Overcharged
March 2, 2009 • By Ed Wrather
03.02.09
And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near. - Luke 21:25-28.
But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down (overcharged - KJV) with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. - Luke 21:34-36.
Juan Zamora was overcharged a little when he put some gasoline in his Camaro in Richland, Washington. Juan had $90 left on his debit card, and he thought that would be more than enough for the fill up; and it would have been, if he had only been charged the correct amount which was $26. After receiving an email that his debit card was maxed out after the purchase, Juan called to find out about it. What Juan found out was that he had been overcharged $81,400,836,882!! Eventually, he was able to convince customer service that it would not have been possible for him to have purchased that much fuel. No one seems to know what went wrong, but Juan thinks he will just pay with cash in the future.
The word overcharge or overcharged has a couple of definitions: (1. An excessive charge or price; (2. A load or burden that is too full or heavy. For the Christian there is a cost involved for "carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life." Now it is obvious that the Christian should not be carousing or even be in a drunken state but what about the "cares of this life?" Even if we are Christians we have cares, and even some concerns in life. In the parallel account in Matthew 24:37-39 Jesus says, "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." In the time of Noah the people were preoccupied with trivial things and neglected spiritual concerns. The time that we are now living in is very similar to that of Noah’s.
What is the charge, the overcharge, the cost of living life for the trivial and ignoring the more important spiritual matters? That the "Day come on you unexpectedly." What is the "Day"? When we "see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory (Luke 21:27)." To live life oblivious to the fast approaching time of the coming of our Lord will be costly. We will feel like those little trivial things of life have cost us far more than the $81 billion that Juan was overcharged. Now is the time for us to live our lives fully for our Lord. Now is the time to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33)." Now is the time to be "steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58)."
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