As we wrap up Christmas, we have to be careful that we don’t throw out the miracle with the tinsel. In all the celebration, the holiday’s greatest blessing can become routine to us. And if we are not careful, the rush to buy gifts, decorate, and attend parties can cause us to miss the miracle of Christmas. The challenge is even greater after we take down the tree.
That’s why it is good to review the first Christmas because everything about the first Christmas was miraculous. It was a miraculous birth. The second person of the Trinity became flesh. Can you imagine that: Divinity, wrapped in humanity; eternity, encased in a temporary container. It’s hard to wrap your mind around it, but that’s the miracle of Christmas. God came down to man, because man couldn’t get up to God.
He was given a miraculous name. The name “Jesus” fits the mission of this miracle child, it is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua. Jesus means “God saves.” He was sent to show the world that God saves. And there is salvation in no other name (Acts 4:12) because Jesus is salvation.
Finally, he offers the world a miraculous gift, “for he will save his people from their sins.”
God in his wisdom knew it takes incarnation to bring about salvation, he knew the world needed an encounter with God in the flesh in order to experience his glory, full of grace and truth. So he sent us Jesus.
When we give someone a gift, we like to hear them say, “That’s just what I wanted.” But when God gave this gift, he knew it was just what we needed!
So, if you want to retain the joy of Christmas in the new year, then share the miracle of Christmas all year. Let someone know God loves them so much that he gave them what their soul needs most—a savior, Christ the Lord.
Prayer prompt: Father, in your wisdom you have provided the gift every one of us needs. Help us to cherish your gift and never take Christ for granted. And lead us to share the miracle of Jesus, because the whole world needs this gift.
Adron Robinson is pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church in Country Club Hills and president of the Illinois Baptist State Association.