Summer School: “Jesus + Nothing = Everything” — Thursday
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NIV)
The beginning of today’s verse has some tough truth for us. And while we may want to gloss over it and move to the good part, it’s worthwhile for us to pause and dig into the beginning, so let’s do that together today.
The word “wages” generally refers to a payment that one earns for their work. What is clear from this passage is that—because our sinful nature infiltrates everything we do—no matter how hard we work at being good, the payment for our work is death. It sounds harsh, but it’s the truth.
Let’s get even more personal here: You need to know that your sin has bought you nothing but death. My sin has bought me nothing but death. Apart from Jesus, we can bring nothing to the table. We all deserve death because of our sin. While a sobering thought for us today, it’s a reality we must acknowledge and not forget. There is simply no way to make ourselves right with God by our own strength. We can continue to work hard and do good things to earn God’s favor, but on that path, the wage will always be death.
But let’s not forget the next part of the verse: God offers us another way! It’s a gift that He has freely chosen to give us, and all we have to do is accept it. Jesus Christ chose to take on our wages, to die the death that we deserve. Because He gave His perfect life for us—and not only that, but He also defeated death by rising again—the power that death once had on us has been broken once and for all. When we acknowledge our wages, choose to turn from our sin, and put our faith in Jesus as the only means to salvation, we’re made right with God and given the gift of eternal life—the most abundant life imaginable—with Him. And this gift is freely given, with zero hidden obligations. Talk about good news worth telling everyone about!
Thursday’s Reflection
Listen to this song by CityAlight, and celebrate the freedom Jesus bought for you on the cross.
