Genesis 23:13 (NKJV)

“and he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, ‘If you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.’”

Beware of taking free stuff, particularly from unbelievers. You can’t trust their motive or their future decisions. Abraham needed a place to bury his beloved wife Sarah, and the people of the land offered him a place free of charge, but he refused. Although they insisted, again and again, he likewise kept insisting that he had to pay for it. Eventually, he paid 400 shekels of silver- the market price for the land- even though they could have given it to him for free.

Be careful not to choose the easier path and bow to the pressure to receive free stuff from unbelievers. We need to look carefully because these free stuff could be laced with the poison of the world or their promised gift could be quickly retracted at the time you least expect it. Free from the world is never usually totally free.

“Lord, I do not desire nor covet anything owned or promised by an unbeliever. Because I have no desire for His wealth or possessions, I pray Father, that You make these things abhorrent to me, that my heart may remain circumcised at all times. This I ask, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”