Freely Give

“Freely you have received, freely give. On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. So do not be afraid of them.”(Matthew 10:8, 18-20, 26, NIV 1984).

“What I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also.”  (1 Corinthians 15:3–8, NIV 1984). 

My Musings – We know what we received.  It was free.  What we received was passed onto us by someone else who had received it before us.  A parent, Pastor, Sunday School teacher, or friend.  Perhaps by someone we had never met before, but they freely gave testimony to what they had received.  They considered it of utmost (“first“) importance to pass it on to us.

Now it is our turn to pass it on.  Today we can freely do so.  Someday, as it already is in some parts of the world, it may prove very costly.  It was costly to Paul.  What He received, what you and I received, was even more costly.  Jesus paid a dear price to be able to impart a free gift.  When it turns costly for us, “do not be afraid of them.”

My Advice – I need as much, perhaps more, advice on this as any.  “‘Timid’ when face to face…but ‘bold’ when [musing from] away! Some [might] say, ‘His [blogs] are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing.’ ” (2 Corinthians 10:1, 10, NIV 1984). Pray  for me that “what we are in our musings when we are [away], we will be in our actions when we are [face-to-face],”  (2 Corinthians 10:11, NIV 1984), as I continue to encourage others in my blogs. “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So [let’s] not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.” (2 Timothy 1:7–8, NIV 1984). 

Author: thebrewisamusing

I was raised in a Christian family and my earliest childhood memories include regular Sunday school and Church attendance as a family. I was taught that our Judeo-Christian values were not just a part of our Sunday routine they should be part of our character and influence all aspects of our lives. I was also taught that as important as these values were they could not save us. We must also be “born again” by accepting Christ. View all posts by thebrewisamusing