Debt
Free – With A Catch?
If you
are familiar with Christian evangelism, you have probably heard numerous analogies
applied to the concepts of salvation and heaven (including some used by Jesus,
e.g. “heaven is like treasure hidden in a field” or “heaven is like a king who
prepared a wedding banquet for his son”). Scripture is filled with analogies
that help us understand spiritual concepts, and sin and salvation are included.
Among
the more useful and oft-used salvation analogies are the portrayal of sin as
debt and salvation as payment of that debt. The sinner (debtor) responds to a salvation
invitation, and Jesus cancels the debt. It’s a simple transaction in which the
debtor has nothing to lose, and everything to gain. It’s an easy decision;
simply accept the offer and have one’s sin-debt erased. How could there be a
better deal than that?
Picture
a person (yourself?) who is so deeply in debt there is no possibility, no
matter how hard they try, to ever pay off what they owe. Then picture the one
who owns everything offering to pay the person’s debt, simply out of love. If the
analogy between sin and debt is valid – if our debt is real and God is truly
willing to cancel it, why would anyone refuse such an offer? Can there be a
rational reason to say no?
There
are at least two reasons to turn down such an offer. The first, which is the
more easily countered of the two, is the illusion that we do not owe a sin-debt.
Many people believe that, although not perfect, they live reasonably “good
lives” and if heaven is real they deserve admittance. This thinking makes sense
until the individual understands that God does not grade on a curve, his
standard is perfection, and no one will get to heaven based on their behavior.
But even
among those who realize they fall short of God’s standard and cannot earn
salvation (that is, they can’t work off their sin-debt), many reject the offer
to trade their debtor’s existence for a debt-free life. Why do they turn down
an offer, made with no strings attached, to have their debt paid for them? For a
simple and very rational reason: the offer is not made with “no strings
attached.”
Again, imagine
yourself as a person deeply in debt who is approached by someone willing to pay
it off for you. But there is one condition. Yes, your current and future debts
will be taken care of, but you must turn over control of your finances to the
one who pays. This places the offer in a different light. Letting someone pay
off your debts is one thing; giving them control of your finances is another. Maybe
you shouldn’t be too hasty. Maybe your debts aren’t as bad as they seem. Perhaps
there is a way for you to pay them off, or to negotiate some compromise. People
with bigger debts than yours don’t seem worried; maybe there is no need to rush
into such an arrangement. Maybe you don’t need to give up control.
The same
reasoning that would lead a person to refuse an offer of debt cancellation because
they do not want to give up control of their finances applies to Jesus’ offer
to cancel a sin-debt. His offer is free, he really does offer to be one’s savior
with no payback required. But he doesn’t stop there. His offer is to become one’s
savior and lord. And it’s the lord part that stops people cold. His offer is
unbelievably generous, but there are strings attached. He wants control of the
sin-debtor’s life, and that’s simply too scary for many. So, even though it
makes no sense to turn down an offer of total debt cancellation, doing so is
the only option for those who cannot trust enough to give up control.
