The Business of the Lord: As Far as the East Is from the West
In business, distance matters. We measure how far we’ve come, how far ahead (or behind) we are and track the gap between this quarter and the last, between goals and outcomes, and between projections and reality.
But there’s one distance that no spreadsheet, no report, no analytics dashboard can capture: the infinite gap between you and your sin if you are in Christ.
“As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12
God didn’t say “as far as north is from south.” Why? Because if you travel north long enough, you eventually start heading south. However, if you travel east… you never start going west. The direction is endless and so is God’s mercy.
In business, we have terms like:
Debt forgiveness
Expense write-offs
Inventory reduction
But even in those cases, the paperwork lingers. The audit trail remains. There’s always a record somewhere. Perhaps a number in a ledger, a file on a server, or a dotted line on a tax return.
This isn’t so with Jesus Christ.
When God forgives you through the blood of His Son, it’s not just erased but removed. It isn’t stored, archived, pending, or in review. With Christ, our sins are gone. As far as the east is from the west. This is not just a general forgiveness, it’s personal. Your lies. Your lust. Your pride. Your temper. Your failures. If you’re saved, they are no longer on your record.
In the business world, our reputation often rides on our resume. What we’ve done, what we’ve built, and who we’ve worked for. We lead with our strengths and bury our mistakes.
But in the gospel, it’s the opposite.
God saw our worst and saved us anyway. Your salvation doesn’t depend on your performance, it depends on Christ’s perfection. The gospel is not about becoming a better version of you. It’s about becoming a new creature in Christ. If you are in Christ, when God looks at the record of your life He no longer sees a stained resume. He sees the spotless righteousness of Jesus Christ. Your sin is not near, it is gone. It is as far way from us as the east is from the west.
In a world of contracts, balances, reviews, and audits… that’s the only record that really matters. If you’re still trying to work your way to Heaven, let Ephesians 2:8-9 speak plainly:
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
Salvation is not a promotion you earn, it’s a gift you receive. Not by works, not by merit, and not by effort. It is by grace through faith.
If we’re honest, we like to take ownership of results. We measure performance, set goals, and take pride in progress. In business, that’s expected but in salvation, it’s misplaced.
Salvation is not a joint venture. It’s not a merger between your effort and God’s grace. It’s not a partnership, not a franchise, and not a shared enterprise between religions. Salvation does not belong to Buddha, Muhammad, or any other name under heaven. Acts 4:12 says:
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
Salvation is the Lord’s business, and He never outsources His work. Jonah 2:9 says it clearly: “Salvation is of the LORD.” From the drawing of the sinner to the sealing of the Spirit, every transaction of redemption belongs entirely to Him.
In business, we work to earn profit. In grace, we receive what we could never afford. Jesus paid the cost in full. There was no discount, no deferred payment, and no installment plan. The cross was the final invoice, stamped “Paid in Full.”
When Christ cried out, “It is finished,” He wasn’t announcing the end of His suffering but He was declaring the completion of God’s redemptive plan. The books were closed. The balance was settled. The debt was erased forever.
So when you rest in Christ, you rest in the finished work of a perfect Accountant who never miscalculates, never forgets a payment, and never loses a record. You can stop trying to manage your own salvation because it’s not your business to balance, it’s His to complete.
Philippians 1:6 reminds us:
“He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
The One who saved you is the same One who sustains you. The Lord’s business never fails, never defaults, and never closes its doors.
Salvation isn’t your side hustle. It’s God’s full-time enterprise and He has already finished the work.
