One thing you may not know about me is this…..I am a Christmas movie freak. I love everything from the classics like "It's a wonderful life" and "Miracle on 34th Street", to modern ones like "The Grinch", "Jingle all the way" (I know the acting sucks and the movie is kinda lame, but it's filmed in Minneapolis!!), and the greatest Christmas movie of all time………..
"National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation". My wife and I were trying to pick one to watch the other night and we decided on "Christmas with the Kranks". Let's just say it didn't win any awards from the Academy the year it came out, but it has it's moments. Towards the end of the movie, Tim Allen has a pair of tickets for an all expense paid vacation that he has decided he is not going to use. He ends up going to his neighbor's house to offer them up to the man and his wife. So Tim tells the couple that he wants to give them these tickets as a gift. His neighbors are obviously very excited about the offer, but they reject the tickets. There is more conversation and Tim offers them up again. The couple shyly turn them down again. As I was watching the movie, I was thinking to myself…"I would do the same thing…I would have turned them down too".
The reason why, however, is sad.
I have a problem believing that anything is free. I know it's cynical, but you know exactly what I'm talking about. You see an advertisement for something "free" and the first thing you do is look for the small print. Or someone calls your home to try and offer you a "free" 3 night stay in Orlando. The only thing you have to do is go and listen to a talk about a product they are offering (like your time does not cost you anything). Usually the first thing people say after hearing the words "It's free", is "What's the catch"?
That’s because we know how the game is played. There are always strings attached!
That's why the couple kept refusing the 2 "free" vacation tickets in the movie. Because "free" doesn't really mean "free" anymore. Nothing is free.
Well, almost nothing…………….
I know of a gift that has absolutely no strings attached. I am aware of something that has the word "free" all over it, and I know for a fact that "free" in this case, means "FREE". This gift does not require you to listen to a 3 hour speech about how cool a product is, in order for the gift to be yours. It does not require that you buy one to get this one "free".
2,000 years ago Jesus came down to Earth, to live among us, and to die for us.
His death on a bloody stump, has given you and I the opportunity to own this gift for ourselves. The beauty is that there is no catch. There are no strings attached. The gift is there for the taking……the only thing you need to do is accept it. I am speaking of course of the gift of salvation. It can be yours for free. Jesus already did all the hard work. Just ask Him to be the leader of your life and invite Him into your heart. It's free.
So…….what do you have to lose? Will you take the gift and give it a try?
At least open the wrapping paper. Hang onto the receipt and if you try Him out for a couple of months and nothing happens, then take it back, but I am willing to bet everything that if you give Him an honest try that you will be amazed by what He does to your life.
No strings, no fine print, just a free gift for you.
What are you going to do?
