Black Friday – It’s Not What You Think!
James Tollett – November 25, 2011

The day after Thanksgiving has come to be known as Black Friday.  It is a time when caution and common sense are thrown out the window.  Stores open their doors before the sun comes up.  People will camp out or stand in line in the wee hours of the morning, no matter what the weather is, to be the first in the store to purchase items that are on sale.

For retailers, this is the largest sales event of the year, catapulting many businesses out of the red and into the black, financially.  For consumers, it is a time to save on items that have been deeply discounted.  But as a Christian, have you thought about what Black Friday means to those who believe?

The real Black Friday was when the best event on the planet took place.  Prior to this Black Friday, the best event in Judaism occurred each year on the Day of Atonement when the high priest would make an offering for the Jews, and their sins were rolled back for a year.  Or, as I like to think of it, a band-aid was placed over their sins; however, the real issue was not dealt with.  Each year the people had to come back and perform this ritual again.  (To learn more about the Day of Atonement, see Leviticus 16.)

However, on the believer’s Black Friday, Jesus permanently paid for our salvation when He hung on the cross.  He made the permanent atonement for the sins of all men and women.  No more was there a temporary covering of sin or putting a band-aid over it.

On the believer’s Black Friday, the penalty of sin was completely dealt with.  Salvation is now available for to those who say “Yes” to the Lord.  If you have not yet made that commitment to the Lord, I want to encourage you to ask Him to come into your life.  Let this Black Friday be more than just a day of buying things at a discount.  Let this be a time when you settle, for time and eternity, your relationship with God—when you become a blood-bought child of God.

There is no need for you to wait all night for a better offer!  No need to wait in line!  Receive the benefits of this Black Friday special today!  You can do that by praying this prayer:

Lord Jesus, I need your help.  I have tried to live my life on my own, and I now know that I have not done a good job.  I thank you for dying on the cross for my sins.  I want you to come into my life, into my heart, and I accept you now as my Lord and Savior.  I thank you for forgiving my sins and for saving me.  I now give you control over my life, and I ask you to make me the type of person that you want me to be.  This I ask in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

This black Friday, while you are standing in line at a store, I want to encourage you to share your faith with those who are in line.  You might want to go back and review two previous tips of the week: “Sharing Your Faith,” Part 1 and Part 2.

Additionally, now that you have thought about the real Black Friday and what it means to you, could I suggest that you make a donation to the church or ministry of your choice that is reaching out to the world to share the love of Jesus?  Help those ministries that, each week, turn Black Friday into a time of eternal celebration, a celebration that even the angels join (Luke 15:10).

Until next week, I am James Tollett, your missionary to America.