Colossians 2:14
…by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

Imagine your credit card company calling you and telling you that all your debt was forgiven. Or your college writing you a letter to let you know you don’t have to worry about those student loans anymore.

In a similar way, God has told us that our debt with Him has been canceled as well. Scripture is clear that the penalty for rebellion against God (or sin) is death [Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23] and that the only way for forgiveness to be possible is through the shedding of blood [Hebrews 9:22; Colossians 1:20]. What we must remember is that the cancellation of debt does not mean the Word of God has changed. As sinners, we still deserve punishment for our sin and payment with blood.

This means that God did not simply ignore our sin, or suddenly decide that it didn’t matter. God’s holiness and righteousness and justness are unchangeable. Instead of ignoring sin (which He could not do and still be true to His nature as God), our Father chose a different course of action. He chose to send Jesus Christ as both the perfect sacrifice and the perfect one to offer it. By His blood, our debt can be paid.

Going back to the example we used: it would be like your credit card company saying your debt was forgiven, not because they had a change of heart, but because someone else paid it all for you. God did not get rid of the legal demands against sin, or even change them. Instead, He nailed them to the cross. Christ’s death was for us, but it was equally for God. The perfect, timeless sacrifice of Christ allows God’s wrath and justice to be satisfied and His forgiveness to be extended to us.

Pastor Charles Spurgeon described this cancellation of debt for those who trust in Christ in this way: “Those whom Christ has washed in His precious blood, [no longer stand] as culprits or criminals before God the Judge, because Christ has forever taken away all their sins in a legal sense. They no longer stand where they can be condemned, but are once for all accepted in the Beloved.”