CHECK
OUT THIS PHONE BILL

Topics: Atonement; Debt; Dependence on God; Grace; Guilt; Human Condition; Limitations; Powerlessness; Salvation; Spiritual Poverty

References: Isaiah 64:6; Matthew 18:21–35; John 14:6; Romans 3:23; 6:23; Ephesians 2:8–9

When Yahaya Wahab’s father passed away in January 2006, Yahaya had his father’s phone disconnected and paid the final bill of 84 ringgit (approximately $23) to Telekom Malaysia. He was then surprised to receive another bill from the phone company in April. He was utterly shocked, however, after looking at what was inside.

It was a bill for 806,400,000,000,000.01 ringgit (approximately $218 trillion), along with a threatening letter informing Yahaya that he must pay the bill within ten days or face prosecution. It wasn’t initially clear whether the monstrous charge was a mistake or if Yahaya’s father’s phone line had been used illegally after his death. What was immediately clear, however, was that the bill represented a debt that Yahaya would never be able to pay.

—Associated Press, “Man Gets $218 Trillion Phone Bill,” Chicago Tribune (April 10, 2006)