Melanie’s been in popular demand by the boys recently. For hair cuts. “So, word on the street is that you cut hair for free?” Every other weekend or so, our living room turns into a barber shop, and on good days, she’ll get three clients in.

We have absolutely no idea why any of them entrust their lives to her, but they do. Maybe because it’s free, maybe because they just don’t care, or maybe because they really don’t know what they’re getting themselves into. But they do it.

While the haircut is not quite worthy of acclamation, her service is exceptional: it comes complete with your choice of beverage and snack, a good conversation, and if desired, even the option to play Nintendo or board games. The business has boomed so much this year that people have suggested she start charging a nominal fee and really get her business kicking. Post one of those red/blue/white barber poles outside the apartment door, print off some business cards, snag a chair off of craigslist, hire me as secretary, the whole package.

But she declined.

And for good reason. Besides the whole idea being completely ridiculous, she’s got a bit of wisdom in her.

As mentioned before, hair is not this artist’s best medium. Most guys have left with odd patches missing here or there and their share of uneven sections, though some have fared better than others. By not charging them for this less than mediocre service, she is free from all liability. Should they suffer something worse than an uneven shave or come away dissatisfied, they can’t really blame her or demand a refund or sue. Although this is not her motive behind free haircuts, freedom from possible negative responsibility allows her to practice without fear.

I think most of us have tapped into this little secret too. We assume this freedom in our own lives, though wrongly so. We live as if we don’t owe anybody anything, give into temptation and sin without too much regret, and it becomes acceptable, maybe even expected. We practice without fear. However, unlike Melanie, this freedom from responsibility is not warranted. Unlike her, there was a cost involved.

We permit ourselves to sin the seemingly arbitrary sins sometimes because though we know the harm, we think it’s just a small harm and that we can take the hit and recover. The thing we don’t realize is that it doesn’t just affect us. It affects those around us, and ultimately and most importantly hurts God.

Christ paid for our sins; the price was a few nails, a handful of thorns, a bundle of shiny leather straps. By disregarding the price and living as if we are free from the cost of sin, we cheapen grace. We live without the demand of obedience on us, as if grace means that God ignores our sins. Contrary to popular belief, he does not simply ignore those times we make false promises or the little white lies that won’t hurt anybody, nor does he simply just forget about the consequences and forgo deserved punishment. Instead, he has chosen out of inexplicable love to pay for it himself.

There is always justice. Energy is conserved in the universe, and so in the same way, justice is conserved. Something comes out of the sin we commit, we just don’t always realize or see it because it has been displaced onto the shoulders of Christ.

And as a consequence, we sing “Amazing Grace” in our churches yet only believe in the latter of the two words.

Grace is not a license to do what we want without consequence; rather, it is a license to be free from the grip of sin so that we can live a life that is holy and righteous and good. Sin no longer dictates our life, but instead, we now have the control and freedom from sin, with God’s help, to choose to obey.

It is in amazing grace, not cheap grace, that we find freedom.