The Best Gift

What is your favorite Christmas passage from the Bible? Do you love the Luke account with the specific details? Or do you like how Matthew gives the shorter version? Perhaps it’s the amateur theologian in me but I love John’s account…“The Logos (Word) became flesh and dwelt among us.” There are so many amazing parts of all the stories, the prophecies fulfilled, the angels, the obedience of Mary, the star, etc. The story is amazing all throughout, but the theological implication is deeper still.

We can reminisce about the baby being born and the dirty stable, but dwell on it longer. Allow your heart, mind and soul to linger beyond just the immediate and see the eternal. The Creator of the Universe (Colossians 1:15-23) has elected to wrap himself in humanity and dwell among us.

Yeah, I don’t fully comprehend that at first glance either (or after much study for that matter). So we are talking about the Almighty God who is eternal, outside of space and time, holy, all-knowing, all-powerful, and completely other then us entering into our world. No box can contain Him. Our thoughts cannot come close to comprehending Him. Our natural eye cannot bear to look upon His glory and survive. Yet He lowered Himself into our world.

Everyday we turn on the news and hear about how awful humanity is to each other. We hear of rape, murder, suicide, racism, and all kinds of sin. You know what? Humanity hasn’t changed since the Fall. It’s always been that disgusting, and yet the perfect Son of God chose to identify Himself with us.

Forget for a second “all of humanity” and consider yourself; would you want your deepest and darkest moments, thoughts or actions known to the world? If right now I told you that your private thoughts and history were streaming on YouTube, how would you feel? You know your sins. You know the horrible thoughts you have had from anger, to greed, to lust, etc. You know the words you have said that you can never get back. You know the actions you have committed that will leave a permanent scare on your heart. You know the things that make you feel dirty, used, and worthless.

Jesus knows those things about you and me, about all of us. He chose to put on human flesh and move into our lives. He came, unstained from sin, undefiled by this world and set up camp in our yard. He looked past our sins and saw our need for a Savior and entered our space. When you and I cannot go a day without sinning, Jesus went a lifetime for us. When you and I have our moment of despair and give in to temptation, Jesus stood strong every time. When we feel like the world is against us and we use that as a reason to break God’s Law to escape for a moment, Jesus overcame in our place. He did this for us, not to condemn us, but to provide salvation for us.

Have you ever received a Christmas gift that caused you more work? It’s the gift you really didn’t want, at least not as a gift. The kitchen appliance, the shovel, or vacuum cleaner. It’s the gift that comes with the expectation of work that leads to drudgery.

Yet there is another kind of gift. The gift of luxury and not of necessity. The gift that brings joy from using it. The gift that you feel underserving to receive and produces an overwhelming sense of gratitude and love to the giver. That is the kind of gift Jesus came to give when He moved into our neighborhood. He doesn’t want begrudging servants, or slaves whose actions are drudgery. He moved in to give us something we could never get on our own. He gave us a gift of freedom, forgiveness and adoption.

When Jesus came to live in perfect fulfillment to God’s Law in order that He could provide the perfect sacrifice on our behalf. Every time we failed, He succeeded for us. He died so we don’t have to. He rose again, conquering sin and death to give us a choice. The choice is yours. The Christmas present He offers is Himself. “Come, deny yourself and follow me,” is His invitation.

He knew our sin and shame, wrapped Himself in human flesh and came moved into our neighborhood. Will you allow Him to move into your life? Will you truly celebrate the true Christmas gift: Jesus Himself? You will never be the same!