GIVER OF A FREE GIFT
1. Out of curiosity I logged on to the Internet and typed in the word “free.”
2. In less than a second the search engine Google came up with 178 million web sites.
3. This service said that this number is approximate.
4. We live in a country and a time when people tell us that things are free.
5. Most of us have received several types of “free” offers that were actually not free.
6. An envelope may arrive in the mail that says “free CD’s.”
7. We know that they are not free.
8. Teresa and I received a magazine offer some time ago.
9. This offer said we could receive a publication for a few months at no charge.
10. The company would call us and inquire if we wanted to keep it after the trial period.
11. We took the free months but the company didn’t call us.
12. They tried to bill us for a year’s subscription.
13. In thinking about the free offers that are made I thought a call to the BBB might be instructive.
14. The operator who took my call put me on touch with on of their representatives.
15. My helper at the BBB said, “Let me tell you how the free cruises work.”
16. Most
of us have heard about the free cruises to the
17. This
lady said the first cost is getting to
18. Here is the part that we are not told.
19. The boat that people take is probably going to be a gambling boat.
20. Since a high percentage of the population gambles, people pay for their tickets at the tables.
21. After
people get to the
22. These rooms are frequently dirty, without running water, and do not have a bathroom.
23. For a “reasonable fee” travelers can be upgraded to a room with a public bathroom.
24. For most of us the word free does not mean very much.
25. This is unfortunate because the Bible uses the word free.
26. Here are some of the references.
27. The
truth makes us free (Jn.
28. The
Son of Man makes us free (Jn.
29. Grace
is a free gift (Rom.
30. Eternal
life is a free gift (Rom.
AS CHRISTIANS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT WORDS IN OUR
VOCABULARY SHOULD BE THE WORD FREE.
IN EPH. 1:6 PAUL SAID TO THE PRAISE OF THE
GLORY OF HIS GRACE, WHICH HE FREELY BESTOWED ON US.
A. I have met members of the church who seem to be somewhat timid about using the word free.
B. In the spiritual realm some seem to think that this is a bad word.
C. It seems that some are almost afraid to apply the word “free” to Christianity.
D. The word free is a Bible word and thus this term needs to be in our vocabularly.
E. God’s grace is free.
F. Eternal life is free.
G. Salvation is a free gift.
2. About ten years ago I had a Bible study with a man who worshipped in a denomination.
3. This man was a bit perplexed.
4. In a very gentle and kind way he expressed his confusion.
5. He
said that on the one hand I believed Rom.
6. On the other hand, I teach that people must believe, repent of their sins, confess Christ, and be baptized.
7. He affirmed that these things cannot go together.
8. In other words, he said I believed that salvation is both free and not free.
9. If it is free (as I said) that meant no conditions can be involved.
10. If conditions are involved then grace and salvation are not free.
11. This man compared his objection to Christmas.
12. He said, “Suppose you tell a child that he has some Christmas gifts under the tree.”
13. “You tell the child that every one of the gifts is free.”
14. “The child is then told this.”
15. “Before you get the gifts you must clean your room, do the dishes, and sweep the floor.”
16. This man said that “In a case such as this the gifts would not be free.”
17. “Paul said that salvation is a free gift so there are no conditions to receiving it.”
18. This man’s argument was exactly right except for one small detail.
19. Romans
20. This passage was quoted moments ago.
21. Let’s
look at it one more time. – READ Rom.
22. Is eternal life free? Yes.
23. There is no question that eternal life is a free gift.
24. If we look closely at this entire verse we find a fact that many people overlook.
25. Notice that this free gift is for a certain group of people.
26. Eternal life is free to the people who are in Christ.
27. The free gift is for people who are part of a certain group.
28. If we are in the group this is free.
29. If we are not in the group we do not have access to this free gift.
30. The free life described by Paul is only found in Jesus.
A. How do we get into Jesus?
B. We must believe but faith alone does not put us into the Lord.
C. We must repent but repentance alone does not put us into the Lord
D. We must confess Christ but confession alone does not put us into the Lord.
E. In
Gal.
F. This is consistent with the first verses in Rom. 6.
G. We are “baptized into Christ” (Rom. 6:3).
H. If we want to be “in Christ” we must take some steps – faith, repentance, confess, & bap.
31. Once we enter into Christ we have access to everything that God has for His people.
32. Earlier in this lesson I cited Eph. 1:6.
33. I want to now read this verse in its entirety – READ
34. Paul spoke of God’s grace.
35. He said that this grace had been bestowed freely.
36. Notice who the recipients of this grace were.
37. At the end of verse Paul said it is bestowed on those who are “in the beloved.”
38. This is another way of saying “in Christ, in Jesus, in the Lord.”
39. In life some see the word free and stop reading.
40. This same type of approach is sometimes taken with scripture.
41. People see words like “free gift” and don’t read or think about the rest of the verse.
42. The free gifts that God has for His people are only given to those who are in Christ.
43. We enter into Christ through baptism and stay in Christ by being faithful to the Lord’s word.
44. MOST OF THE FREE GIFTS AND OFFERS THAT ARE MADE IN THE WORLD ARE WORTHLESS. THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS, BUT MOST FREEBIES ARE EITHER JUNK OR THINGS THAT HAVE LITTLE VALUE.
A. This morning I would like for us to think about Jesus in a new way.
B. The Lord is someone who gives things away for free.
C. If we are in His body (in Christ), Jesus freely gives us things.
D. He freely gives us many things.
E. Someone may say, “What do you mean? What is free?”
F. One free gift we enjoy is described by Col. 1:13.
G. Prior to becoming a Christian the Bible says that people are in darkness.
H. Many who are unsaved do not really realize their spiritual condition.
I. It is a common thing for unsaved people to think they are okay.
J. Here is what Paul wrote to some people who had been saved by the Lord.
K. Col. 1:13 – READ
L. At some point in life most of us will be rescued.
M. We may be in a car accident and need someone to rescue us.
N. We may need the services of a tow truck.
O. Many call on doctors and nurses to rescue them from a life threatening medical condition.
P. People call upon the fire and police departments to rescue them from danger.
Q. In life most rescues are not free.
I). If we call out the tow truck we expect to pay.
II). If someone at the hospital comes to our aid there is going to be a charge.
III). Many fire departments charge for their services.
IV). In Col. 1:13 the Bible says that Jesus Christ rescues people.
V). The people who are unsaved are in the clutches of Satan.
VI). Those who are lost are in darkness.
VII). When people are outside of Christ they are in a dangerous place.
VIII). Yet, the Bible says that Jesus is willing to take souls away from the devil.
IX). Jesus is willing to rescue us from man’s worst enemy and He does this for free.
X). If we love and obey the Lord our rescue is without charge.
XI). Jesus saves us without charge when we obey Him.
XII). When we obey Him we are in Christ and every spiritual blessing is ours for free.
45. What else does Jesus freely give to His people?
46. He provides free legal services for us (1 Tim. 2:5) – READ.
47. Jesus is like a lawyer (attorney).
48. When we sin He pleads our case before the Father.
49. If we think of Jesus as a lawyer we must say that He is the best in His field.
50. In fact, there is a sense in which He is the only one in this field.
51. On earth this type of legal representation, if we could get it, would be very costly.
52. Jesus provides this service to His people at no charge.
53. He is available 24 hours a day and He it doesn’t cost us a dime.
54. This is one more example of God’s free grace and goodness for those who are in Christ.
55. In
Rom.
56. God has given His Son to the world.
57. The greatest sacrifice known to man has been made.
58. This caused Paul to ask, “Will not God give us all things freely?”
59. If we are in Christ the answer to this question is “yes.”
60. If we are not in Christ, and we are guilty of sin, the answer is “no.”
61. The most important thing in the world is to be “in Christ.”
62. If we are in Christ we have it all and God’s gifts are free.
63. Those who are outside of Christ have nothing.
64. Are we in Christ?
65. Have we been baptized in water to be joined to the Lord?
66. Are we abiding in Christ by living the best Christian life we can?