I remember growing up, and just how far I was able to push the line with my parents. As a kid, I became a professional at it (as all kids do), doing the exact things that would make my parents annoyed, but not mad enough to punish me. It almost became a game of cat and mouse.

Of course, I learned those boundaries the hard way, after crossing the line a few times. And I learned that when I did cross the line, I would be punished... I just hoped it wasn't by my Dad (he punished a little bit more than Mom did).

I think as Christians we often do the very same thing; we push the line as far as we can. We do things that we consider "border-line," not enough to be called an actual sin (in our minds), but enough to know we shouldn't be doing it. We try to find the "gray areas," just like we did when we were kids... trying to bend the rules without breaking them.

But the punishment for sinning, for "crossing that line," isn't a time-out, and it isn't a spanking... as it says in Romans 6:23, the punishment for sin is Death. Now thankfully God loves us enough to have sent his only Son, the payment for our sins so we could have eternal life through his salvation.

Can you imagine that? What if you stole something from the store, and they simply said, "That's ok! I'll forgive you, just don't do it again." That is exactly what God has done for you. He said, Don't worry about what you've done in the past... I forgive you for all of your sins!

That is an amazing act of love, but it is also something we often take for granted. Because every time you put yourself in that "gray area," you are putting yourself in the "High Risk Zone."

There's an old saying, "If you don't want to be robbed, don't walk into a den of thieves..." By walking into the Den of Thieves you are putting yourself at a high risk for being robbed, or much worse. The same is true with sin, every time you put yourself in a situation where there is sin, you have a greater chance of falling to it.

And every time you allow yourself to fall to sin, you are taking this amazing gift for granted.