April 1 - How Much Does It Cost?

Isaiah 55:1
“Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”
 
We find in our verse today an invitation to “come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Those that were invited to the waters didn’t have any money, yet they were able to both buy and eat. This may seem a bit confusing.
 
How can a person buy and eat without paying a set price with money? The context of our passage today is that of salvation. Our verse today is an invitation to come and partake of the benefit of the Gospel of grace. What provision the grace of God is! Grace is unmerited favor. Within our verse the wine and milk was unearned. The partaker did not pay for it, but rather the Provider had paid the price.
 
Food costs money, and it only satisfies for a short period of time. But thanks be to God who offers us free nourishment for more than just our physical bodies, He nourishes our soul!
 
How much does it cost to be a Christian? It cost God His only begotten Son. It cost Jesus Christ His life. But it is a gift to you.
 
“For the wages of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
 
Gifts are given voluntarily, without payment in return or the need to be earned. God gave His Son, Jesus Christ. He paid the debt we owed.
 
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
 
How do we become a Christian? As we see in verse 1, we first have to come. We have to realize our need for a Saviour. In verse 3 we see we must listen, “Incline your ear, and come unto me”. We need to realize what Christ has provided for us. He came and died for us, so that we could spend eternity with Him. Verses 6-7 show us our need to call upon Jesus to save us and repent from our wicked ways.
 
“Seek the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” Isaiah 55:6-7
 
When we do this, the Lord will have mercy upon us and pardon us from the debt we owe because of our sin. 
 
God offers us salvation freely, but in order to have eternal life we must receive it. A Gift is of no use unless it is received, and it cannot be given unless it’s already been paid for.
 
Have you received this gift? If so, then why keep it to yourself? The gift of salvation is inexhaustible; it will never be out of stock.
 
That family member, that friend, needs to hear about the free gift that is waiting for them to receive. They may not know it is available, or they may need to hear the Truth once again.
 
Share the Gift with someone today. This Gift can change their life.
 
 
Bible Reading:
Deuteronomy 27-28  |  Acts 3  |  Psalm 61