"I prayed for a bike, but then I realised God doesn't work like that, so I stole a bike and prayed for forgiveness instead."
Perhaps you've heard this joke before. Being experienced in apologetics, I certainly have. Atheists often use it to mock Christianity, both for the fact God rarely answers prayers prayed with the wrong motive (James 4:3), and for the fact that forgiveness is free.
In other words, no, God doesn't work like that. God isn't just going to throw a bike at your feet just because you happen to feel like you want one. But at the same time, if we think He'll tolerate us stealing things, we're kidding ourselves. Paul tells us "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" (Romans 6:1-2).
Imagine a bucket of someone else's diarrhoea. This isn't a pleasant thought, is it? Now, if I told you that you are free to take a long, warm shower with the world's most effective soap immediately after, would you be willing to let me pour the entire bucket over your head? Please, please, please say no. As Christians, we know the toxic nature of sin. We ought to see it as being worse than such a bucket. Who takes a shower only to pour that bucket right over our heads again? Who pours that bucket over our heads just because we know that shower is available?
As Christians, we are perfectly safe from wrath. There is no sin you can commit that God cannot forgive. And unfortunately, we are guaranteed to keep sinning (1 John 1:8). And thankfully, when we do that, Jesus advocates for us (1 John 2:1). But this grace, as Paul indicates, is intended to be a safety net, not a hammock. Being a Christian naturally means being done with sin, even if sin is not done with us.