Pay Back

I read a quote the other day that has stuck with me. The quote by G.K. Chesterton says, “It is the highest and holiest of the paradoxes that the man who really knows he cannot pay his debt will be forever paying it.” Let that roll around in your head for a minute. What do you think? Do you agree or disagree? I agree with the quote. It reminds me of a story that I heard about Abraham Lincoln. The story says he saw a slave sale and a little girl up for auction. He felt compassion and bought her. Upon receiving her, he told her she was free. She did not understand what that meant. He explained that being free meant she could go where she wanted to and do what she wanted to do. She said, “I want to follow you.”

You might be wondering why the preacher is telling you about this quote. I think this is our relationship to Christ. At one point in the lives of Christians, they had sold themselves into the slavery of sin. There was absolutely nothing they could do to fix the situation. Because of God’s great love for us, He paid the price of our redemption: His son on the cross. As a Christian, I have taken advantage of that free gift by obeying His commands. There is absolutely nothing I can do to earn it. After I have it, there is nothing I can do to pay back what I owe. Because of that, I want to do all that I can to follow the one who paid the price for me.

On my best days and on my worst days, I am just an unprofitable servant. But because of what He has done in my life, I want to follow Him and bring Him glory. I do that in saying no to some things and yes to others. The only way for me to make those decisions is the book He has left me. I strive to bring Him glory by living according to His word because I can never pay Him back.