When I was in elementary school I had a friend named Ronnie Faiella. His family was probably one of the wealthiest I knew in our small town of Sayreville, N.J. The Faiella's lived in a mansion-sized home and inside there were protective plastic covers over everything ... the furniture, the appliances, just about anything a sly 10-year-old could get his grubby paws on. Plus, it was easy to tell where guests were allowed or not allowed to go in the house because there were plastic runners on the carpet leading you like the yellow brick road - step off of them and I was sure spotlights and sirens would go off to warn the homeowners of the infraction.From time to time I would go over to Ronnie's house after school. It was always a real treat to visit Ronnie because he had his own pinball machines and stand-up arcade video games. But one time, just after his birthday, Ronnie had gotten his own bubblegum vending machine for his room. I remember it vividly ... it dispensed "Dubble-Bubble" bubblegum balls for a nickel. So every time I went over to Ronnie's house after that I was sure to bring a few nickels so I could pop them into his bubblegum machine and hear that distinct sound of grinding gears followed by the anticipated 'clack' when the gum ball dropped into the dispensing slot. I'm sure Ronnie made a small fortune off me (I hope he made it into a very prestigious business school with the proceeds).
But then one day Ronnie let me in on his little secret. You see Ronnie had read the directions that came with the bubblegum machine so he knew how to toggle the little switch inside that made it dispense bubblegum for free. That's right ... no more nickels ... just turn the knob when you wanted free gum and we were set. Of course, I couldn't keep this amazing secret to myself. I had to tell Jim Aleski who had to tell Danny Hassell who had to tell the whole neighborhood. Well you can imagine how popular Ronnie became soon after the secret of his free gum ball machine hit the street.
Maybe you already know where I'm going with this but I can't ignore the parallels this story has with the gospel of the New Testament. God's gift of salvation, communion with Him now and eternal life with Him in His kingdom forever, is free for us to receive. Believe me ... this is far more valuable than gum balls. The reason it's free is because God's only Son, Jesus, came to this earth and paid the ultimate price for us. Sadly, this didn't cost Him a few nickels (or shekels for that matter). Jesus laid down His whole life and took our place on the cross. And after 3 days He rose again. God graciously gives us this gift for free because of Christ's atoning sacrifice and our faith in Him.Ronnie read the directions to understand how to receive free gum just like we have the directions for how to receive the Holy Spirit and Christ as our personal Saviour. It's called The Holy Bible, the inspired word of God. In 1 Corinthians 2:12 the Apostle Paul reminds us that "We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us." Remember how I couldn't keep the secret of the free gum to myself? Well, we're also commanded in Matthew 28:18-20 to share the Good News of the Kingdom of God (this free gift) with everyone on the planet. It's called The Great Commission and in simple terms using my story above, The Great Commission explains that being a Christian is like being a kid who shows another kid where to get free bubblegum. So here's your "bubblegum" ... If you want to accept Jesus as your personal savior just pray this little prayer in your HEART (the words themselves mean nothing; its believing them in your heart that's important) .
"Dear Lord, I believe you died and rose from the dead. I know and confess that I am a sinner and am lost without you. I ask you to forgive my sins and come into my heart. I give my life to you and want to live for you the rest of my life. I thank you Lord and praise you. Please guide me and direct me for the rest of my life!
Stay the course, finish the race ... AB
(Next Week: The Parable of the Popcorn Kernel)
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