Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
How much forgiveness was given to us when Jesus died on His cross? In a story that Jesus told, He explained it so clearly that a child can understand.
"A certain king" found that his servant owed "ten thousand talents," obviously an expression intended to mean an impossibly enormous sum. The servant "was unable to pay"--he had nothing. So the "master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt" (Matt. 18:23-35). Imagine an electronic transfer of funds; the king's account debited, the servant's, credited.
Now think of "all men" being likewise credited--you have a penniless "king." So was Christ "penniless" on His cross--"forsaken" of the Father, bearing the debt of "every man's" sin in His soul, "made to be sin for us," "all men." An infinite transfer of credit!
The "servant" promises in old covenant terms, "I will pay you all," and his master, "moved with compassion," treats him with new covenant "much more abounding grace." But the servant then demands "a hundred denarii" from his neighbor, thus demonstrating he does not receive the forgiveness, although it was truly given him.
The king's account was drained by the debit of what He gave His servants; He had given away all His righteousness, "emptied Himself." The servant cannot reverse the transaction, for it was "done" (the cry on the cross was, "It is done!"). But he takes the debt back on himself voluntarily, and totally, unnecessarily must from now on deal with "the torturers" until he shall "pay all that was due" (which of course, will never be).
So in the final judgment, when the lost die the second death, they can never "pay" the debt of sin they owe; they can't. Christ already paid it, even though they have never repented. "By grace" they had been saved, but like Esau with his birthright, they had thrown away what "the king" had given them.
--Robert J. Wieland
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 8, 2002.
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