Driving just on the outskirts of town, your kids shout “Stop the car!” Your foot instinctively hits the brake, hands tighten around the steering wheel, eyes check all the mirrors, mind races through a handful of scenarios. Did you hit something? Is something about to hit you? Did Johnny throw your wallet out the window? What?
“We have to go back.”
“Why?”
“Because the sign in the yard said ‘FREE PUPPIES’!”
You chuckle and say something your kids don’t fully comprehend, “The sign says they’re free, but raising a puppy is NOT free.”
When you pass through the pages of the New Testament you can’t help but see the sign: FREE SALVATION. That’s right – Salvation is FREE. The apostle Paul says it is a “free gift” (Romans 6:23). The LORD proclaims in Revelation 21:6: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.” You can’t earn it, work for it, or pay for it – it is F-R-E-E. Believe it, accept it, confess it, immerse yourself in it. Come one, come all. The free gift of God’s grace is yours for the taking. The road paved to heaven by the blood of Christ is freely laid out for all believers to travel. Salvation is free!
However, the journey of following Christ comes with a cost. Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Mark 8:38). The cost may be higher than you expected. You should expect hardships and sacrifices that will require perspiration and perseverance.
Yes, salvation is free. Yes, following Jesus comes with a cost. But it is so worth it!
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