On a recent Sunday after singing Charles Wesley’s famous hymn “O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise”, a friend asked me to explain the meaning and scriptural derivation of the verse which says:
“He breaks the power of cancelled sin, He sets the prisoner free; His blood can make the foulest clean; His blood availed for me.”;
and specifically the phrase, “…the power of cancelled sin...”
As Scottish theologian Professor John Murray put it in his book “Principles of Conduct”, the believer is a new person—but not yet made perfect. The Christian life is full of a tension we all feel but don’t always know how to explain. On the one hand, we are truly made new in Christ. On the other hand, we still struggle with sin every single day.
When God saves us, He doesn’t just improve us—He transforms us. “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NLT). That is a real change. We are not who we used to be.
And yet, if we’re honest, we know we still sin. We still battle wrong thoughts, selfish desires, and disobedience. The apostle Paul describes this struggle in a very personal way: “I am all too human, a slave to sin… I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it” (Romans 7:14–15, NLT).
So what is it that has changed?
Romans 6 tells us something incredibly important: our relationship to sin has changed. “Sin is no longer your master” (Romans 6:14, NLT). Before Christ, sin ruled over us, and we couldn’t break free. But now, through Jesus, that power has been broken. This is exactly what Charles Wesley was getting at in his hymn.
That’s the good news. Sin’s power is broken. Sin’s rule is over. But its presence is still with us—for now.
The Bible often describes this as a battle between the “old self” and the “new self.” Paul says, “Throw off your old sinful nature… Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature” (Ephesians 4:22–24, NLT). And again, “Put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you” (Colossians 3:5, NLT). Notice the language—put off, put on, put to death. This is daily work. Not because we are trying to earn salvation, but because we are learning to live in what God has already done.
At the same time, we need to remember something else deeply encouraging: our standing with God is already settled. Because of Jesus, we are fully accepted. “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1, NLT). That means even in the middle of the struggle, we are not rejected. In God’s eyes, we are united to Christ. Paul says, “Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven” (Colossians 3:1, NLT). This is who we are now, and it’s our job to learn to live like it.
I think that’s why Paul tells us, “Consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11, NLT). In other words, remind yourself repeatedly of what is already true.
Still, the struggle is real. Even as believers, we feel the pull of sin, and Scripture doesn’t try to hide that. Instead, it prepares us for it. Galatians 5:17 says, “The sinful nature wants to do evil… And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite… These two forces are constantly fighting each other” (NLT).
That inner battle certainly can be discouraging—but it’s also a sign of life. Dead hearts don’t fight sin. New hearts do. So what do we do when we fail? We run to Christ, again and again.
The Bible promises, “If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (1 John 1:9, NLT). We don’t hide; we don’t pretend; we come back to Him.
And as we walk with Him, something begins to change over time. We grow, slowly, steadily, and sometimes painfully—but inevitably. “And the Lord… makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NLT).
The Old Testament was already pointing to this kind of heart transformation. God promised, “I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you… I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart” (Ezekiel 36:26, NLT). That is a promise that is being fulfilled in every believer.
Still, we won’t be perfect in this life. There is a day coming when the struggle will end—but today is not that day! So, for now, we live in both Romans 7 and Romans 8. We feel the struggle, and we cling to the promise. We grieve our sin, and we rejoice in our Savior.
The Christian life becomes a rhythm: repentance and faith, over and over again. As we grow, our repentance deepens. We begin to see sins we didn’t notice before, but at the same time our love for Christ grows stronger. We learn to depend on Him daily, for as Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, NLT).
Each day, we fight sin. Each day, we trust Christ. Each day, we are being renewed. “Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day” (2 Corinthians 4:16, NLT). And one day, the fight will be over. “He who began a good work in you will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6, NLT).
But, until then, we continue to press on. We keep turning from sin. We keep trusting in Christ. And we hold on to this unshakable truth: He has broken the power of cancelled sin—and He is still setting us free.
Blessings on you and yours, Jim Black
P.S. if you’d like to read previous ruminations of mine they can be found at https://blog.salvationarmyconcordca.org