December 26, 2022
Charis
This Christmas season, God showed me Christmas is so much more than we often label it. It's definitely more than the presents and decorations. It's more than the traditions. You could even say it goes deeper than what we only read in the Christmas Story.
Christmas is about how Jesus gave up everything to give us everything.
Imagine it--Jesus is God, and He rules everything. After all, He's King of kings and Lord of lords! Then it's time. Jesus comes down and becomes like us.
"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14, NIV)
He gave up everything--His glory, His power, His worship. He did it so we could be reconciled to the Father.
"Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:" (Galatians 1:4, KJV)
The King comes to earth to rescue us. He's God among us humans. Some would wonder why He even bothered. After all, we never did anything to deserve it. Yet Jesus came to save us. He came down from the sky in glorious light, defeated all evil, and corrected everything we've done!
No, that's not what happened. He came as a mere baby. Moreover, He was born in a stable. His first worshippers were not the extra religious, but the low and dirty shepherds. His first kingly gifts were not given to Him by any of His own people, the Jews, but by Gentile kings who probably were astrologers. His parents were poor.
God came to save us by becoming one of the lowliest of us?
He grew up like any of us. We had God among humans, preaching the wonderful Gospel, His good news of saving, to us! He endured our ridicule. He healed people. He brought us life.
And He died for us.
Huh? God giving Himself up for us?? Jesus dying on the cross, our sin on Him, so we could be saved? We never did anything to deserve it!
"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8, NKJV)
Yes, Jesus, the Son of God, didn't ask us to serve Him first. He served us first.
"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45, ESV)
If at Christmas we're really celebrating how Jesus saved us by serving us, how much more should we resolve to be servants? How can we have the mind of Christ, and give Him all we are?
In closing, I'd like to share these verses:
"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross."(Philippians 2:5-8, NKJV)
Merry Christmas!!