No Charge

Y

es!  There was something in my mailbox.  A quick look through the small window in my post office box revealed one envelope and it was letter sized.  Perhaps Ed McMahon had finally come through on his promise to pay me 10 million dollars.  I quickly fumbled through the combination, threw open the door and withdrew the envelope.  It did have something to do with money.  But instead of someone giving me money, the envelope in my hand came from my credit card company and they were asking for money.

It seems my mailbox always has letters from some guy named “Bill” who is always asking for money.  He writes very regularly and he must really be in dire straights. He has several addresses and some of his stationery is quite pretty.  However, his notes are very impersonal and he always ends by demanding I send him money within 30 days.  Ever been there?

I opened my credit card statement and ran down the list of charges.  They were all correct except for the very last one.  There was a charge there I didn’t recall making.  In fact, the company’s name didn’t ring a bell.  I wondered if someone had somehow acquired my credit card number and used it.  I got back to my dorm room and called the company responsible for making the charge.  In a few moments, my fears were confirmed.  They had no record of my name or phone number but they had charged my account nonetheless.  They apologized and began an investigation.

I picked up the phone and called my credit card company.   They asked a few questions and then told me I wouldn’t be responsible for the charge.  The representative on the phone also promised a full investigation would be conducted to ascertain how this had occurred.  Before we finished the conversation, the man from the credit card company said, “Don’t worry Mr. Carpenter.  There will be no charge!.”  I was relieved and grateful.

The Apostle Paul understood what it was to be falsely accused. He knew full well what it meant to have things charged to his account that he had nothing to do with.  Each time something like this happened, Paul remembered God’s promise through Jesus, that all his debt was cancelled and that he lived his life by faith in the Son of God.  In Romans 8:33 Paul reminds us of this great truth, “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.”

What a wonderful promise from God this is.  We are accountable and answerable to God only.  When we sin, we must answer to him and bear the consequences of our actions.  However, when we are falsely accused, when we are misunderstood, when others seek to tear us down by making false accusations or attacking our character, God simply reminds us that these charges do not stick.  When Satan makes his accusations, reminding us of everything we’ve ever done wrong, God simply says, “No Charge!” 

Paul is right, God does not lay anything to our charge as long as we are in Christ Jesus.  This does not mean we have free reign to live our lives any way we wish.  But it does mean that when we belong to God, when we follow after him, seek his will, and do his will, then no one can bring anything to our charge because God justifies us. 

The legitimate charges on my bill belong to me and are my responsibility.  But the faulty charges, those placed there by someone else will not stick.  The credit card company does not hold them against me.  Isn’t in wonderful to know and serve a God who also takes care of us and makes sure that our accounts are always in good standing?  Isn’t it wonderful to know that God reminds us there is no charge?!