"Just a Minute"* associate
editor John Leach** has been cleaning out his wallet and came upon his American
Express credit card. John looked at it and realized that there was a little
message to share with our readers.
Better than a "Gold Card"
My American Express Gold Card bill arrived in the mail yesterday. Wow! Had I
really spent that much? The American Express credit card system amazes me. It
doesn't matter how much I spend or what I buy, Mr American Express guarantees
that he will pay for it. Unlike other credit cards, there is no credit limit.
That's right, I can buy or spend what ever I want. Go any place, do anything and
Mr Amx picks up the tab. But there's a catch.
The dreaded monthly bill.
Mr Amx wants his money by return mail. No extended credit terms. If I don't
pay, he puts his fingers into my checking account and takes the money anyway.
God has a Gold Card and He calls it Jesus Christ. The advertising agencies
would call it the "Christ Card."
I guess if you are anything like me, you probably owe God plenty. It doesn't
matter how hard I try, I always seem to do the things I don't want to do or
don't do the things I should do. The Bible has a name for it - sin.
In God's economy, sin is pretty expensive and the cost is everlasting death.
In fact, sin is so expensive that I have no way of ever repaying God for it.
Try some good deeds, you say. Sorry, as much as I could try, there would never
be enough. How about spending lots of time at Church. Wrong again. There could
never, ever be enough time in Church and besides churches are for worship,
they're not Automatic Teller Machines. How can you ever make it up or repay God?
You can't.
Unlike Mr American Express who wants payment by return mail, God pays my
bill for me. He does it through the "Christ Card" system.
Isn't this fantastic. God (Like Mr. American Express) demands to be paid and
then turns around and pays the bill himself. He pays by sending his own Son,
Jesus Christ, to die in my place on the Cross as payment for my sins. That's
what I call pretty good credit terms - I play and God pays.
And just to prove that my "sin" bill has been paid in full, Jesus
Christ actually comes back from that place of eternal death to give his personal
guarantee that I will never ever be ask to pay up for anything in the past - or
in the future.
If it comes to a choice between my "Gold Card" and my "Christ
Card", I know which one I'll keep. Sorry Mr American Express, I had a
better offer.
*"Just a Minute" is an
internationally distributed devotional series of newspaper articles and e-mails
by the Christian Writers Group.
(Romans 5:15-21 NKJV) "But the free gift is not
like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace
of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many.
{16} And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For
the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free
gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. {17} For if by the
one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive
abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through
the One, Jesus Christ.) {18} Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment
came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous
act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. {19} For
as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's
obedience many will be made righteous. {20} Moreover the law entered that the
offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, {21} so
that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to
eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
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