But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8 NIV
While We Were Still Sinners
Kingston Penitentiary (known locally as KP and the Kingston Pen) is a former maximum security prison located in Kingston, Ontario between King Street West and Lake Ontario. Constructed from 1833 to 1834 and opened on June 1, 1835, as the “Provincial Penitentiary of the Province of Upper Canada”, it was one of the oldest prisons in continuous use in the world at the time of its closure in 2013. The cells originally measured 29.0 inches wide by 8 feet deep and 6 feet 7.0 inches high.
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I remember chatting with a member of a different church than me when I was a young Christian, and the person said “we don’t talk about sin in our church anymore. We like to only talk about things that are positive.” I responded, “The very reason we speak about sin is so that we know how much we have to celebrate when we experience God’s saving and keeping grace.” It’s only because we talk about sin that we fully understand the price Jesus paid for our redemption. The apostle Paul would speak to this in Romans 5:8; “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We only fully comprehend the depth and breadth of God’s love for us when we understand how badly we need a redeemer. Our sin binds us in guilt and shame – God’s grace frees us from this and sets us truly free to live and love for Him. Understanding our sin causes us to shake our heads in wonder – Jesus loves us that much! While we were still sinners, Jesus died. Our sin is great, His grace is greater.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley