Growing Intimacy with God

Presenting the Gospel Gift Box

I have here a gift box.

 This box may be only made of construction paper, but this box represents the most precious gift I have to offer you. But because this box is not the gift, but only a representation of the gift, I must tell you a story of what this box represents.

 (Show the green side)

The outside of this box is green. What things are green?

 The green represents life, the plants, the trees, the world, my life, your life.

 In the beginning, God created the world, plants, animals, birds and people. And when He was done, he said it was Good.

 If the story ended with the first chapter of Genesis, things would be great, but when we look inside, we see that life isn't always that great.

(Open the box and show the black pad on the inside)

Because people started lying and stealing, killing and cussing, things that God calls sin. Each of those sins is like a stain, and on the inside of this box, we can see that things are very black with sin.

(Close the box and slowly turn it over)

But God didn't let the story end there. Take a look at the underside of this box and tell me what color it is.

The red fits inside the green. For what Holiday do we use the colors red and green?

That's right, Christmas. Here, the red represents Jesus. He came into the world on Christmas. But did the world receive Him?

 Some did, but most rejected Him. Though he lived a perfect life and did not deserve to die, an angry crowd put thorns on His head and nailed Him to a cross. There he suffered, not for his own sins, but for our sins, that He might pay our penalty. He was dead, buried and rose again to life. (Lift the red bottom off of the box.)

 (Show the white foam remaining in the green boxtop)

Now what color is the inside of the box?

 The white represents purity. When we accept Jesus into our life, (briefly put the red bottom back on) He forgives our sin (now pulling the red bottom back off) and makes us clean again. So we can live good lives for him (circle a finger around the green box) while we live in this body and in this world.

 (Show the inside of the red box bottom)

What color is in the bottom of this box?

 The gold represents heaven.

 And when this life is over, (lifting the white foam out of the boxtop) we leave this body, (show the black pad left in the boxtop) leaving our sin behind, (putting the white foam into the gold bottom) and go into heaven.

 (Put the box back together again and set it on the table or on your palm)

But as I said at the beginning, it is a gift, a gift which you must decide whether you will receive.

 If you have already asked Jesus into your heart and trusted Him to forgive your sins, you already have the gift and don't need this box.

 If you haven't yet received the gift, you can pray now to ask Jesus into your heart, thank Him for dying in your place for your sins, thank him for His forgiveness, and put your trust in Him to take you to heaven when you die. Then you can sign the bottom of the box and put the date on it so you'll always have a reminder of when you received Jesus into your life.

 Do you want this gift?

(Leave the box and wait to see if the person will reach out and pick up the gift box)

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