DECEMBER 2 UNWRAPPING CHRISTMAS By Todd Adams Senior Pastor, Faith Baptist Church
...the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. (Matthew 1:16)
One of the best parts about Christmas is the unwrapping of the presents we are given. During this time of anticipation, I’ve learned that the wrapping is not always an accurate indication of the gift. I remember one year, our oldest son gave me a gift he had wrapped by himself and had purchased with his own money. The way it was wrapped was not much to look at, but the gift he gave to me was precious.
What do we see as we start to unwrap Christmas?
First, Christmas reminds us that we don’t have to live life by the labels people give us. As we read through Jesus’ lineage in Matthew chapter one, something strange happens. Names appear, names we do not associate with the Christmas story. These are the kind of family members most of us might wish were not in our family tree, names that most writers would leave out. Not so with Matthew. He mentioned many in Jesus’ lineage who had a rough and shameful past (even Matthew himself had a tainted history as a tax collector). In the same way, Jesus sees what we can be instead of what we used to be. Christmas also tells all mankind that Jesus came for sinners like us; we have the problem, and God has the answer. People have often called Christmas the greatest gift exchange—eternal death for eternal life. The Christmas story is about forgiveness in a world where people only felt condemnation. Lastly, accepting God’s gift of love changes our story. When we unwrap Christmas, what we discover is that the baby in the manger is the man on the cross who rises from the grave. He is the Savior of the world and the King who will return. We can’t change our lineage, but we can change our legacy by receiving the greatest gift and faithfully following our Savior.
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