In His wisdom, God knew there would never be a way for us to atone for our own sinwe could never be pure enough, good enough, or righteous enough to make up for our own shortcomings. Therefore, He acted to provide salvation for us through Jesus Christ.

We are redeemed.

     Ephesians 1:7 explains, "In [Jesus] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace."  In this sense, "redemption" means we were once held captive by sin, but God paid a ransom to free us from our bondage. The motivation behind this saving act is God's grace His unmerited favor expressed through love.

God's forgiveness must be received.

    While God's saving work delivered us from the curse of sin, it is still a gift that must be received. (Acts 10:43, 26:17-18) There is absolutely nothing any of us can do to earn salvation; however, we have a responsibility to repent of our sin and accept what Christ has given. Repentance is a change of attitude that results in a change of action. It is turning away from sin and turning toward Godin so doing, we receive His forgiveness. (Acts 2:38) Salvation is available to everyone; however, we live in a world where it's popular to refuse God's gift because of pride or negligence.

Forgiven sin may still have consequences.

    Many people think they are not really forgiven because they still suffer from the consequences of their sin. Recognize there is a difference between forgiveness and consequences. Scripture assures us that God has forgiven all sin through Christ (1 John 2:2); however, our specific transgressions may still have aftereffects in our lives. Rather than being punishment for sin, these consequences are natural outcomes of certain acts, just as jumping from a second-story window results in falling to the ground. So we can rejoice because, despite our sinfulness, God can look at us as redeemed since Jesus has won our freedom.

Question to ponder:

    1. What are some consequences you've had to endure because of your sin?

    2. Have you received God's gift of forgiveness? If not, it's never too late.