When Your Account Is Deficient

Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account.
–Romans 4:7-8

Let’s suppose there is a beautiful home you would like to buy, and the home costs $250,000. Like most people, you are going to have to borrow the money from the bank. But your financial statement is in shambles. You have been unemployed for a year, you only have twenty dollars in your checking account, and your Visa card is charged to the max.

That is pretty bad news, isn’t it? Here is the good news: Bill Gates is your father. And knowing how much you want this home, he says, “I know you have made some financial mistakes, but I want you to have that home. So when you apply for the loan, tell that bank officer he can look to me for payment of your $250,000 debt.”

Out of pride, you could say, “No, I am going to go to the bank on my own merits, and if they do not like what I have, too bad.” Or you could say, “Dad, you are right. I have made some mistakes in my life. I do not have the money necessary, so I will take you up on your offer.” And when you go to that lending officer and present your father’s financial statement, guess what? His billions are more than sufficient to take care of your $250,000 debt.

All of us want a home in heaven, don’t we? But the Bible says to secure a home in heaven, our spiritual bank account has to be running over with righteousness. In fact, we have to be as perfect as Jesus Christ. That presents a problem because none of us has that much goodness in our accounts. We are all deficient. The Bible says all of us have sinned; we have all fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

But God says, “I know you do not have enough righteousness to secure that home in heaven, but My Son, Jesus Christ, has more than enough for you. If you would like, you can make your application to heaven not based on your righteousness but on the righteousness of Christ.”

The most important choice we make in life is this: Are we depending on our goodness or on the goodness of Christ to save us? As Paul said in Romans 4, “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account.” Paul was saying, “Happy is the man who is not judged by his righteousness, but whose sin is covered by the righteousness of God.”

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Today’s devotion is excerpted from “Abraham the Justified” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2009.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org