“It’s Christmas!” Just those two words can send a frenzy into millions of children around the world. The holiday of Christmas has become synonymous with the receiving of presents and gifts. Just the sight of a stack of presents all wrapped up in colorful paper and a bow will send a child into an uncontrollable excitement. I know, because I used to feel the same way.
As a child, which present do we usually want? Usually it is the biggest one, right? There could be an entire stack of presents of many shapes and sizes, but the biggest, most largest one is the present that I would always have picked.
What is a gift? A gift is something given to another voluntarily, without charge. Something gained incidentally, without effort.
And that is what people have come to expect around December the 25th, the exchanging of gifts with friends and family. But what many people seem to have forgotten is that they have already been given the greatest gift of all, and it came 2000 years ago.
What have we been given? John 3:16:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
This amazing display of God’s love is the greatest gift that we could ever get from anyone. It’s greater than everything on the Earth combined, because God’s gift is eternal. Nothing on the Earth will last forever. Cars rust away, clothes get old and tear, things break and are thrown away, but the gift that God offers will never fade away. His love is eternal.
Let me ask you a question: what is one way that someone decides which gift they are going to give to you? Many times it is because they know that you need something, or could really use it, right?
Well you see, God knew that we needed something. Because of our sins, we had been separated from a life of immortality. Adam and Eve were created to live forever, but once sin happened, they were separated from God and the Tree of Life. Because of sin, we began to die. God’s gift gives us a chance to once again be reunited with Him.
“But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.
And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 5:15-21
Jesus has given us the gift of life. Eternal life. This greatest present of all is something that everyone can have. Have you opened yours yet?
“Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” 2 Corinthians 9:15
In Christ,
Andrew
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 