Throughout the Bible we see many examples of God’s love for mankind demonstrated through His gifts.
When the Jews were brought out of Egypt and wandering in the desert, He blessed them with manna from heaven. This gift from God not only included manna, but quail as well. Although these gifts were from God, we read that the people of Israel had to rise up early to gather the manna. If they did not gather it early, it would spoil. It was a gift from God, but they had to do something in order to receive the gift.
When the Lord gave the city of Jericho to the people of Israel, He promised to deliver it into their hand. However, there were certain conditions that had to be met. They could not simply do nothing and receive the city. They had to follow specific instructions from God to march around the city for seven days before the city would be delivered to them. The book of Hebrews also mentions how great faith brought down the walls of Jericho. But faith alone did not bring down the walls. Had they not marched according to God’s instructions, the walls would stand firm. It was a gift from God, but they had to do something in order to receive the gift.
So it is today. God has given us a gift far above any gift that could be given. However, there is nothing in God’s book that He promises to give us without action on our part. Christ has died for us. He has provided salvation, and God is willing to give us remission of our sins, but there are certain things we must do in order to appropriate this gift.
We must ask ourselves, are we sitting and waiting for the walls to fall down?
For the elders, Tony Williams