“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” (John 3:14–15)
What was the best gift you have ever received? We might have a lot of different ideas about what makes a great gift, but think about it for a moment, what was the greatest gift ever given.
Think about a beautifully wrapped package. As you can probably guess by the way it is wrapped, there is a gift inside. Everyone likes to receive a gift. I can’t imagine anyone saying that they don’t enjoy receiving a gift. If someone were to give a package to you and you were asked, give me five dollars, would it be a gift? No, if you to pay for it or do something to receive it, it isn’t a gift. When someone gives you a gift, it doesn’t cost you anything. It doesn’t come with any conditions. All you have to do is accept it. That’s what makes it a gift.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not of your own doing, it is the gift of God, not the result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8)
What is that gift? It is the gift of eternal life. It is the gift of God and it was given to anyone who wants to receive it. The Bible 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.” Whoever –that’s you and I. The greatest gift of all is for you and me.
When someone gives you a gift, it is never polite to ask, “How much did it cost?” But in this case, the Bible tells us how much God’s gift cost and the cost was great. It cost God his only Son. Can you imagine how much God loved us to send his one and only Son to earth to die on a cross so that we could have eternal life? Can you imagine how much Jesus loved us to be willing to die on that cross so that we could have eternal life in heaven?
Eternal life – what a gift! All we have to do to receive it is believe and accept Jesus as our Savior.
We need to say Thank You, Father, for the greatest gift of all. Thank you for Jesus, who loved us so much that he paid the price for our sin to give us the gift of eternal life.
