The greatest gift

But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ (Romans 5:15-17).

The tradition of giving Christmas gifts dates back to a real person who lived in the fourth century. His name was Nicholas, and the gifts that he gave to European children were small by the standards of today—fruit, nuts, candy, and simple toys. Europeans brought this tradition with them when they settled in America; by the 19th century gift giving was widespread, and took on a more lavish approach that has grown into what we experience today.

Why did St. Nicholas give gifts to children at Christmas time? We assume that he was motivated by the gift God gave us all by sending His precious Son to be our Savior. When we give presents to others, it can symbolize God’s generosity to a sinful world. Those gifts under the tree can represent The Greatest Gift Ever Given.

It was the last present opened on Christmas day. It was from his mom and dad. Billy ripped the package open to see what was inside. There in the box was a gold coin, large and shiny. Billy’s father tried to explain how valuable the coin was and what it could buy; he also told Billy that Jesus was like gold but much more valuable. Billy was hardly listening; he was fascinated with how the coin sparkled as it reflected the lights of the tree. Seeing this, his father told him, "The world will lose it’s shine, but the shine of Jesus and His gifts will never fade away." Nevertheless, Billy played with the coin as if it was just another toy, and within a couple of days he lost it somewhere.

We all have precious things in our lives, yet so often we take them for granted. We misuse, abuse or lose them. One example is how we treat our relationships. You met a person who was wonderful to be around, but as time went by you misused or abused them until they walked out of your life forever. It is especially easy to treat our relationship with God this way. We know that Christ is a treasure of priceless worth, how the holy Son of God lived and died so that we could be forgiven our sins and have the hope of eternal life. But we misuse this incredible gift. We cheapen the love of God by stubbornly pursuing wickedness, until our faith dies with a whimper and we lose the gifts that were most precious to us. Just as a gold coin is not a toy to be played with, the salvation won for us by Jesus’ suffering and death is not a gift to be treated lightly. But treat it lightly is something we frequently do anyway.

Our relationship with Jesus is valuable—as valuable as eternal life in paradise. Yet so often we treat it as something of little importance. We trade Christ for things that we think are shinier. Maybe we hunger for a lifestyle filled with shiny expensive goods, or we crave the sparkle that comes from being someone who is famous or powerful. Or maybe we decide that Christianity has lost its luster, as we deal with one tough struggle after another. Regardless, the most important gift of all is ignored and eventually lost.

Jesus once told a parable about a lost coin. He said, suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? (Luke 15:8). Being lost is something every Christian should be terrified of; without Christ there is no release from the guilt of past mistakes, no hope for a better tomorrow. It is a sobering reality that on any given day there is a risk of becoming lost; no Christian is immune to the temptations that would make us forget about God’s Son and the hope that He brings. And so God must work hard constantly; like the woman in the parable, He shines His light into our dark world and searches for the lost ones. It is only through His efforts that we are found and kept safely as His prized possessions.

When we participate in an office gift exchange, everyone tries to give presents of roughly equal value. The same holds true between friends and lovers. But when it comes to children, that standard of equity goes out the window. Children can’t match their parents in gift giving, nor are they expected to. It is the same between God and us. We have done nothing to earn His favor; all that we deserve from Him is punishment for our sins. But in spite of this, God the Father chose to send us the Greatest Gift Ever Given. God loves us despite our sinful condition, so He gave us a gift we can never repay—the life and death of His own beloved Son. Paul speaks of how sin and death seek to destroy the shininess of God’s beautiful creation. But the gift of God changes things completely; Paul says that this gift has brought justification.

This fancy word is very important because it summarizes The Greatest Gift Ever Given. God loved us so much that He sent His Son to shine us up. Sin creates scuff marks; it hides beauty behind ugly scars and prevents the light from being reflected. But Jesus reverses this damage. He was born into our world to do for us what we cannot. He came to live a perfect life for you. He came to suffer hell on the cross and die, so that you might enter heaven and live. The Holy Spirit brings you these gifts through God's word; He finds you and declares you righteous for the sake of Christ. Polished by Jesus, His light shines in our lives and is reflected to others as well. Whoever believes in Jesus will not be condemned but will enjoy eternal life in paradise.

At this time of year, the word of God points us to the manger. As we peer down at the holy Child, we are confronted with a great mystery—the Word of God made flesh. Underneath the wrapping paper of His humanity, that baby is the Son of the living God. Since Jesus is both God and man, He is our perfect substitute. Because He was a man, Jesus could live the life of obedience and love that God expects from all people. Because Jesus was God, what He did for us back then has the power to change our lives today. Because He was a man, Jesus could suffer, die and be raised from the dead; because He is the Son of God, His suffering, death and resurrection frees us from sin and guarantees our welcome in heaven. Son of God and Son of Man—only Jesus can bridge the gap between sinful humanity and holy God.

At Christmas, Jesus comes to us. From our current vantage point, we cannot see His face—for now, we only see the wrapping of preaching and teaching, of baptismal water and communion bread and wine. One day the wrapping will be torn away and we will see Him as He is. But even though we only see the wrapping, The Greatest Gift Ever Given is ours even now. There is nothing that can possibly be shinier than that. So when we are tempted to think that other things are more attractive, or when hard times make us wonder if the Gospel has lost it’s luster, it is time to reflect on all that we have been given in Christ—freedom from guilt, protection from the devil, strength to endure hardship, the forgiveness that fixes broken relationships, and a passport to heaven when we die. We have something far greater than anything earth can offer; we have hope. And so we can join Peter with joyful hearts and say, Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade (1 Peter 1:3-4).

Three months after Billy lost his shiny gold coin, his mother died in a terrible car accident. Three years after that, his father passed away after losing a fight with cancer. Billy became a bitter young man. Nothing could ease his grief or give him peace of mind. He frequently found himself in trouble with the law, and struggled with anger and depression. Finally, the day came when he was old enough to receive his inheritance. At the end of all the legal hassle, the lawyer handed him an envelope. Inside he found a set of keys for a safety deposit box that was set up by his father before the cancer took him.

Billy was alone in the vault when he slowly opened the box. The artificial light reflected off of something shiny—it was the gold coin he had lost all those years ago! He had pretty much forgotten about that coin, but the sight of it took him back to the Christmas when he got it. Underneath the coin was a letter from his father that began with these words:

Dear Billy: By now you are a young man. I wish I could have been there for you. I hope life has been good, but under the circumstances, it probably has been hard. When your mother died and I found out I had cancer, I lost all hope and hated God. One day, I was cleaning up the house and found your gold coin. I remembered the words I said to you when we gave it to you. Do you remember? I said, "The world will lose it’s shine, but the shine of Jesus and His gifts will never fade away." I hope you haven’t forgotten that, like I did, but if you have, I pray you will find it again as you have found your gold coin today.

Jesus Christ, the baby in the manger, puts shine in our lives now and for all eternity. He is The Greatest Gift Ever Given. Nothing is or ever will be greater than the birth and sacrifice of God’s one and only Son. So when everything seems to lose its shine, remember what a treasure you have in Him. His shine fills our dark days with the sparkle of God’s love, and guides us towards a bright future in heaven. That is the blessing of Christmas. As Peter says, it is a gift that will never perish, spoil or fade.

Merry Christmas!