Question 1

What is the danger of becoming involved in someone else’s debt?

Accepted Answer

Proverbs 6:1-4My child, if you have put up security for a friend’s debt or agreed to guarantee the debt of a stranger . . . you have placed yourself at your friend’s mercy.Proverbs 17:18It’s poor judgment to guarantee another person’s debt or put up security for a friend.Proverbs 22:26-27Don’t agree to guarantee another person’s debt or put up security for someone else. If you can’t pay it, even your bed will be snatched from under you.If you co-sign a note, be absolutely sure you can repay the entire debt if your friend defaults on the loan. Otherwise, you will be putting yourself, your business, and even your family at risk.

Question 2

In what other ways should I be cautious regarding debt?

Accepted Answer

Proverbs 22:7Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.Debt can cause you to be “owned” by those to whom you owe.Psalm 37:21The wicked borrow and never repay, but the godly are generous givers.To owe and purposefully not pay is wrong; to give generously pleases God.Romans 13:7-8Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority. Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another.Pay your debts in a timely manner because it is important to honor your commitments. This isn’t saying it is wrong to have a home mortgage or car payments, but that when payments are due you must pay them on time. Owing money to someone else is a responsibility not to be taken lightly.

Question 3

How did Jesus pay the debt for my sins?

Accepted Answer

Romans 3:25God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past,Romans 5:9, 11Since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. . . . So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.Sin has left us all with a debt to God so great that we could never repay it on our own. But Jesus Christ paid that debt through his death on the cross. If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your only way to be right with God, he has cleared your debt; you owe nothing. When you trust in Jesus, God mercifully forgives your debt and welcomes you to share all the rich blessings he has prepared for you in heaven.