The Most Hated Truth

[nedsk]

Thank you for the welcome.

Yes, I agree—that’s exactly why I shared this on a Christian message board. Lately, I’ve come across more and more people in Christian spaces who deny that we owe a sin debt to God, which is deeply concerning. I wanted to see how others on this message board understand this, since Scripture is clear that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), and that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). The entire foundation of the gospel rests on the truth that Jesus paid the debt we could never repay. Thank you for your response—it's a good point, thank you.

So we owe a sin debt to God, then does that mean his grace is not a free gift? The prodigal son returns home. What debt did he owe to the father?

 

[bdavidc]

So we owe a sin debt to God, then does that mean his grace is not a free gift? The prodigal son returns home. What debt did he owe to the father?

Sin absolutely creates a debt before God, but that debt is not paid by us, it was paid by Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Sin has a cost, and that cost is death, but salvation is not something we work off or earn. It is the free gift of God through faith in Christ.

The Bible makes it clear that we are guilty before God because we have broken His Law (Romans 3:23), and that guilt is like a record of debt we owe. But Colossians 2:14 tells us that Jesus took that record and nailed it to the cross. He didn’t ignore our sin, He paid for it with His own blood.

That’s what makes grace so amazing. It’s not that we don’t owe anything; it’s that Jesus paid everything. If we had to repay the debt ourselves, grace wouldn’t be a gift, it would be wages. But the Bible says salvation is “not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:9). We don’t earn it, we receive it through faith.

As for the prodigal son, notice what he brought home, nothing. He had no money, no merit, just humility and repentance. And the father ran to meet him, embraced him, and restored him, not because the son earned it, but because the father was full of grace. That is exactly how God receives every sinner who repents.

So yes, our sin brings debt, but God’s grace is still free. It cost Jesus everything, but it costs us nothing to receive it, only that we repent and believe the gospel.