When does a gift stop being a gift?
A gift stops being a gift the moment you contribute something to its cost. It then becomes something else—no longer a free gift. The Scripture contrasts the wages of sin, which is death, with the free gift of God, which is eternal life through Jesus Christ.
Les explains that in verse 23 Paul contrasts the wages of sin—death, the second death, eternal doom—with the gift of God, which is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. He highlights the key word 'gift' (G-I-F-T). Everyone likes to receive a gift, but as soon as you contribute something to the cost of that gift, it is no longer a gift. That is the point: the gift of God is eternal life, and it ceases to be a gift if you contribute to its cost. Les also notes that the saving grace we enjoy in this life does not stop at the grave; it carries us into everlasting life and eternal abiding with God Himself. Paul, just as human as we are, suffered privations beyond imagination for the sake of the gospel, never losing sight of this truth.