A Very Merry COVID ChristmasSample

Praise God—You Are Redeemed

For a few shekels (Israeli coins), I could have been blessed with eight children. At least that’s what the stranger at the Dung Gate told me.

The Dung Gate is one of the seven ways to pass into the Old City of Jerusalem, which is why you’ll find it crowded with carts selling fresh bread, Israeli security guards, and hustlers trying to sell random junk to tourists. Just before corona shut down international travel, I found myself at the Dung Gate where an extroverted stranger aggressively approached me and asked, “Where are you from?” 

“America” was barely out of my mouth when the stranger’s friend appeared. He was wrapped in a Jewish prayer shawl and put his meaty hand on my forehead and chanted/prayed, “Yeshua . . . America . . . Israel,” intermixed with a string of Hebrew words I couldn’t understand.

Of course, his hand of blessing soon left my head and opened, palm up, expecting payment for his gracious act. I kindly shook my head at this unholy hustle and started to walk away, which prompted the extrovert to yell, “Hey! He’ll bless you with eight children!”

I grinned, wondering what my wife would think about six more pregnancies!

My Dung Gate conversation is kind of how the world works, right? There are blessings to be had, but there’s always a price. You might get a free trial, but eventually you have to pay for the app or the subscription. You might get the first month’s rent free, but then the money is due on the first for the rest of the year.

I’m so grateful that Jesus doesn’t work that way. Because Jesus is the kind of Savior who is willing to pick up the check so that we can be blessed.

The apostle Paul must have smiled when he wrote, “In [Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us” (Ephesians 1:7,8). Redemption is a word that implies a payment for something, a quid pro quo. But notice who pays and who receives: We are redeemed, but Jesus pays the price.

The Savior born in Bethlehem pays for your blessing. According to the riches of God’s grace, Jesus lavishes you with everything that you need to be in a perfect relationship with the Father. He sets you free from the slavery of going through life without God. He releases you from the fear of death, guaranteeing that whoever believes in him will never truly die. Every spiritual blessing, all the ones that we have studied so far and all the ones to come, are yours, free of charge, through faith in Jesus Christ.

That’s a blessing better than having eight beautiful children.