A good friend of the family taught me that relationships were like bank accounts; you may deposits and you make withdrawals. The key is to not make a greater withdrawal than the accumulation of the deposits you make. That’s when problems emerge. The example she gave resonates with me still today – if she asked her daughter to do something and got a snappy response in return she knew that she was overdrawn. In one way or another, the balance had been altered.
We tend to approach our relationship with God in the same way. We think that if we make enough deposits that we’re entitled to withdrawals. This is the “well, at least I’m not as bad as that guy” mindset. However, when we think about the deposit that’s made been on our account – the selfless sacrifice of a Father who gave his Son on our behalf and a Son who willingly left His rightful place in heaven to pay that sacrifice – we realize that no amount of deposits can restore the balance. We are deeply in His debt. His love can’t be purchased and if it could, its price none of us would be able to afford.
The even more amazing part of this equation is that on an account that I can never pay off, the things that I do out of love for Him, the acts of faith, are “credited” to me as righteousness. No payment satisfies the bill and yet we are given credit. What an amazing grace indeed.