“For God so loved the world, THAT HE GAVE his only Son,
that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”[1]
Now this is very interesting. The
song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” begins with the line, “On the first day
of Christmas, my true love gave to me…” This is almost close to the original
that tells us that on the day people often refer to as the original Christmas,
the true love of the world gave to us.
This seems to
be the starting place, that there is a givingness to love. There is a way that God
has given us so much through his love; in fact, far more than the gifts the
twelve days of Christmas song suggests.
When we know
God, and we know love, it makes perfect sense that “God so loved the world, that he gave…” We are quite familiar with
this concept in our own lives. Because we love people, we give them things. I
love my wife, so I give her things for her birthday, our anniversary, for
Christmas, and for special little occasions that are just between us. Because
she is my beloved, I love to give to her.
What we learn
from God is that love is far more than a warm, tingly feeling within us. It is
more than a rush of excitement when that special someone walks into a room. It
is greater than the selfish thoughts and feelings we have for someone we think
we just can’t live without. In fact, all our worldly loves are tainted by the problem
that God has graciously done something to address.
What we see
from God is that he loved the world, and so he gave something. Christmas as an
expression of giving gifts to our loved ones is a tiny reflection of this much
greater part of Christmas, that God so loved that he gave.
One of the
things that come up here is that we humans are often like spoiled little
children who think we can tell God what his giving should look like. I can
still remember one of my most special and disappointing christmases ever. I was
a child growing up on the Queen Charlotte Island (now Haida Gwaii). That
Christmas my grandmother was visiting, so my bedroom became the guest suite.
The only place left for me to sleep was the living room couch. However, the
good thing about this demotion was that this put me in the same room as the
Christmas tree. You know, where all the presents would be Christmas morning.
In my
childhood belief that Santa was the one who brought Christmas presents, I was
thrilled with my new bedroom. Not only that, but our island home had a large
living room window that overlooked the wintry waters of Shingle Bay. I could
picture Santa’s sleigh rounding the spit, flying straight towards our house,
with me having a front-row seat to the whole thing.
My first
disappointment to this wonderful opportunity was waking up Christmas morning to
the discovery that I had fallen asleep and missed Santa’s visit. The tree was
loaded with presents, and Santa had somehow come and gone without my delighted
participation.
The second
disappointment was that, after a fun time of opening presents with our family,
we got to the end of the whole experience with my selfish little heart feeling
like there wasn’t enough stuff. I can still remember hearing myself say, “Is this
all?” I don’t know why I felt that way.[2] I
can picture a floor covered with presents and wrapping paper galore, but as
soon as the unwrapping of gifts finished, and there was nothing more to open, I
felt a huge disappointment that we could not keep the fun going.
The third
disappointment was the effect that my complaint had on my parents. As a parent
myself, often seeing the self-centered view of little children who love the
thrill of gift opening so much that there can never be enough gifts, I realize how
hurtful it was for me to receive so many presents, and end the whole thing with
a complaint that it was simply not sufficient.
The point of
the story is that we can be so ungrateful for the gift that we miss seeing the
gift. Or we can be so addicted to the brain chemistry that takes place when we
are opening presents that we cannot be happy when the gift opening stops, and
have to go looking for some other gift to give us that temporary thrill.
What must be
spoken into our world is that the God who so loved the world “gave” something to the world. He didn’t
just stay up in his heavenly throne and feel love for people he was unwilling
to help.
I know there
are many people who think of God this way. They think that there is a
possibility that he is up there, or out there, or even everywhere, but they do
not see him as caring about our world. They don’t see him doing anything about
the environment, or even about these awful things that are perpetrated against
those who believe in him, and they decide that this means he just doesn't care.
However, what
God gives us in his book is a very clear revelation of what his love has
compelled him to do. It begins with us acknowledging that God so loved that he
gave. God so loved the world that he responded to the messed-up condition of
the world with the very best thing. A God-sized, God-chosen, gift that is
exactly what we need.
While reading
the verse tells us what this gift is, and we will unwrap these things even
further in the coming days, there is an element of Christmas that we would not
do without, and that is the anticipation of what we know for certain is going
to take place.
I remember the
thrill of my childhood, knowing that there would be presents under the tree.
While waiting for Christmas dad, it didn’t matter what the presents were
(although my mind certainly knew what I wanted), there was still this delightful
anticipation. There were gifts. They were waiting to be opened. The paper chain
was getting shorter. Christmas day would soon be here.
So too, we
must stop for a moment and consider this wonderful reality, that God so loved
that he gave. If he gave, there is a gift. If there is a gift, it is waiting to
be opened. If it is waiting to be opened, it is inviting us to prepare
ourselves for the opening.
No matter what
any of us have ever thought of God, and how he feels about our world, he has
written his own thoughts for us in his book. He so loved the world that he
gave. Allow your heart to enjoy the anticipation of the gift. If it is God in
heaven who gave something to us Worldlings on Earth, this must be the most
significant act of giving the world, and history, have ever known. As the old
Christmas Carol invites, “Let every heart prepare…”[3]
Now, while the
gift of God’s love can be opened all year round, and we ought to prepare to
open that gift right now if we know we do not yet have it, there is also a
sense in which the arrival of Christmas day helps us to celebrate the
givingness of God’s love.
So, enjoy the
anticipation, and get ready to have a blessed “About Christ” Day!
Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures
are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version
Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good
News Publishers.)
[1]
John 3:16
[2]
I guess I could say something about the way we become addicted to the
good-feeling chemicals our brains secrete when we’re involved in exciting
experiences, but that’s not what my childish mind could understand at the time.
[3]
From “Joy to the World,” Author: Isaac Watts (1719); tune ANTIOCH, Composer:
George Frideric Handel,
Adapter: Lowell
Mason
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