For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23 NLT)

The Christmas story is the greatest story ever told. But it isn’t a fairy tale; it’s history. It is His story. The Son of God, the Savior, God incarnate, entered our world when He was born in Bethlehem on the first Christmas.

But why did God send His Son to Earth? Why did Jesus walk among us as a man? Why was all this done? It was so that God could give us the greatest gift of all: the gift of eternal life. Romans 6:23 says, “The free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23 NLT).

The gift of Christmas is the gift of eternal life. That is why God came to this earth.

When we open Christmas gifts, we’ll initially feel excited about them—or at least about some of them. But it won’t be long until they’re quickly outdated or forgotten.

But God’s gift, the gift of eternal life, only grows in value as we begin to understand what it’s all about. What’s more, it isn’t a gift that we can only enjoy when death comes. It’s a gift that we can enjoy right now.

That’s because one of the aspects of this gift of eternal life is something called justification. This is a unique, biblical word with a twofold meaning. First, it speaks of what God has taken away. And what has He taken away? Our sin. The moment we put our faith in Jesus Christ, our sins are instantaneously forgiven.

Think of all the things you’ve done that you have regretted. God can forgive you of those things because of the death of Jesus on the cross. If you will turn from your sin and call it what it is, God will forgive you.

Second, justification speaks of what God has put in place of our sin. When God justifies us, when we believe in Jesus, He places the righteousness of Christ into our account. And that balances the moral and spiritual budget for us.

Pastor and author Charles Swindoll describes justification this way: “Justification is the sovereign act of God whereby He declares righteous the believing sinner—while he is still in a sinning state.”

The Bible says, “Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us” (Romans 5:1 NLT).

The reason we can approach God, the reason we have access to God, and the reason that God will even hear our prayers is because of the gift He has given to us. And while this gift is free to us, it was bought with the blood of Jesus Christ.

Do you know God in a personal way? If you’ve never asked Jesus to come into your life, will you do it today? This is why Jesus was born in Bethlehem. He came to bring you this gift. As Isaiah tells us, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us” (9:6 NLT). He is God’s gift from Heaven.

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‘Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means “God is with us.”’ (Matthew 1:23 NLT)

For some, Christmas isn’t the happiest time of year. It can be the most dreaded time of year, because it reminds them of something. It might be the loss of a loved one, or it might be another loss of some kind. But Christmas can be a lonely, painful time.

Yet the essential message of Christmas is that Immanuel has come to us. And the name Immanuel means “God is with us.” We read in Matthew 1:23, “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us’” (NLT).

That is really the essence of the Christian life: God is with us.

Jesus knows what it is like to be lonely. When He walked this earth, He probably was the loneliest man ever to live. Yes, He constantly had throngs of people around Him. But on that final day, those multitudes were gone. Even His own, handpicked disciples deserted Him.

And as Jesus hung on the cross, suspended between Heaven and Earth, God the Father momentarily turned away as Christ bore all the sins of the world. He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Matthew 27:46 NLT).

Jesus will comfort us in our lonely moments. He says, “I am with you. I will never leave you or forsake you.” That is His promise to the children of God. We are never alone again.

Without question, one of the most remarkable teachings in the Bible is that Jesus Christ Himself will enter and live in the human hearts of those who put their trust in Him. Jesus said, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them” (John 14:23 NLT).

That is an amazing statement when you think about it. God the Father and the Son are saying they want to make their home with us.

All other religions essentially say, “Do.” “Do this and maybe you will be more spiritual.” “Do that, and maybe you will get closer to God.” But Christianity can be summed up in one word: “done.” Why? Because it is God living His life through us. God is with us.

Jesus said to His disciples, “And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20 NLT). He also said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you” (Hebrews 13:5 NLT).

God is with you. That is the message of Christmas. You are never alone again. Maybe your marriage fell apart and you feel alone. Know this: God is with you. Maybe your children have forgotten about you in this Christmas season, and the pain is sharp. Know this: God is with you. Maybe you’re isolated and by yourself. Know this: God is with you.

If you have put your faith in Jesus Christ, God is with you.

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This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. (Hebrews 4:15 NLT)

It is mind-boggling to think that the Creator of the universe became an embryo. He who created the solar system chose to become an infant. The Almighty appeared on Earth as a helpless human being, unable to do anything more than wiggle and make noises.

Jesus didn’t arrive with His full faculties intact. He was a baby who cried and needed His diaper changed. That is the mystery of the Incarnation—that God would allow Himself to live within the limitations of a human body.

There wasn’t a moment when Jesus suddenly became God or ceased to be God. First John 1:1 tells us, “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life” (NLT).

Jesus was God before Bethlehem. He was God in the manger. He was God as a young man. And He was God during His earthly ministry. He also was God as He hung on the cross, and He was God when He rose from the dead.

Jesus came to live among us. As the prophet Isaiah wrote, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (9:6 NLT).

At Christmas we celebrate the arrival of God’s Son on Earth. But it also was a departure from Heaven.

Jesus came and walked among us, enduring the limitations of a human body. He experienced the things we experience. Jesus knew what it was like to be hungry and thirsty. And like anyone else, He got tired and had to sleep. While He had the ability to perform miracles—and He did so–He never performed a miracle for His own benefit.

Also, Jesus knew what it was like to be lonely. Imagine how He felt when His disciples deserted Him. When He hung on the cross and all the sin of the world was placed upon Him, at that moment He was the loneliest man who ever lived. He knew what it was like for His friends to betray Him. And He knew what it was like for someone to lie about Him.

Jesus experienced all those things. That is why the Bible says of Him, “This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15 NLT).

When we go to God, we’re not talking to some distant celestial being who has no idea of what it’s like to live on Planet Earth. We’re talking about God who became a man. He knows exactly what we’re going through. Therefore, He can help us in our time of need.

It is hard for us to imagine both deity and humanity in one person. Yet when Jesus came to Earth and walked among us, that is who He was.

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So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (John 1:14 NLT)

Can you imagine looking at God in human form? During the earthly ministry of Jesus, we can imagine the disciples walking along with Him and looking at Him all the time.

The apostle John wrote of Jesus, “So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son” (John 1:14 NLT).

The disciples watched Him. They heard His words. Yet interestingly, in all the Gospel accounts, not one person gave a physical description of Jesus. The Bible suggests that Jesus was ordinary in appearance, because Isaiah 53 says, “There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him” (verse 2 NLT).

In other words, when Jesus walked this earth, He was an ordinary-looking man. He didn’t have a striking appearance. Nor did He have a permanent halo. In fact, when Judas Iscariot was about to identify Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, he said, “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss” (Matthew 26:48 NLT).

Why did Judas need to say that? Because they wouldn’t have been able to find Jesus in the crowd. Judas was essentially saying, “Let me point Him out to you.”

This makes it all the more extraordinary that God Almighty became an ordinary human being, a person just like us. He came to this earth. He walked among us.

John was saying, “We walked with Him. We talked with Him. And we want you to know that you can have fellowship with Him just like we had fellowship with Him.”

This isn’t a privilege only afforded to first-century believers. It’s one that is indeed available to twenty-first century believers too. We can know Jesus. Yet for some, God can seem so distant and unapproachable. But Jesus, who was God, came to show us what the Father is like.

Jesus stands apart from all other prophets, teachers, and so-called gurus. Jesus wasn’t a man who became God. Rather, He was God who became a man. And it never will happen again.

If you want to know what God is like, then take a long look at Jesus. You don’t need to look further. If you want to know how God feels about children, then look at Jesus taking the little ones into His arms, blessing them, and saying, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children” (Matthew 19:14 NLT).

And if you want to know how God feels about sinners, then look at Jesus reaching out to the down-and-outers of society and showing them love and compassion. We see Him going out of His way to make time for people that no one else wanted anything to do with.

Thus, if you want to know what God thinks about anything, then look at the story of Jesus. He is showing us what God is like.

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‘Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds.’ (Revelation 22:12 NLT)

There were a lot of people who missed the first Christmas, the night that Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. Of course, there were no the telltale signs that we have today. There were no Christmas carols, brightly colored lights, or sales at the local market.

Yet the first Christmas had its own signs that were being fulfilled before the eyes of the people, because the Hebrew prophets had foretold the arrival of a Savior. However, in the twenty-first century, we would be hard-pressed to miss Christmas. We can’t miss the fact that Christmas is upon us.

People today have a better idea of how to prepare for a Christmas celebration than how to prepare for the return of Jesus Christ. But Jesus Christ, who was born in the manger in Bethlehem, who was crucified on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead, is coming back again. And we don’t want to miss that.

He came right on schedule the first time, and He will come right on schedule the second time.

Jesus said, “Yes, I am coming soon!” (Revelation 22:20 NLT). And the answer of the true Christian will always be, along with the apostle John, “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” What’s more, anything that would prevent us from saying the same thing is out of place in our lives.

We are not only to be waiting, but we are also to be working. Jesus said, “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward” (Luke 12:42–43 NLT).

If watching is the evidence of faith, then working is the evidence of faith in action. Watching for the Lord’s return will help us prepare our own lives, but working will assure that we bring others with us. We should be serving the Lord and looking for opportunities to engage people and tell them about Jesus.

Jesus also said, “The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat!” (verse 37 NLT). The word blessed could be translated as “happy.”

Looking for the return of Christ isn’t a miserable, repressive, confining way to live. It’s a happy, joyful, and purposeful way to live.

Christmas is coming. The signs are all around us. Of course, Christmas will come, and Christmas will go. And before long, we’ll forget about the gifts that we received. But Jesus Christ is coming back again. People missed the first Christmas. But we don’t want to miss it when Jesus Christ comes back again. He is coming for those who are watching and waiting.

So, don’t just be ready for Christmas. Be ready for Christ Himself. It is not about Christmas presents; it’s about His holy presence in our lives.

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What can I offer the Lord for all he has done for me? (Psalm 116:12 NLT)

The psalmist David asked, “What can I offer the Lord for all he has done for me?” Then he goes on to say, “I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the Lord’s name for saving me” (Psalm 116:12–13 NLT).

One of the most well-known stories in the Bible is that of the wise men who came to visit the child Jesus. There’s a lot of misunderstanding about this story, however. For example, they have been called kings, but we really don’t know that they were. The Bible calls them magi, which is closely related to the word magician.

These men were advisers to the king and more like king makers than actual kings. They were very powerful. They studied the stars and were into astronomy and astrology. These were pagan men who did not believe in the Lord God of Israel. So, God came to them in a way they would understand.

He went to these stargazers, these magi, with a star. And that star brought them to the child Jesus, who had already been born. First they came through Jerusalem, where they met the paranoid King Herod. They told him they had come to worship the King of the Jews.

Then they found their way to Bethlehem. Matthew tells us, “The star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him” (Matthew 2:9–11 NLT).

They came to worship the newborn King. And how did they express their worship? Verse 11 tells us, “They opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (NLT). They didn’t give Jesus their leftovers. They were meeting the living King, and only the best would do.

Sometimes in the church we limit the word worship. In a church service, we often call our time of singing our “worship time.” Then when the singing is done, we say it’s time for Bible study. But hearing a Bible study is also an act of worship, just as giving an offering is. Leaving the church building and sharing our faith with someone is an act of worship as well.

Serving others is an act of worship. In Billy Graham’s home, there was a sign near the kitchen sink that read, “Divine service done here three times daily.” Even doing the dishes can be an act of worship. So, let’s not limit our worship to singing.

At Christmas we celebrate God’s gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, to us. There’s nothing that we ever could give to God that would be even close to being equal to the gift that God has given to us. But there are things we can do for Him to show our thanks.

When someone gives us a nice gift, we say thank you. If someone does something for us, we say thank you. In the same way, God has given us this amazing gift. So, we should say, “Thank you, Lord.”

The real happiness we are looking for is not in Christmas; it is in Christ. It comes from His presence in our lives.

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Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words! (2 Corinthians 9:15 NLT)

There are gifts that you may receive this year that soon will be out of date or out of fashion. Some gifts, however, only grow in value over time. Maybe it’s a family heirloom that you received a long time ago, and it has become even more precious to you now.

God has given us a gift, and it never goes out of style. It’s the gift of all gifts: salvation. If you are a Christian, then you already carry this gift in your heart. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” (NLT).

While this gift brings with it the hope of Heaven and the hope of eternal life, there are aspects of it that we can enjoy now. One of them is justification. The Bible says, “Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us” (Romans 5:1 NLT).

The word justify has a twofold meaning. First, it carries the idea of the forgiveness of all our sin. Maybe you’ve been mulling over your sin and you’re troubled by it. If you have asked God to forgive you of that sin and have repented of it, then He has forgiven you.

God has forgiven you of every sin that you have confessed and turned from. Accept that. Often we dig up those sins, go over them again and again, and beat ourselves up over them. Yet God says, “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins” (Hebrews 8:12 NLT).

Here’s what we need to know: We should not choose to remember what God has chosen to forget. God has forgiven our sins. That is part of the gift that God has given to each of us. But there is also the positive side of justification.

When God justifies us, He places the righteousness of Christ in our account. That balances the moral and spiritual budget for us. We are declared righteous. This is not a gradual process; it’s something that happens immediately when we put our faith in Jesus Christ.

And there is even more. Not only has God justified us, not only has He forgiven our sins and placed the righteousness of Christ into our account, but He also has adopted us into His family.

By adopting us, God is saying, “Don’t merely stand in awe of Me. Come close to Me. I want you to be My child. You have access to Me anytime.” What a great joy to know that we have been adopted into God’s family.

If all there was as a Christian was this life we have now with Jesus, it still would be worth it to be a Christian. But that isn’t all there is. It will get even better. The afterlife will be better than the “before life.” The best is yet to come.

That is God’s gift to you. Open it. Enjoy it. Love it.

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‘And it is one of King David’s descendants, Jesus, who is God’s promised Savior of Israel!’ (Acts 13:23 NLT)

The shadow of the cross lay over the beauty of the first Christmas night. It was there from the very beginning. That is why red is the color of Christmas. It isn’t because Santa wears red or that we sometimes wrap our gifts in red. Red is the color of Christmas, because red is the color of the blood that Jesus shed for us on the cross.

That is what Jesus came to do. He went voluntarily to the cross. Of course, He could have gotten out of it if He had chosen to, but Jesus laid down His life for us.

Jesus did not come so that we could go to endless Christmas events. He did not come to teach everyone how to be good or to love their neighbors, although these are good things to do. To the point, Jesus came to die an agonizing death and to ransom us from an eternal death sentence.

The story of Christmas doesn’t begin with the words “once upon a time,” though it has all the majesty and the magic of the greatest fairy tale you’ve ever heard. It has shepherds, angels, wise men from the East, and a bright, shining star. But it’s a real story pinpointed specifically in time.

Luke begins the Christmas story by telling us who is in power and what was going on at that particular moment in history. Luke was a physician by trade, and he was a stickler for detail. Everything in the world was in place for the arrival of the Messiah.

The Bible says, “But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children” (Galatians 4:4–5 NLT).

When Christmas arrives and the gifts are opened, some of us will be very excited, and some of us will be a little disappointed. That’s because Christmas can’t deliver on its promises. Only Christ can.

What is Christmas at its best? At its best it is gathering with family and friends and perhaps enjoying a meal together. (And of course, worshipping together is one of the greatest things we could do on Christmas.) But these are glimpses of things to come.

In many ways, Christmas is a promise. It’s a glimpse of something greater. It’s a promise that has not been fully kept because it’s really not about Christmas; it’s about Christ.

That is what we’re really longing for—not Christmas but Christ; not merriment, but the Messiah; not goodwill, but God himself.

Put God first, not last. Don’t work Him into your busy schedule. Rather, put Him first in all things. Jesus won’t force His way into your life, but He would love to come and be a part of it. If you will seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness in everything you do, it will change everything about your life.

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