What’s the most memorable Gift you’ve ever received?

Whatever it was, it probably wasn’t something bought for you in a panic at the last minute.

More likely, the gift you remember most involved time or trouble on the part of the giver.

Perhaps your child presented you with something that they’d painstakingly fashioned themselves.

Or maybe your spouse had a piece of jewellery custom made for you that they’d had a hand in designing.

Or a friend spent months searching high and low for a hard-to-find collector’s item that you’d always wanted, and finally tracked one down.

The present was especially meaningful for you because the time and trouble the giver went to were part of the gift.

Did you know that Jesus has given you a gift? And it isn’t something He picked up at the mall on Christmas Eve.

He offers you the gift of eternal life.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God [that is, His remarkable, overwhelming gift of grace to believers] is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 AMP)

As far as price goes, this gift cost Him everything. He gave up His life so that your sins may be forgiven.

You could say that Jesus went to a great deal of trouble for this gift, too. He was beaten, scourged, mocked and abandoned.

And what about time?

This wasn’t a last-minute present. And it didn’t just involve the time it took Jesus to be born on earth and grow into a man: it was far more than 33 years in the making.

Scripture tells us that Jesus was slain before the foundation of the world. Since before time began, Jesus had been walking inexorably toward that Cross.

He put eternity into that gift, and He offers it to you for free.

“But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through…Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:15)

“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.” (Ephesians 2:8)

The gift Jesus bought for you on the Cross involved immense cost, time and trouble: these things were all part of the gift.

That’s why for Christians it is the most Memorable Gift conceivable!

© 2021 Lori J. Cartmell. All rights reserved.