This is how Webster's online dictionary defines a GIFT:
2: something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation
I don't know anyone, at least within my web of relationships anyway, who does not like getting gifts. A gift can bring a certain amount of happiness and even touch someone's heart.
As military personnel they warned us that the Japanese like to give gifts and if you give a gift in return they feel obligated to give a better gift and so on. They call this a gift war. If you find yourself in a gift war the way out is to stop giving gifts. Fore warned was fore armed and, though I had a great time trading hats and decks of cards, etc. the gift giving with my host was benign. In the end he gave to me a beautiful geisha doll that is in my house to this day. It was a special gift to me and I will never forget my two week stent in Japan.
The thing about gifts is that they are useless to the one the gift is given to unless they accept the gift.
Every year my wife's grandfather gives each of us cash instead of gifts in the traditional sense. What good would it do me if I did not reach out and accept the money that was given to me? It is not given because it is owed to me nor is it given because I deserve it but out the goodness of granddad's heart, something voluntarily transferred by one person to another WITHOUT compensation. J
In a similar way God offers each one of us a gift. It costs us nothing and is voluntarily transferred from Him to us WITHOUT compensation. In fact, there is no way we could ever deserve this gift even if we are good.
God's word says clearly that all of our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. We cannot do enough good things to earn what God has set for us as a standard to enter heaven. Perfection is His standard and His word also says that there has never been, no one currently, nor will there ever be anyone who can meet His ridged requirements for entering His presence.
One notable exception: Jesus God's own Son. He came to this earth, faced the same temptations as we do but without sin, a spotless lamb who then voluntarily laid down His life freely so that He could meet the righteous requirements of God's standard. Without this gift we cannot hope to spend eternity with God in Heaven. If you believe you need to do good things to please God and thus get into Heaven here are some questions for you to ponder: How many good things do you have to do? What is the standard? How do you know when you get there? Does one bad thing you do nullify the good things you have done? How far would you fall into the "hole" if you did one bad thing? God's word says that if you trust Him and accept his free gift through faith in Jesus you do not have to worry about doing things to please Him because Jesus did all the work for us as a perfect sacrifice.
Ephesians 2:8-10 says this quite succinctly:
"8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do".
These good works spoken of here are not to win God's favor but an expression of thanksgiving for what God has done for us. What a great gift! It costs us nothing but it cost God everything.
Think about these words today and if you find you need peace and freedom from the things this world offers as freedom accept God's gift and you will begin a journey that leads to peace and contentment even in this world.
Good bye for now!
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