Colossians 2:13
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses…

When Scripture speaks of salvation, it does so in all three tenses: past, present, and future. We are saved in the sense that God chose us in eternity past, His Spirit sanctifies us in the present, and Jesus Christ will glorify us in the future. It is the divine, harmonic work of the Father, Son, and Spirit that has made salvation possible for us.

As the beginning of this passage points out, we were once hopelessly dead in our sins, helpless against the fallen nature of our lives and the righteous judgment of God. A careful reading of the Scripture reveals to us that we are not the instruments of our own salvation. How can a dead man bring himself to life? Instead, we require help from someone outside ourselves. We require Christ.

Even the act of accepting Christ, which is a human decision, is only possible through the regenerative power of God. A human nature that is inclined to disobey and distrust God will never, by its own power or design, accept the need for God or the help of Christ. It is only when the Spirit draws us to Him, working to create a new life within our hearts, that we are able to respond to the cross of Christ and accept His sacrificial death as sufficient and efficient for us.

In the limited power of humanity, death is an unbeatable foe. But to the sovereign power of God, death is not an obstacle. In fact, God uses death as the doorway through which His people enter into a totally restored fellowship with Him. The very thing that – apart from Christ – would have kept us from His love forever is instead used as a part of our salvation.

And finally, let us note that God’s salvation is for “all our trespasses.” The blood of His Son is offered for every wrong word, action, and thought. Just as no human can ever sin so little to not require God’s intervention, there is no one who has sinned so greatly that Christ’s sacrifice will not be adequate to cleanse completely.