Good Wednesday morning! I am glad that God is near you on this fine morning! What do you get when you ask for help? In a church you may get help, advice, a gift of prayer on your behalf, or even become the subject of the latest gossip. Churches are not all perfect. Some have the right response, others not so much. When you cry out for help in prayer, you may get a yes, a no, or a wait. In the world you might get no response at all. But that isn't the end of the story for the world. God sent along this verse for us today.
"He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world." 1 John 2:2
Jesus died for our sins. We believe in Jesus and we are reminded of that by the Holy Spirit. What is this about the world though? Does everyone get a free ride whether they believe in Jesus or not? From this verse, you might think so. A non-believer might even try to claim the benefits for himself. However, we also know that there is much more to the Bible. What this verse speaks to is the perfection of Christ's sacrifice on the cross. No one was excluded from his propitiation; no one need fear rejection by coming to Christ. Jesus died once for the sin of all, and then he wrapped up a perfect gift.
Imagine coming to Jesus, repenting of your sin and asking forgiveness. Not only does Jesus grant you his forgiveness of sin, but he also hands you a gift. Inside that perfectly wrapped box is his gift of grace. As you look up in gratitude, you see this huge pile of gifts beside Jesus ready to be opened.
"Who are these for?" you ask the Savior.
"I have made one gift for every person ever conceived," Jesus tells you.
You look, but have no way to count all the unopened gifts remaining. You have to wonder how many people have yet to be born. Though you cannot count the gifts, you can see that there is an end to the pile.
But hold on, over on the other side you notice some angels taking some of the gifts away. The angels appear sad, like they are doing a job they would rather not.
"What are they doing with those other gifts, Lord?" you ask Jesus.
"Those are the gifts that will never be opened. I died for their sins, but they refused to believe in me," our Lord says sadly.
"Why didn't you just hand them your gift, Lord?" you want to know.
"My child, it wouldn't be a gift if I forced it on them," Jesus says, "Everyone can come to me for the forgiveness of sin, but no one will be forced to acknowledge me until the end."
"Will no one tell them of this great gift then Lord?" you ask, remembering your loved ones.
"Those who believe in me on the Earth are spreading my Good News even now," the Lord responds with joy. "Look behind you!"
As you look, here they come; the sinners of the Earth in their thousands. Each one coming to receive his or her gift of grace from the Master. Jesus turns to greet every one of them.
I don't claim to know how exactly we will be greeted in Heaven, but this little fantasy this morning does illustrate the most basic choice we have in this life: believe in Jesus and accept his gift, or try to ignore Him and receive nothing. Wait, you mean that those who choose to ignore Jesus don't receive Hell as their reward? No, we are all bound for Hell without the saving grace of Jesus. They receive nothing because they already have their reward.
Trust in Jesus for your salvation!
Bucky
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