We are getting into the Christmas season, a time when many of us give and receive many gifts. I suppose gift giving is mostly thought of as being part of the secular side of the holiday, and it is, but, if pondered in the proper context, it could also perhaps help us to relate to the spiritual side as well. It could perhaps help us to better understand the true meaning of Christmas. To that end, in this 5 part series on Christmas gifts, I would like to look at the answers to five questions that pertain to gifts.
What do we think about when someone gives us a gift? I think, for most of us, consciously or unconsciously, there are 5 basic questions or considerations in our mind.
What is it?
Do we need or want it?
How much did it cost?
Was it given voluntarily?
What are we going to do with it?
What in the world do these questions have to do with Jesus? In the context in which we usually think of Christmas gift giving and receiving, of worldly gifts and worldly circumstances, these questions have nothing to do with Jesus. However, if we look at these same questions, from a different prospective, then they have everything to do with Him. So, I would like to look at each of these 5 basic questions, first from a secular prospective, and then as they relate to our relationship with God.
Question 1: What is it?
You know how it is. Someone hands you that gift. It’s all wrapped up and, even before you start taking the paper off it, you start shaking it, trying to figure out what it might be. I’m completely blind and so, for me, even after I get it unwrapped, I sometimes still don’t know what it is. “That’s great. That was so nice of you. You really shouldn’t have. What is it?” LOL.
Sometimes, for the gifts that are wrapped up under the tree that are supposed to wait until Christmas, we can hardly wait to see what’s hidden under the paper. When I was a kid, my sister used to try to get me to pay her to pull back the wrapping just enough to see what it was for me and then fix it back. I never did do that but I was tempted a time or two.
Let’s look at the spiritual side of this. What are God’s gifts to us? Fortunately, we don’t have to wait until Christmas Day to receive them.
James 1:17 says “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning”.
Let’s think about this for a minute. Really, everything we have, in fact everything in this world, is a gift from God. I suppose that, on an intellectual level, we all already know that but do you ever stop to really think about it?
Think about rain. The great flood in Genesis is the first time it ever rained. We are told in Genesis 2:5-6 that it had not yet rained but that a mist came up from the ground to water the ground. The first time rain is mentioned is in Genesis 7:12, at the start of the great flood. There has been rain ever since but it appears that it never rained before that. I find that very interesting.
Think about the water cycle. The water cycle is simply the laws of physics at work. Water evaporates and condenses into microscopic droplets of water in the atmosphere to form clouds. Often, air currents move the clouds to a place other than where the water evaporated. Eventually, when atmospheric conditions are right, millions of these microscopic droplets stick together to form individual rain drops that are large enough and heavy enough to overcome the updrafts which support the clouds. When this happens on a large scale, it rains. Then, the cycle starts over again. I’m sure that a meteorologist could explain it much better but that’s the basic idea of how it works.
Now, think about something else. Before the flood, there was water, there was an atmosphere, there was gravity, there were air currents, etcetera. There were all the things needed to make the water cycle work and yet, apparently, it did not work. It must be that, in order to send the great flood and in order to make possible all the rain that has fallen since, God changed the laws of physics, in some way, if only slightly. To me, that’s pretty awesome to think about. The basic laws of physics are, so far as we know, constant throughout the universe. They are, in fact, what makes the universe work the way it does, down to the smallest detail. We serve a God who can alter those laws, just by thinking about it. How cool is that! Of course, intellectually, I already knew that but, still, it’s pretty neat to think about such an awesome illustration of His power. Don’t you think?
You see, His glory and His power is evident all around us, in the smallest things in our every day environment, if we will only take the time to look for it and think about it.
John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life”. God has given us a lot of very wonderful gifts but the most wonderful gift He has given us was His Son, Who willingly sacrificed Himself on the cross for our sins. He never sinned but the sins of humanity, our sins, were placed upon Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). While we were still lost in that sin, He died for us (Romans 5:8). In laying down His life for us, He demonstrated the greatest love possible (John 15:13). Having taken our place, in taking the punishment for our sin, He then rose from the dead, victorious over that sin (1 Corinthians 15:55-57) and, in so doing, gave us victory as well. What was, and is, His gift to us? The most precious gift possible, the gift of undeserved and yet freely given grace. Again, intellectually, I think most of us already know that but do we ever really stop to think about it? Do we ponder the wonder of it in our heart, as Mary pondered in her heart the wonder of Jesus Himself (Luke 2:19 and 51)? I think most of us don’t do that nearly enough. In this season of gift giving and receiving, I would invite you to take the time to contemplate His most precious gift of all gifts.
If we’re totally honest with ourselves, I think most of us tend to think we’re pretty good people and so we tend to underestimate just how much we need this gift of grace. This leads me to the next question. How much do we need His gift of grace? I will discuss that in part 2 of this series. As we progress through this series, we will begin to contemplate just how valuable His gift is and the difference it can make in our lives and the lives of others.
Take it from a man Who made the decision to receive His gift of grace 36 years ago, He is so, so good and He loves you more than you can fathom. He and His grace has been my light in the darkness. If you have not yet received His gift of grace, I would invite you to visit the “The Most Important Thing” section of this website. And be sure to stay tuned for part 2 of this series. May the peace that only He can give be with you.
