Cash
the Check
By Susan Klein
“Two men owed money
to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other
fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts
of both.”
Luke
7: 41-42a (NIV)
While
waiting in line at the bank, I overheard the teller explain to the lady in
front of me, “I’m sorry ma’am, we cannot cash this check for you. You have
insufficient funds in your account to cover it.” In order to cash the check, she would have to
first make a deposit into her account. She left the bank - - check in hand.
I
pondered this as I waited my turn. I was holding a check that my daughter asked
me to deposit into her account for her while away at school. If I did not
deposit it for her, she could find herself in a similar situation, with
insufficient funds to pay her debts. She was counting on me to make that
deposit for her.
How
often do we view our spiritual life in this manner? After sinning, we feel left
with with a debt, which must somehow be paid. We try to write a check from our
storehouse of “good deeds,” hoping that we’ve banked enough of them to cover
over our offense. “I give to the poor, I serve at church, I don’t ever drink
excessively…that should count for something.”…until the next time we sin. If
the funds seem insufficient, we look for more good deeds to deposit into our
account, hoping it will be enough to cover our debt and please our Creditor.
But is it ever enough?
No.
It isn’t. We can’t ever satisfy the debt we owe to God for all of our sins. No
sacrifice is great enough, no amount big enough. We’ll always have
“insufficient funds” to cover our debt. However, the Creditor is not asking us
for payment. In fact, He knew a long time ago that we’d never have enough in
our account so He chose to make a deposit on our behalf. It cost Him dearly,
but He did it out of love. His deposit, unlike ours, is limitless. It keeps
replenishing, and can never be depleted. Any past, present or future debt has
already been covered by His magnanimous deposit. We’ve been given the great
riches of His grace and mercy, and we are free to draw on them at any time. No
more “debt,” no more “insufficient funds,” no more standing in line at the bank
wondering.
Go
ahead, don’t be afraid. Cash the check!
GOING
DEEPER:
1.
Do you know with certainty that your debts have been “paid in full” through the
cross of Jesus Christ?
(If not, consider reading http://www.oakwoodnow.org/resources/following-jesus.html) Are you living like it’s true?
FURTHER
READING:
Susan is married to
Mark, and has two adult children. She enjoys teaching Bible studies, writing,
and tutoring with the Literacy Council. She is a member of the Peace Team at
Oakwood.
