The "free gift"

What analogy best explains how the concept of the "free gift" works or what it means?

You are invited to offer one.

I'll have a try.

The "free gift" of "salvation" is like a complementary plane ticket. It is free. You don't have to pay for it. It will take you to the ultimate destination. It will never be cancelled by the person who paid for it.

Obviously, if you don't think it is real and throw it away, despite it being a free gift, then there will be no journey to the destination.

To get to that ultimate destination, however, the invited passengers must still pack their bags, order a taxi, get to the airport, check their luggage in, make their way to the departure lounge, and board the plane.

Without the packing, the taxi, the trip, the check-in, the departure lounge, and the boarding, the potential passenger will never reach the "ultimate destination", even though the free ticket was there, gratis, available, and not rescinded or cancelled.

Does the fact that someone has a free ticket and can fly at no expense aboard a plane to the ultimate destination mean that they will necessarily or automatically take up the donor's offer of this free gift and do what needs to be done to catch the plane?

No, it doesn't. Some people will board the plane and some won't. Simply believing that the ticket is free and authentic and valid and that it could take you to the ultimate destination is not enough.

Does anyone else have an analogy that they think might explain the "free gift of salvation"?

@fmf said
Does anyone else have an analogy that they think might explain the "free gift of salvation"?

I think it’s like the free gift of being born.

It’s a traumatic experience of being squeezed headfirst down a birth canal and brought into the light where the first thing one experiences is a slap on the arse to get you going

The newborn is nurtured until such time as they are expected to behave with appropriate thoughts and actions such as meets expectations.

Not meeting those expectations has consequences but none of those consequences involve a reversal of time whereby the the person becomes unborn.

Meanwhile the good parent does not lose their love for their child.

@fmf said
What analogy best explains how the concept of the "free gift" works or what it means?

You are invited to offer one.

I'll have a try.

The "free gift" of "salvation" is like a complementary plane ticket. It is free. You don't have to pay for it. It will take you to the ultimate destination. It will never be cancelled by the person who paid for it.

Obviously, if you do ...[text shortened]... s free and authentic and valid and that it could take you to the ultimate destination is not enough.

I believe the standard analogy is a train, not a plane.

YouTube

But point taken, some will get on board and others won’t.

@moonbus said
I believe the standard analogy is a train, not a plane.

[youtube]yC_j_dzkaVE[/youtube]

But point taken, some will get on board and others won’t.

I don't want to look up any analogies. I am just interested in what people here come up with under their own steam. Thanks for the video but I'm not going to watch it. If others look up stuff on the internet and relay that, it's their prerogative; but it's not what I am looking for. Thanks again.

@fmf said
I don't want to look up any analogies. I am just interested in what people here come up with under their own steam. Thanks for the video but I'm not going to watch it. If others look up stuff on the internet and relay that, it's their prerogative; but it's not what I am looking for. Thanks again.

Cough cough, passive aggression.

@fmf said
What analogy best explains how the concept of the "free gift" works or what it means?

You are invited to offer one.

I'll have a try.

The "free gift" of "salvation" is like a complementary plane ticket. It is free. You don't have to pay for it. It will take you to the ultimate destination. It will never be cancelled by the person who paid for it.

Obviously, if you do ...[text shortened]... s free and authentic and valid and that it could take you to the ultimate destination is not enough.

I think your analogy is a pretty good one, but it is not dead on target. To get a proper analogy of a biblical expression we need to first understand what is written in the bible on the matter. The expression ‘free gift’ appears only in one area of Pauls writings:

But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. (Romans 5:15-18 KJV)

Note that Jesus never used this expression, and Paul never used it again. But he did refer many times to the ‘gift of God’ [not free] which is eternal life. So my interpretation of this is:
- a free gift is something one gets without working or even knowing about it.
- a gift [not the free type] can have conditions or requirements or non-monetary costs involved.

According to Paul in Romans 5, all people, through the death of Christ, have received the free gift of justification, just the same way condemnation came upon all people through the sin of Adam, without anyone even knowing about it. It is nobody’s fault that Adam sinned and nobody did anything to deserve justification by the death of Christ. Condemnation through Adam was free and justification through Christ is free.

Justifcation is free. Eternal life [the gift of God] is not.

Now back to your analogy. I would say that your analogy describes the gift of God, eternal life, there is work to be done and things to do before you get on that plane. It does not describe the free gift or that part of eternal life [justification] that man did nothing to earn.

To get the free gift into your analogy we can stick Covid in there. Covid stopped the world from flying. Covid is analogous to the sin of Adam which came upon all men – both those who sinned and those who did not. Lets assume that Pfizer came up with 100% perfect vaccine and issued it to everyone through one instantaneous act. All people were vaccinated and can now fly… that is a free gift. The gift of the plane ticket can now be used, but as you said not all people will use it, as thee are things to do to use the free gift of the plane ticket.

Hope that makes sense.

@fmf said

The "free gift" of "salvation"

Not sure if there is anything called, the free gift of salvation , in the bible. There is the free gift, used to apply to justification. There is the gift of God which is eternal life.

It is this combining of these two expressions, and adding to the biblical meaning that has caused almost all Christian churches to go astray and to proclaim that eternal life is free and only requires a simple profession of faith, and that no amount of sin can keep him from entering the Kingdom of God.

It is a dangerous and fatal doctrine.

@rajk999 said
Not sure if there is anything called, the free gift of salvation , in the bible. There is the free gift, used to apply to justification. There is the gift of God which is eternal life.

It is this combining of these two expressions, and adding to the biblical meaning that has caused almost all Christian churches to go astray and to proclaim that eternal life is f ...[text shortened]... ount of sin can keep him from entering the Kingdom of God.

It is a dangerous and fatal doctrine.

There is no longer a sonship here to get distraught with what you are saying. KellyJay is too prideful and/or cowardly to engage, but divegeester and Ghost of a Duke are waxing about what "free" means.

@fmf said
There is no longer a sonship here to get distraught with what you are saying. KellyJay is too prideful and/or cowardly to engage, but divegeester and Ghost of a Duke are waxing about what "free" means.

I think you should step aside and let Rajk argue the case. You appeared very confused in your argument.

@rajk999 said
I think your analogy is a pretty good one, but it is not dead on target. To get a proper analogy of a biblical expression we need to first understand what is written in the bible on the matter. The expression ‘free gift’ appears only in one area of Pauls writings:

[i] But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much mor ...[text shortened]... use it, as thee are things to do to use the free gift of the plane ticket.

Hope that makes sense.

In your opinion, what type, volume, frequency and consistency of good works are required to attain eternal life?

@divegeester said
In your opinion, what type, volume, frequency and consistency of good works are required to attain eternal life?

I have no opinion on this matter. I can only quote what Jesus said:
Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. (Matthew 25:34-36 KJV)

And also what Paul said:
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21 KJV)

These two passages give some pretty good answers to your question .. what type, volume, frequency and consistency of good works are required to attain eternal life.

@fmf said
There is no longer a sonship here to get distraught with what you are saying. KellyJay is too prideful and/or cowardly to engage, but divegeester and Ghost of a Duke are waxing about what "free" means.

Free means that there is absolutely NOTHING to be done. It is done by God and Christ, and you have it and you dont even know that you have it. Only Justification through the sacrifice of Christ brought this free gift on all of mankind. It is free. The gift of God is not free. It requires work.

Free gift of justification is in the bible. Free gift of salvation / eternal life is not in the bible. It is a fabrication of the church designed to support the doctrine of once saved always saved.

@ghost-of-a-duke said
I think you should step aside and let Rajk argue the case. You appeared very confused in your argument.

I think I have argued my case using clear bible teaching. Lets see what the Christians who oppose this have to offer.

@ghost-of-a-duke said
Cough cough, passive aggression.

I'm not interested in copy pastes from the internet.

Are you not interested in the OP topic?