• Obstacles To Accepting The Gift

    By: Kristen L. McNulty

    Reprint rights available on request. Email the author at kristenmcnulty@hotmail.com.

    About a month ago I bought a new recliner. While the old recliner no longer fit my needs I knew it would have value for someone else and so I decided that instead of throwing it out or selling it, I would offer it to whoever wanted it for free. I didn’t give it much thought but was completely unprepared for what happened next. I posted an ad online, showing a photo of the chair, describing its condition and then said it was free to whoever wanted it as long as they could pick it up at a previously agreed upon time. I made it clear I was unable to offer free delivery. The responses I got to the ad, and there were many, fell into three categories.

    The First Group


    The first group of people couldn’t believe it was free and were convinced there was some sort of hidden agenda, so they wouldn’t take it.

    The Second Group


    The second group of people claimed to be interested, but wouldn’t follow through with accepting it. I scheduled four pick up times with different people and was home at all of those times, but no one showed.

    The Third Group


    The final group of people wanted the chair, but only on their own terms. One person wanted me to deliver it out of town. Numerous people wouldn’t agree to schedule an agreeable time to pick it up and wanted to just drop by with no notice whatsoever and expect me to be there. Someone else wanted me to hold onto it indefinitely for them. The list went on and on.

    What all three of these categories of people had in common is that they all missed out on the free gift. Whether it was because of disbelief, the lack of follow through, or the pride of wanting it only on their terms, they lost out. And while it teaches us something about human nature, it also is a small glimpse into explaining why so many people reject the ultimate gift God has to give them. Are you one of them?

    It’s Christmas time and whether or not you grew up in a church, you probably, like most people in our world, know the basics of the Christmas story. How God sent His Son Jesus into the world. The Bible sums it up profoundly in verses many of us know. John 3:16-17,

    "For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16-17)


    Obstacle To Accepting 1: Disbelief (It's Too Good to be True)


    You might know this, but have you accepted it? And if not, can I ask what’s stopping you? Is it disbelief? Thinking because it’s a free gift that cost you nothing, it’s too good to be true? Then listen to what the Bible has to say in Ephesians

    But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus. God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. (Ephesians 2:4-9)


    That is the Gospel in a nutshell, the good news we celebrate this Christmas. The gift of Jesus is offered freely through faith, so that none of us can take credit for it. It is free and the gift is yours for the taking. Will you accept it?

    Obstacle To Accepting 2: Lack of follow through


    Or maybe it’s not disbelief that’s holding you back, but the lack of follow through. You know the truth of who God is and you know what Jesus came to this earth to do, but you’ve never followed through on exploring it or accepting the gift. While it’s easy to put things off, thinking we have all the time in the world, the truth is not one of us knows how long it is we have on this earth. As such, can you really afford to put this off? If you have questions about Jesus, don’t shelve them, explore them! Pick up the Bible and start reading through the New Testament to learn more about who He is and what He has to say. Talk to a friend who believes about your hesitations. Do whatever you have to to really think this through. Because if Jesus is who He says He is, which I believe beyond any shadow of doubt, knowing what you believe about Him is literally the difference between death and life, between heaven and hell. 

    For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)


    Jesus offers salvation for free. It’s not a gift you want to wait to accept.

    Obstacle To Accepting 3: You Want To Do It Your Way


    Or maybe it’s not lack of follow through holding you back but pride. You are used to doing things your own way and that extends to God. Maybe you think the Bible is outdated and should be revised for your liking. Or maybe you think that your good works should be your way into heaven. I hate to break it to you, but God is God and you and I are not. It’s not up to Him to conform to what we want, it’s up to us to conform to what He does. A god who looks and feels and acts like we do is not the Lord our God, but an idol we’ve created. And idols can’t offer us eternal life and salvation, only God the Father through Jesus Christ can! Looking at Acts 17, starting at verse 28:

    For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.' And since this is true, we shouldn't think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone. "God overlooked people's ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead." (Acts 17:28-31)


    He has set a day for judging the world. And since we know He is going to judge us based on His standards, not ours, isn’t it time you considered what they are and followed them? It starts with a saving faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Don’t let your pride or wanting to do things your own way stop you from accepting the gift.

    The Gift Jesus Christ Offers For Free


    To make a long story short, the free recliner is still sitting in my basement because no one would accept it, but that doesn’t matter. What does matter is the gift Jesus Christ offers. That is the message of this season, the love, the hope, the light, the peace and the grace His brings. Don’t leave that gift unaccepted this Christmas. Sin put a gap between us and God but Jesus Christ came to build a bridge across that chasm. You can spend your whole life on the other side away from God or you could spend all your time and energy trying to build a bridge based on good works or your own standard that is only going to come up short in the end. Or you could choose to accept the gift of Jesus that is the bridge across. 

    Closing with how we accept the gift from the book of Romans,

    If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced." (Romans 10:9-11)


    Declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved. You will have received the gift. Have questions? Feel free to reach out by emailing madradioshow@hotmail.com.

    Return To The Impact Devotional Archive