Okay, Christmas is over...whew.....love the meaning and worship of my Lord.....get tired of all the hustle and bustle! But, the tree is down, the decorations are put away, and the house is clean...aaahhh....that's what I'm talking about! I'm sure, as I did, you had a wonderful holiday, and got so much more than you deserve! I am so humbled by how good God is! But, how many of you received a gift that you just aren't so sure you will ever use...or that you even like?
Ephesians 2:8 says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.".....the amplified version says, "For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation) through (your) faith. And this (salvation) is not of yourselves (of your own doing, it came not through your own striving) but it is a gift of God." WOW! That is a lot to take in, so meditate on that verse for a while.
I got to thinking about that gift...and gifts I had received in the past. Have you ever received a gift and then just laid it aside, and never used it? My grandmother was a professional gift taker, lol. She had a whole bedroom that was in honor of this quality of hers. After she passed away, we felt like we were at Wal-mart in that room....all the gifts that all the family had given her all through the years, right there...opened....received....but never used! O my goodness....what all kinds of trinkets she could have enjoyed if she had only tried them!!
Isn't that like the gift of salvation? I see so many that have said they believe in God all their lives, but that is as far as it goes. And meanwhile, Satan loves it! He doesn't care that you believe in God, he doesn't even care that you say you want to be saved.....he just wants to keep you busy doing your own thing so you run out of time! What good is that great sacrifice that our Lord gave for us to have eternal life, if we never open His gift and use it??? Romans 6:23 proclaims, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
You believe in God....that's great............now open His free gift and use it....enjoy it! You will never wear it out, and you will never run out of things to learn about it! I praise the name of the Lord, that when I was a 7 year old little girl I accepted that gift.........sad to say I just put that gift in the spare bedroom of my soul....as my grandmother did with all her gifts.........but so thankful that I finally realized what I did receive, and opened that free gift and now am using it every minute of every day!!!!! Thank you Jesus, for dying on an old rugged cross so that I would receive eternal life through your horrible pain and sacrifice! I've never been sorry for opening that gift!!!
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