This episode bluntly calls into question the professed "salvation" of some believers, based on a transactional, even mercenary view of Christianity. This superficial acceptance of Christianity acknowledges that Christ paid our sin-debt in full so that we would not have to pay those wages in hell. So a logical response, based on self-preservation, is to "accept" Christ. Well this simplistic mercenary picture of Christianity, where one sides with Christ SINGULARLY to escape consequences, does not correspond to the whole gospel presented in Scripture. While the fear of hell, the ultimate consequence of breaking God's Law, motivates a surface "acceptance" of Christ, genuine repentance and faith in Christ is the response of those who renounce their way in favor of God's Way, Christ Himself. Fear of consequences isn't their only motivation, but a genuine disgust with themselves coupled with devotion to Christ. This is precisely the dynamic present in the Psalm 119 where the psalmist turns to the Lord in faith because he loves God and His Law, though he has in fact suffered severe consequences for breaking God's Law. True believers would follow Christ even if the ultimate destination of heaven or hell wasn't an issue.
