Day 60 — Forgiveness Has a Cost

Main verse

“In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”
— Colossians 1:14 (KJV)

Meditation

We sometimes speak of forgiveness as though it meant quickly forgetting an offense or declaring that the wrong did not really matter very much. Yet true forgiveness never trivializes the wound. Someone must bear its weight.

At the cross, God does not close his eyes to sin. He reveals its full seriousness, yet chooses to bear its cost himself. In Jesus Christ, God draws close to human violence, injustice, and shame. He does not save from a distance; he gives himself.

This truth keeps us from treating grace lightly. Forgiveness is freely offered, but it is not without cost. We do not buy it through our efforts: Christ has made it possible through his love.

Before the cross, we no longer need to minimize our wrongdoing in the hope of being welcomed. We can face it honestly, since God’s mercy is greater than it. Nor must we punish ourselves endlessly, as though our personal suffering could add anything to Christ’s gift.

The forgiveness we receive also teaches us to consider the weight of the wounds we cause. It leads us not only to ask for grace, but also to seek to make amends where possible.

Today, let us pause before the cross. There we see both the seriousness of evil and the depth of divine love. Christ does not say that our sin is insignificant. He declares that his love has gone far enough to set us free from it.

Psalm

Psalm 22:1–5, 19–24 (KJV)

¹ My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? ² O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent. ³ But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. ⁴ Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. ⁵ They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded. […] ¹⁹ But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. ²⁰ Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog. ²¹ Save me from the lion’s mouth: for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns. ²² I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. ²³ Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. ²⁴ For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard.

Further Bible reading

Isaiah 53:4–6; Luke 23:32–46; 1 Peter 2:21–25

Suggested hymn

The Church Hymnal (1941), no. 230 — “I Gave My Life for Thee”

View the hymn reference ↗

Prayer

Lord Jesus, before the cross I acknowledge the seriousness of my sin and the depth of your love. Thank you for bearing what I could not erase myself. Free me both from taking evil lightly and from endless self-condemnation. Teach me to live in gratitude and humbly repair the wounds I have caused. Amen.

A thought to keep

Forgiveness is offered to me freely, but the cross reveals what it cost God in his love.

Personal Notes

What would you like to remember, pray about, or put into practice today?