For us, 2019 was an expensive twelve months. So, my wife and I decided not to buy Christmas gifts this year. Part of our thinking was since we already give gifts to each other and our children anytime, no need for the added expense of Christmas gifts right now. But we still put up a tree as we usually do in late November.
And there it sat for days and weeks collecting dust without any gifts under it. I started feeling bad and having doubts about our decision, but in the end, we agreed it was the wise thing to do.
We've had spectacular Christmases before with gifts galore and others with significantly less. This year was the exception—we had zero gifts. We just didn’t have the budget.
However, beginning about three or four days ago, something special began to happen. My wife received a gift from a store owner she frequents. Then, gifts from family members started arriving. And last night (the night before Christmas), my father-in-law showed up from out of town with more gifts.
Now we have a tree that looks like it did in years past. It reminds me of the spiritual side of Christmas and what the Lord did for us.
1. Our Gift-Less Tree Is Our Condition
We couldn’t buy gifts because our finances were exhausted this year. Our barren tree was an image of our spiritual condition before God.
The Bible tells us that we're all sinners (Romans 3:23); that none of us has any goodness (Romans 3:10). But God showed His love for us even when we had nothing to give by sending us His Son (Romans 5:8).
2. We Have Nothing to Give
Our empty tree was a daily reminder of our lack. We had nothing to give our children or each other. It was kind of sad, really, but what could we do.
But from that image, I saw that God invites us to receive freely from Him . . .
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price (Isaiah 55:1).
Because of sin, our spiritual account is bankrupt. We have nothing to merit blessings. That means we can't buy gifts from God. But God’s in the perfect position to give to us. And why not, all things belong to Him (Psalm 89:11).
Since we're all spiritually bankrupt, we live in a debtor’s prison from birth. But Jesus came to set the captives free (Luke 4:18). He came to pay our sin-debt—the perfect gift.
God is our Gift-Giver
Ephesians 2:8 says,
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.
God is quite pleased. But it isn't with us. It's with His Son (Matthew 3:17).
Jesus Christ paid it all. When He died on the cross He said, "it is finished" (John 19:30). And He meant it, "once and for all" (Hebrews 10:10).
God freely gives us the gift of eternal life by faith in Christ who paid for our sins and rose again from death so we could become holy in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21, Philippians 3:9).
It Sounds So Theological
I know. Sometimes Christians talk like that. But it just means, we've all done or thought bad things, and God can't accept that in His holy Kingdom of Heaven. To make things right, someone had to be punished.
Instead of us, God punished His Son (Isaiah 53:4-6) to the point of death. And Christ's sacrifice was perfect, so He didn't stay dead. By rising from the grave, Jesus showed the Father's acceptance of His Son's payment in full.
There's no need to give anything to get this credit of holiness. Just be humble enough to acknowledge it, believe it, and receive it.
Sadly, some people think the way to heaven is by working and working, paying and paying, and doing and doing enough to satisfy God's holiness. They couldn’t be further from the truth. Our currency’s no good with God.
3. We Do Not Deserve Gifts
Deep down, I know I didn't deserve anything under the tree anyway. I lost my temper several times this year and said things that shouldn’t be said by a child of God. I haven’t always followed God’s wisdom but followed my own. I’ve strayed from God and haven’t always been a good husband or loving father. So, I know I don’t deserve a gift under the tree.
My wife and children felt similar. When we looked over the past year, we knew we had failures and shortcomings. But that’s the heart of Christmas. We give each other gifts even though we don’t deserve them.
This year we pretty much failed totally in the gift department. But the beautiful part of our Christmas was God gifted us.
For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly (Romans 5:6).
Even though we didn't deserve them, and when we had no gifts for ourselves, we had gifts under our tree. It was a reminder of Romans 5:6. The Christmas we thought we had no gifts is the Christmas God showed us unmerited favor (grace) by giving them to us.
4. God Gifted Us
We all know the verse,
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16).
But do we ever stop to think how it can be integrated into our Christmas? It's pretty clear every year, but I could see it especially this year. God sent His only begotten Son as our gift. And an unspeakable gift at that (2 Corinthians 9:15).
Blessings Received from Our Empty Tree
Having gifts appear under our gift-less Christmas tree blessed in obvious ways, but there were a few added blessings that came with them.
The Loving-Kindness of God
First, God showed me His loving-kindness. By bringing gifts to our bare tree, the Lord brought to mind how loving and kind He is (Isaiah 63:7). It's hard to explain really, but it just caused me to be moved by God's warmth.
A Father’s Love
Second, my children and my wife received gifts today. Despite my wife saying she doesn't mind and my children saying it's okay, as a father, you know it's not. So, seeing gifts arrive day after day under the tree blessed me as a father. God, my Father, showed, me His child, the love of a Father today.
Another Reason to Glorify God
Thirdly, it gave me something experiential to share with my family during our Christmas devotion before opening our gifts. And that's pretty cool. I had something recent and real to share with my family and it proclaimed the glory of God on Christmas Day.
In the End . . .
We began with nothing and ended up with much. I can only hope and pray that 2020 won’t be as expensive. But if God lets me see His loving-kindness each day as He did today, it might be more tolerable. However it plays out, I have a reminder that God loves me and cares about me and my family.
As a result of our experience this Christmas, I say thank you Lord and glory to You. I can say with the angels,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men (Luke 2:14).
What can you say this Christmas? Share your blessings in the comments.
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Written by Jerry Smith
Image source: Photo by Tj Holowaychuk on Unsplash
