) applies to you, not only in salvation but in your everyday life? Jesus said, “I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly.” (Jn 10:10, NASB) Jesus came to give us so much. And He accomplished this through His own life and the sacrifice He offered on our behalf. The cross was detestable, but it was necessary. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is the only way we could be found free from accusation, as Jesus’ blood appeased the wrath of God. It met the requirement for cleansing.
Because of this, we now have eternal life and can experience this life abundantly as we live each day by grace in a relationship with Jesus. What a blessing!