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Tuesday, September 16, 2014

THE JOSHUA CODE | WEEK 37

w e e k -  t h i r t y  s e v e n

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

r o m a n s 6 : 2 3 
. . .

THE BAD NEWS 
The Greek word for sin is best understood as 'missing the mark'. The word picture describes an archer who shoots his arrow at the target and misses the bull's-eye. We all fins ourselves here as 'all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23 KJV). We have all missed the mark, and the bad news is that its cost, or wage, is death. 
The Bible says, "the wage of sin is death." It is strange how many men and women sin, thinking it is going to pay dividends of fun and pleasure. But Satan is a liar. Sin pays its wage all right, but its wage is death, which is separation from all that is good.
Payday is coming someday. That is the bad news. When we miss the mark, its costs us greatly.


THE GOOD NEWS 
But the good news is this: "the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." It is a gift, a free gist that cannot be earned nor deserved. [...] A gift is the opposite of a wage. We earn and deserve our wages. We don't earn or deserve a gift. If we did, it would be a reward ans not a gift. 

How is this all possible? We still have to deal with the bad news. Jesus made that way possible for us by dealing with the bad news. Himself. two thousand years ago on a Roman cross outside the city walls of Jerusalem, Jesus took the bad news and became sin for us. Yes, the wages of sin is death, and He died our death on the cross, paying the penalty for our sin. He paid the price, so now we can finish the verse with this good news, "but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
He made a way out of no way. Our part is to receive this God-provided and free gift by faith alone in Him.

What a difference there is in these two bits of news. The bad news is that sin is costly, and it has a wage attached to it. The good news is that eternal life is free. It is God's gift to us!


As you memorize this verse, meditate on the incredible price that Jesus paid for your sin. When we were on undeserving, He made a way for us to receive the greatest gift ever given, "eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."


pg 189-190
via 

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