Recently a young woman who is a friend of my daughter backed up into my car, leaving a dent and some scratches. She offered to pay for the damages, so we got a quote. It would be almost $3,000 to repair, which we felt was way more than we could ask of someone who needs every cent she can save while she works hard to pay her way through college. We explained to her that we didn’t think it was right to ask her to pay that much money. She was incredibly grateful, and we felt like we did the right thing. My car is older and we just need it to last a few more years, even if it’s not that pretty, so we kept the dent.
We all need forgiveness for our sins, for the “dents” in our lives. I thought this situation was a good illustration of why we need Jesus’ death on the cross. There is no way we can earn God’s forgiveness. Jesus chose to pay our debt for us. “If anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1–2 NIV).
It’s interesting to me how something as ordinary as a dented car can teach me something so profound. Even as I was forgiving someone, I was shown clearly how much forgiveness I need to be reconciled to God. Just like what this sweet girl could afford to pay would not be nearly enough, my efforts to redeem myself are simply not enough. The “dent” remains.
No matter how much I forgive others, it will never come close to how much Jesus has forgiven me. A debt I could never pay was wiped out by Jesus’ death. I don’t believe we think about this as often as we should. We’re quick to recognize what we’re owed by someone else, but we forget what we have received.—In this case, the gift of forgiveness of all of our sins.