Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. (Mt 1:18)
Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. 6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Lk 2:4-7 NKJV)
Jesus was born as a helpless infant, as every human being since Adam and Eve have been. He submitted to His Father’s will to become our Messiah, and He grew in size and strength as all babies must. (Lk 2:40)
It’s good for us to recognize that God, the Son—who is Jesus—submitted and yielded to His Father’s plan in all of this. It required submission and humility on His part because Jesus had to have patience. He had to wait for 30 years to be acknowledged as an adult before He could even begin His work and ministry!
Jesus was not only God’s gift to us, but since Jesus is a member of the Godhead, He was also a partner in the giving process! We might say that He is the Christmas Gift as well as the Giver!
One of the traits of Jesus is that He gives good things to men. He was an unexpected gift that mankind wasn’t looking for, and one which we shall never deserve. Nevertheless, He was integral to God’s plan of salvation, and so He came according to the Scriptures.
His gifts to us are so copious, according to the Bible, that we can’t list them all! A good beginning is to state the two most obvious gifts of: salvation and freedom. We’ve received freedom from: A) sin; B) guilt; C) the fear of death (1 Cor 15:56); and D) the fear of punishment.
An additional gift that Jesus gave to us is the expectation of the many blessings of our salvation, among which are:
1) Love (Rom 8:39; 1 Jn 4:8);
2) Joy (Lk 2:10; Gal 5:22);
3) Peace (Isa 9:6; Jn 14:27); and
4) Truth (Jn 14:6; Jn 18:37).
This holiday season, let’s take time to meditate upon the many gifts of our salvation that we have already received thanks to the perfect love and obedience of Jesus, God’s precious Gift!
decidingvoteblog 