Often you'll hear "Your sins are all paid for, past, present and future; just trust Jesus' finished work on the cross." This implies all sins were paid for the moment Jesus died, and that all we need to do is trust it's true. Wrong on both counts.
In fact, our sins remain —neither blotted out nor paid for— unless we come to Him in repentance, confessing and forsaking sin.
■ "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord" (Acts 3:19).
When we first come to Him in repentance, we'll have "remission of sins that are past" (Romans 3:25). And then, if we continue to abide in Jesus in repentance (Romans 8:1), He'll continue to cleanse us of our new sins:
■ "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John 1:7).
But if we revert back to unrepentance and willful sin, there will be no sacrifice covering our new sin:
■ "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." (Hebrews 10:26,27)
Yes, "Christ died for our sins" (1 Corinthians 15:3). Why? To make His blood *_available_* to cover our sins, past, present and future *_if_* we’ll come to repentance. Otherwise we’ll perish: we'll pay for our sins ourselves.
That’s why Jesus warned
■ "except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:5).
