Well, OP stated we have to pay with our life. So... not free.
That's like saying, "My car is free. The $2,500 price tag? Of course you have to pay 2,500! Free refers to the fact you don't have to cut off your left arm and give it to me."
Saying "salvation is free" sounds wonderful, but it's not free. That's clear from the very next statement OP makes, saying we must pay with our lives. It's clear by all the posts that followed.
It's not that I don't understand what was meant by the word "free", it's that the word "free" is a very poor choice of wording.
That's like saying, "My car is free. The $2,500 price tag? Of course you have to pay 2,500! Free refers to the fact you don't have to cut off your left arm and give it to me."
Saying "salvation is free" sounds wonderful, but it's not free. That's clear from the very next statement OP makes, saying we must pay with our lives. It's clear by all the posts that followed.
It's not that I don't understand what was meant by the word "free", it's that the word "free" is a very poor choice of wording.