For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16

There are many traditions that are associated with the celebration of Christmas in America.  For many families the most memorable tradition is the exchange of gifts.  As a child, I would count down the days until I would finally be able to unwrap the gifts under the tree that had my name on them.  I sometimes feel that I am even more excited about Christmas as an adult, as I look forward to my kids unwrapping their gifts and running around the house playing with their new toys together.

Maybe you are like me and look forward to the yearly exchange of gifts, or maybe you are more prone to dread the gift-giving of Christmas, feeling pressure to overspend and meet the expectations of others.  No matter what your feelings are on gifts during the Christmas season, hopefully as a Christian your mind is repeatedly drawn to Jesus, the great gift that is the reason we celebrate.

To properly recognize the greatness of Jesus as the ultimate gift, it is important to recognize the severity of our condition without Jesus.  The Bible records the historical account of the creation of the world in six days, with the apex of God’s creative work being the creation of Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:26-27), who He then brings together in mankind’s first marriage (Genesis 2:21-24).

Unfortunately, it was not long before Adam and Eve sinned, choosing to listen to the lies of the serpent instead of obeying the law of God (Genesis 3:1-6).  Adam’s sin brought death into the world (Genesis 2:16-17), and Adam, as the representative head of mankind, passed on his sinful nature to all mankind (Romans 5:12).

The ramifications of Adam’s sin are felt by everyone.  Adam’s sin brought the curse of sin into our world, which is seen in many different forms in our daily lives.  It can be seen in the existence of weeds in our yard, the pain involved in childbirth, tension in the home between a husband and a wife, the difficulty of making enough money to provide for the needs of the family, and the pain of you or a loved one going through cancer treatments.

The effects of sin also have serious implications on the condition of man.  Sinful man is naturally at enmity against God (Romans 8:7) and is incapable of doing enough good works to earn the favor of God (Romans 3:20); the best that sinful man can offer God is the equivalent of soiled rags (Isaiah 64:6).  Man in his lost condition is a slave to sin (John 8:34) and is deserving of eternal punishment from a holy God (2 Thessalonians 1:9).

Whereas the other religions of the world emphasize good works and self-effort to earn the favor of God, the Bible makes clear that man cannot earn God’s favor and achieve salvation, and therefore a means outside of self-effort is necessary.  What makes the grace of God truly amazing is that He Himself provided the means by which the sins of man can be paid for in full.

John 3:16 is probably the most famous verse in the Bible, and with good reason.  This powerful verse states the incredible truth that God’s love for the world led Him to give this world its greatest gift.  God the Father gave the world the gift of Jesus the Christ. 

Jesus humbled Himself and took on the human flesh He created (Philippians 2:6-8).  He experienced all the frailties, heartaches, and difficulties of life, with the sole exception being that He never sinned (Hebrews 4:15).  In taking on human flesh and living His whole life without sin, He was able to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for sins in the place of man (1 Peter 2:24).  Jesus not only paid the price in full for the sins of His people, but He also imparted His perfect righteousness to His people (2 Corinthians 5:21).

The doctrine of the incarnation of Jesus Christ is a deep well from which we can gather an abundance of marvelous truths.  Of all the different wonders associated with the truth that eternal God took on finite flesh, today I encourage you to spend time meditating on the fact that God’s love for His people led Him to give the world its greatest gift.  Without Christ, we would be without hope.  But because God sent His Son into this world to redeem His people, we have reason to rejoice.  Let us celebrate our Lord and King this Christmas season!