Authorized, Pre-Approved

If you want to buy a home, a car, or other large-ticket item, unless you can afford to pay cash, you have to go through an approval process to apply for a loan. The bank wants you to prove your identify, prove that you can pay your bills on time, prove that you are financially responsible and that you are credit worthy.    

With a stack of papers requiring verification and signatures on numerous pages, you enter into a legally binding contract stating that you promise to make the required payments according to the rules that are set forth. If you err, you risk breach of contract and subsequent financial penalties. The loan process can definitely be time-consuming and nerve-wracking as you sign your name on the dotted line.    

As a Christians, I'm glad we don't have to go through a pre-approval or authorization process to earn God's love. We don't have to demonstrate our worth. And, despite wrongdoing, our sins have already been paid for by Jesus' death on the Cross. We are loved--already "pre-approved"--right from the start.     
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Romans 3:21-24 "Everyone who believes has God's approval through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no difference between people. Because all people have sinned, they have fallen short of God's glory. They receive God's approval freely by an act of his kindness through the price Christ Jesus paid to set us free from sin."