Gifts
I just had my “big” b-day. I won’t tell you how big, but trust me – it was big! So much so I decided to fly out of town and spend the day on a 4-wheeler cruising around the mountain tops of Wyoming reliving my youth. The occasion made me think about gift-giving. Why do people have such issues receiving gifts? Especially if they don’t have one for the other person.
As soon as we get a gift from someone that we weren’t expecting we say something like, “Oh – you shouldn’t have.” Another response is, “I didn’t know, and I didn’t get you anything. I feel awful!” Or if we get them something simple and they get us a really good gift, (you know the kind you won’t re-gift) then we feel even smaller.
Have you ever showed up to a party with a greeting card when everyone else brought a fancy present? I have and I wanted to slowly crawl away. I hid in the back hoping no one will notice. The white elephant exchange is another event when I never know what to expect. Aren’t you supposed to bring a gag gift or something funny? The last one I went to seemed more about who could outdo the last person with the most elaborate gift until someone opened my “As seen on TV wet mop.” Again, a crawl away moment…
Since humans tend to struggle with receiving tangible gifts, do you think that’s why we as people have trouble receiving God’s gift of forgiveness and salvation? If we can’t accept even a simple candle from someone, then how could we accept Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to pay for our own sins and the offer to spend eternity in heaven?
Do we live our lives as if that gift hasn’t been offered and then we don’t have to think about it? Do we just go about our daily business and ignore the gift of grace and mercy that awaits our acceptance?
I heard a story once that put it into perspective. You are enjoying a meal at a nice restaurant and from across the room you see a father with his children. You get an idea and want to do something nice for them. You immediately ask your waiter to charge all of their meals to your bill – whatever the cost.
Unbeknownst to the man of your act of kindness, he requests his bill, but the waiter tells him it was already paid. The man firmly insists to the waiter to pay for his own charges. The manager hears the conversation and comes over to explain that the bill was already paid in full and he can’t pay for something twice. The man didn’t earn such kindness and would have felt better if he could at least have paid for his own family, but there was nothing left to pay.
This is similar to Christ dying on the cross for our sins – a free gift of grace, mercy and love. The sacrificial gift that only had to occur once. The only thing God asks in return is that we believe Him, thank Him and accept his offer of salvation.
God doesn’t ask us for an account of what we did to deserve the gift. He doesn’t ask us to give anything back to Him. He doesn’t remind us all of the things we have done wrong that make the gift more special. Amazingly enough, so many people still continue to refuse God’s gift.
Why? Maybe they don’t accept the gift because their circumstances are difficult, and they are so busy blaming God for their situation that they can’t see His gift. Henry Blackaby wrote, “Don’t let circumstances determine Christ’s love for you – his love for you was settled on the Cross.”
Is the mere fact of accepting an underserved gift that hard for us as people? Or is it that we think we don’t deserve the gift because of our actions. Let’s face it, we live in a - you scratch my back and I scratch yours - world.
Even though the bill was paid by Jesus, we continue to try to pay the bill again and again when He said once was enough. One time for complete forgiveness, one time to prove His love.
John 3:16-17 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
What if we just can’t believe? Doesn’t an unmerited gift of that magnitude warrant us taking the time to search for ourselves to see if what Jesus offers is for real?
The question I would leave you with if you still struggle to accept Christ’s gift is, “What if your wrong?” Remember, eternity is at stake - - it will either be the most precious gift you ever accept or the costliest gift you refuse.
Diana