Daily Devotional | Drawing on Credit

When you make a significant purchase, like buying a home or a car, the seller and lender will check your credit score. They want to see if you are secure enough financially to cover the repayment of the loan. If your application is successful, you will be offered a line of credit. The bank or lender will supply the needed funds so you can enjoy that expensive item right away

In a comparable way, we draw on spiritual credit when it comes to Christ’s righteousness. Jesus has already provided all the righteousness that is necessary to be accepted by God. However, some of the Galatian believers had begun to think that what Christ had done was not enough. They thought that even though God had begun the work, it was their responsibility to finish it. This philosophy implied that Christ’s sacrifice wasn’t enough! In response, Paul called them foolish and asked, “After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?” (v. 3).

The apostle bluntly warns those who try to be righteous based on their own effort that they will fall short. God’s Law requires more than a good track record from us. Righteousness demands perfect obedience on all points at all times. Although God’s Law is righteous, holy, and good, its standard is not based on faith but on performance (v. 10; see also Rom. 7:12). Faith, on the other hand, operates on the principle of inheritance. It draws on the account reserved for us by Jesus Christ.

>> We can never have a high enough “credit score” to earn our salvation. We gain access to that inheritance by faith. The proof of its existence is the living presence of the Holy Spirit who dwells “in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come” (2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5). This inheritance cannot be counted in dollars and cents. It is the righteousness of Christ.

Pray with Us

Lord, newborn believers and veterans of the faith alike, we all have an inexhaustible amount to learn about You. Reveal Yourself to us. Help us understand what it means to have Your Spirit in our hearts.

BY Dr. John Koessler

John Koessler is Professor Emeritus of Applied Theology and Church Ministries at Moody Bible Institute. John authors the “Practical Theology” column for Today in the Word of which he is also a contributing writer and theological editor. An award-winning author, John’s newest title is When God is Silent: Let the Bible Teach You to Pray (Kirkdale). Prior to joining the Moody faculty, he served as a pastor of Valley Chapel in Green Valley, Illinois, for nine years. He and his wife, Jane, now enjoy living in a lakeside town in Michigan.