A Debt We Can Never Repay

THEME: Jesus paid a debt we can never repay.

OBJECT: None is needed.

SCRIPTURE: "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. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." Luke 7:41-47 (NIV)

He was just a young boy, perhaps eight or nine years old. He was playing with a friend who let him ride his bicycle. After riding the bicycle for a while, the boy got off and parked it behind a car in the driveway. Soon, the lady who owned the car came out of the house and got in the car. She started the engine and began to back out of the driveway. You can guess what happened.

"CRUNCH!" The sound was unmistakable. Without looking, both boys knew what had happened. The lady had backed right over the bicycle. All that remained was a pile of twisted metal.

The lady jumped out of her car and began to apologize. "I am so sorry. I didn't see the bicycle. I will gladly pay to buy you another one."

What a relief! The boy's worries were over -- except for having to tell his dad.

The boy didn't really want to tell his father what had happened, but he knew he would find out anyway. When he told his father what had happened and that the lady who ran over the bicycle was going to buy his friend a new one, the father said, "No way, she did not do anything wrong. It was your fault. You are the one who is responsible."

The boy's heart sank. He didn't have the money to pay for the bicycle. All he had was a few dollars in his piggy bank.

Then the father looked at the boy and said, "Son, we all make mistakes. I know that you don't have the money to buy your friend a new bicycle. I will pay for the bicycle."

The little boy ran to his daddy, put his arms around his neck, and with tears running down his cheeks, he whispered in his daddy's ear, "Thank you, daddy. I love you!"

That is a good picture of what our Heavenly Father has done for us. We have all made mistakes -- the Bible calls them sins. The Bible tells us that our Father loved us so much that he sent his only Son to die on the cross to pay for our sins. There is no way that we could ever repay him for what he has done for us. All we can do is say, "Thank you" and try to show him how much we love him.

That is what today's Bible lesson teaches us. (Read Luke 7:41-47)

How often do you tell your heavenly Father that you love him? How do you show it?

Dear Father, we love you and we just want to say, "Thank you." You paid a debt we can never repay. Amen.

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