CHRISTMAS?

By Shirley Wiggins

This is how God showed His love among us:  He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.  This is love:  not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”  1 John 4:9-10.

What is Christmas? 

 Christ Himself Revealed In Scripture Teaches Mankind About Salvation.

Christmas – perhaps one of the most misunderstood yearly holidays, and the one which seems to meet with more and more contentious attitudes.
Christmas is Love, yet seems to inspire hate in many who oppose it and seek to oppress those who love its significance in their lives.

Christmas is, for me, that yearly reminder that on one special day in history, a very special baby was born.  A baby long promised and prophesied in the Bible for generations before He finally made His appearance on earth. 

The first Christmas Day came:  “”But when the set time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.”   Galatians 4:4.

An amazing Baby; an amazing birth:  an earthly mother in physical flesh, spiritually born with an earthly form in a body prepared for Him. (Hebrews 10:5-10.)

Christ Jesus, the One whose birth is celebrated on the 25^th day of December, and whose life, death, and resurrection  resulted in the most dramatic life-changing event in the lives of millions of people. 

Christmas is the celebration of the birth of God’s Son, the Son sent to offer salvation to all people, full of grace and truth.

“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.  It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope – the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do  what is good.” Titus 2:11-14.

Christmas is the Grace of God. Christmas is Christ. 

Christmas is God coming to earth and giving the greatest Gift the world will ever see – the Gift of life and love – the Gift to meet the greatest need of all mankind:  Salvation from our sins.

A three-fold Gift prepared for the “world” so loved by God, its Maker and Christ its Savior, through the Holy Spirit of truth.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.  For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him.  He who believes in Him (Jesus) is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”  John 3:16-18.

God sent very good news, and intended it for ALL people!

 “And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.  And the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be a sign for you:  you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger.’

And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased.’”  Luke 2:9-14.

It pleased God to send His greatest Gift to earth for it pleases God to save people.  The written Word of God, the Holy Bible reveals in intimate and intricate detail that God is salvation, Jesus is Redemption, and the Holy Spirit of Truth is sanctification.

This Baby came to become a Man – a unique Man, fully human yet fully divine, the Truth of God Himself encased in human flesh who would spend three years of His approximately 33 years of dwelling among people, actively preaching and teaching, pointing the way to God Himself.  Christ Jesus came to reveal the Light of truth, “to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.” (Luke 1:79.)

The Path of Peace is found in the peace we have with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, for Christ Himself is our peace. See also Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:14-17.

Jesus said:  “Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. …. I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”  John 14:1-3, 6.

Did you take notice of that?  Jesus promised to return and receive to Himself all who will believe in Him. 

Jesus will return to receive all who will “receive” Him – all who will believe in God and believe His Words.  Jesus came to earth to do God’s will and to speak God’s words, conveying God’s message, to complete the work that God gave Him to do:  provide God’s salvation through Christ’s redeeming work on the Cross.  He finished His work: 

“Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’ …. When He had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’  With that, He bowed His head and gave up his spirit.”  John 19:28,30.

“Receive” is a transitive verb which means “to come into possession of:  acquire <receive a gift>; ... to accept as authoritative, true, or accurate:  believe...”

To receive something involves a transaction that requires an action - an act of the will -  on the part of the one who would receive anything.

The Bible tells us concerning Jesus:  “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.  He was in the world, and though the world was  made through Him, the world did not recognize Him.  He came to His own, but His own did not receive Him.  Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.  The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.  We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, full of grace and truth.”  John 1:9-14.

Have you recognized the Gift of Christmas?  Have you received the Gift of God:  your Redeemer who desires to impart God’s salvation to you that God’s Holy Spirit may perform that sanctifying work in your life?

The Gift is free:

“But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.  For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--- not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”  Ephesians 2:4-10.

If you haven't yet, I pray that you will receive the Gift sent on Christmas Day with much love to you all the way from Heaven!

Let us never stop praying for each other, “continuing to ask God to fill (us) with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that (we) may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way:   bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to  His glorious might so that (we) may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified (us) to share in the inheritance of His holy people in the kingdom of light.  For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  (See Colossians 1:9-14.)

MERRY CHRISTMAS, WORLD, BELOVED OF GOD!