I am a Debtor to Christ

“Read that again!” I asked my daughter.

“I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise.”

This verse, Romans 1:14, really struck me. I already knew I am a debtor to Christ because He took my staggering debt of sin when He Himself owed nothing. I knew, too, that I am indebted to Him for my very existence and for all He has lavished on me materially and spiritually.

What I Owe the Unbeliever

But Paul says I am indebted to the unbeliever! I paid very close attention as Jenny continued the July 15th reading in Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost For His Highest:

“. . . The greatest inspiration in Paul’s life was his view of Jesus Christ as his spiritual creditor. Do I feel that same sense of indebtedness to Christ regarding every unsaved soul? . . . Am I doing anything to enable Him to bring His redemption into evident reality in the lives of others? I will only be able to do this as the Spirit of God works into me this sense of indebtedness. . . Paul sold himself to Jesus Christ and he said, in effect, ‘I am a debtor to everyone on the face of the earth because of the gospel of Jesus; I am free only that I may be an absolute bondservant of His.’” (Read the entire devotional.)

No wonder Paul called himself a bondservant! He was aware of the price paid, Christ’s death, and of the unpayable debt he owed Him.

I Owe an Unpayable Debt

Do I respond to Christ with gratitude and obedience?

Paul’s response to his insurmountable debt was to offer the Gospel to the full spectrum of humanity. (Romans 1:14 – 16) It makes sense in light of my unpayable debt that the least I can do is to offer Christ something of eternal value. People are eternal. So, I can offer my life as an obedient and loving bondslave and I can also bring people to Him.

Paul offered the Gospel to the intellectual, to the common man, to the religious, and to the pagan, and to everyone in-between. He owed God’s message of love to them all. I cannot pick and choose when sharing God’s Good News.