238: Freely Give

Do you know why it’s so important to receive what God has freely given? Because if we do not freely receive, we cannot freely give!

“Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. FREELY YOU HAVE RECEIVED, FREELY GIVE.” (Matthew 10:8)¹

If we believe that anything stands in the way of God’s grace in our lives, then we cannot freely receive.

Is God’s grace limited by natural circumstances?
Is God’s grace limited by sin?
Is God’s grace limited by demons?

In the ministry I used to lead, we thought that we had to go through rituals of renouncing demons and all the powers of darkness before a person could experience the manifestation of God’s power and grace. We thought that if a person could not forgive his father or his mother or his coach or his kindergarten teacher, he was stuck with the tormenters and on his way to hell until he forgave FROM THE HEART! Yes, forgiveness is important, but until we freely receive God’s forgiveness for ourselves, we have no lasting forgiveness to give! Freely receiving ANYTHING from God was nearly impossible in that environment. There were conditions to everything we were longing to receive.

When I look at the ministry of Jesus, I do not see Him requiring anything of anyone who came to Him. They simply came to Him in faith, and He healed them all!² As many as touched Him were made completely whole.³ I do not see Jesus questioning people when they came to Him for healing or deliverance. He didn’t ask them, “Have you been taking your vitamins and laying off the soft drinks? If not, you can’t expect anything from Me. Go home and clean up your act, and then we’ll see what we can do.” Or how about this one: “I noticed you arguing with your husband over there while you were waiting in the prayer line. I can tell that you are not a submissive wife and this is blocking your healing.” You won’t find Jesus ever saying to someone, “You have a generational curse. This is a tough one that will require a process of deliverance. Go repent of the sins of your forefathers and come back for your healing.”

Once I shared this truth of the unconditional nature of Jesus’ response to everyone who came to Him with a pastor whom I knew, and I could tell his blood pressure was rising. He said, “Tricia Gunn, you can’t tell me that people can just go out and stuff their faces with donuts and smoke cigarettes and expect God to heal them!” I don’t expect God to heal them. I believe He already did when Jesus received the stripes on His back and died on the cross two thousand years ago.

If people aren’t asking us if we are saying that sin is ok, then we aren’t preaching grace strong enough. Where sin abounds, grace abounds much more.⁴ Jesus never condoned sin. Paul never condoned sin. But sin cannot stop God’s grace. I cannot imagine anyone who has truly experienced the grace of God wanting to sin. It’s just impossible. Grace is the answer to sin.

The people asked Jesus,

“What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” (John 6:28)

Here was Jesus’s answer:

“This is the work of God, that you BELIEVE in Him whom He sent.” (John 6:29, emphasis mine)

It’s simple.

(from pages 346-347 of Unveiling Jesus)

Want more from Tricia Gunn? Check out excerpts from the Unveiling Jesus 20-part series!

Unveiling Jesus, by Tricia Gunn, is a verse by verse study of the pure gospel of grace. It’s an amazing journey of love, identity, and freedom in Christ.

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¹All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New King James Version. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.  Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.  Used by permission.
²Matthew 12:15
³Mark 6:56
⁴Romans 5:20