Debt Canceled
Back in August of 2019, Chase Bank did something for its Canadian credit cardholders that is unprecedented; it completely and utterly wiped their debt away! Isn’t that amazing?! Especially when you consider the fact that there had to be some customers that had maxed out their card.
Can you imagine what some felt like when they got the letter from the Chase Bank? Some may have thought it was the bank coming down hard on them, only to find out that their record had been cleared!
What would that feel like? Can you imagine it? It shouldn’t be hard for us to imagine, right? For we have, by faith, received the grace of God extended to us through the Lord Jesus Christ. By His sacrifice, we are completely and utterly forgiven. Our debt to a holy God has been completely wiped clean!
Slave To The Lender
Earl Wilson once wrote:
In this world there are three kinds of people: the haves, the have-nots, and the have-not-paid-for-what-they-haves.
[Earl Wilson, born Harvey Earl Wilson, was an American journalist, gossip columnist and author, perhaps best known for his nationally syndicated newspaper column, It Happened Last Night.]
Proverbs 22:7 says, "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender." Many of us believe slavery ended a long time ago, but we are not as free as we think. The rich rule over the poor because the poor borrow their money. We have become slaves to our lenders, not able to make a move or a decision without thinking about how much we owe or how we're going to pay our bills.
Be Sure To Get A Receipt
"On one occasion the infamous outlaw Jesse James (1847-1882) and his gang sought food and rest at a lonely farmhouse. The woman there gave them what food she could and apologized for the poor hospitality. A widow and deeply in debt, she was even then waiting for the debt collector to visit her to demand $1400, which she could not possibly afford to pay. Jesse James had the spoils of one of his bank raids with him. He gave the astonished woman enough money to pay off her debt, telling her to be sure to get a receipt from the debt collector. Then he and his gang withdrew to watch the road leading to the farm house. Along came the debt collector, looking very grim. A short while later he emerged from the farm, looking altogether more pleased with himself. Jesse James and his men stopped him, recovered their $1400, and rode off."
Bartlett's Book of Anecdotes
As the old gospel tune goes, "I owed a debt that I could not pay. He paid a debt that he did not owe." The only problem is, Jesse James took back the payment!
Jesus, on the other hand, paid our debt in full, "by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands." And the receipt, well, He "nailed it to the cross" (Colossians 2:14, ESV).
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