Expired

Ron Writes

To thank their customers, my cell phone company offers gifts and coupons each week. Recently, there was a coupon for free bon-bites at Cinnabon. Now I love Cinnabon. They are the Cadillac of the Cinnamon roll world. However, since I’ve been cutting back on sugar, I was going to let it pass. Then, there was that irresistible word “free,” so I signed up. Maybe in a moment of weakness I could redeem the coupon. Why pay if I can get it for free. Not long after that I got an email that said my reward was about to expire. It said it would expire in 2 days. I never got the free bon-bites. I waited too long. 

Salvation is often referred to as a gift. It’s free. It’s grace. Jesus paid for it. It’s free, but it wasn’t cheap. He paid for eternal life with His own life. He wants to give this gift to you. As with any gift, all you need to do is receive it. Is there an expiration on the offer? Yes! The Bible says, “it is appointed for man to die once, and then comes the judgement” (Heb. 9:27). As long as you’re alive, you can receive salvation. This is why the Bible says “”Behold, now is the acceptable time,” behold now is “the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). There will come a day when it will be too late. Often a word used for death is "expired." If death comes before you receive your free gift - You waited too long. 

One of the great things about God’s free gift of salvation is that it will never expire. You can walk away from it, but it was meant to last for eternity. Peter says our inheritance “is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Pt.1:4). It is reserved. It won’t fade away. It will never expire. Peter adds “in this you greatly rejoice” (1 Pt. 1:6).