Day 6 of 6 — Glow in the Dark. About 3 minutes.
In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Ephesians 1:7
In 1830 a man named George Wilson was convicted of robbing the United States mail and sentenced to hang. People petitioned on his behalf and President Jackson signed a pardon for him. Wilson refused it. He would not have it, and nobody quite knew what to do with a man who had been pardoned and declined to be. The question went to the Supreme Court, and Chief Justice Marshall wrote that a pardon is much like a deed. It has no force until it is delivered, delivery is not complete without acceptance, and if the man rejects it there is no power in a court that can force it upon him. The signature was real. The mercy was real. And it did him no good at all.
Paul describes what we have in Christ using a word out of that same world. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace. Redemption is a purchase. The price has been paid in full and the transaction is closed.
Which is why the psalmist’s question gets such a strange answer. What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? The line that follows is not a list of what he will do for God. I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. The first move is not to give. It is to receive. You cannot pay God back for salvation and He has never asked you to try.
The cards went in on Sunday and this church has taken on the Nicolas family in Brazil, which will cost something real across the coming year. But if you have never taken the gift yourself, do not start with a card. A signed pardon once sat in a file while the man it was written for refused to pick it up. Take the cup first. And if you have taken it, then whatever you write down is not a payment and never could be. It is a thank you with a number attached.
Growth principle: Salvation is a gift, and a gift that is never taken does the person it was signed for no good at all.
Take it with you: If you have never received Christ, settle that today before you think about anything you could give.
Pause and pray: Lord, I cannot pay You back and I am finished trying. I take what You have given me. Let everything I give from here be thanks rather than payment. Amen.
From Sunday’s message: A Faith That Promises (2 Corinthians 8) · Sunday, October 18, 2026
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