The Perfect Gift For Christmas Series

Introduction

In 1989, a movie was released by the name of “Christmas Vacation”. In this movie, a guy named Clark was expecting a big Christmas bonus from his boss. He had plans for the money to buy a pool for his family. When he opened the boss’ Christmas envelope presented to him, instead of a big bonus, it was a certificate telling him that for the next 12 months he will get the Jelly of the Month as part of being enrolled by his employer in the Jelly of the Month club.

Needless to say, Clark didn’t get what he wanted for Christmas. He experienced disappointment.

Probably you know about disappointment at Christmas. If you think back to your Christmas’ past as a child, you made have had your heart set on a certain gift that you hinted about but after you opened all the presents, it wasn’t that. If it wasn’t there, you experienced disappointment.

As you got older and your children have all left the nest, you find your Christmas wishes change. And so, maybe in some recent Christmas past you felt that the best gift that you could get is all your children with their children home for the holidays. But at last minute, sickness ran its course through one of your children’s household and so with a bunch of sick folks they could not make the trip. Maybe another child and their family live further north and a winter storm surprised the meteorologist, and it dumped more snow than expected and so travel is too hazardous to attempt coming home. So, your family was not all home for the holidays, and you experienced disappointment.

This morning, I want to tell you about a Christmas gift that will never disappoint. I can go so far as to say it is the perfect gift. Do I have your attention? So, if you don’t mind, I would like to share with you why the Christ child who came on Christmas morning is the perfect gift you and for me.

Points

#1

The Christ of Christmas is the perfect Christmas gift because He came giving you and me new life. And I never get tired of my new life.

1 John 5:11-12 (NKJV)

11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

You ever watch a child on Christmas morning? They are so excited that about the toys that they received that don’t know which one to play with first. Fast forward a week, and those toys that they were so excited about on Christmas morning are sitting over there in the corner untouched. Fast forward six months later, and you ask your child where is that toy you got for Christmas because I have not seen it in a while. And your child’s response is that I don’t know. And what that child is telling you is that he or she has gotten tired of that gift. It lost its newness.

It is not just children but adults that do the same thing. You get yourself a new car for Christmas and every weekend for several months; you are outside vacuuming the inside and washing and waxing the outside of the car. But after a few months, you begin to think a little dirt on the floorboards isn’t going to hurt anything; and you begin to rationalize what is wrong with a little bit of Mississippi mud on the outside. After all, I live in Mississippi. What happened? It lost its newness.

I got saved in August 1976. That is some 44 years ago. And I got to tell you that when I accepted Christ and received my new life in Him and was given eternal life- that was a wow gift. But here it is 44 years later, and it is still a wow gift. I loved the gift that God gave me 44 years ago, but I have to say that I love it even more today because I understand all that eternal life entails so much better having spent time with God. And here is the point- Christ is the perfect Christmas gift because you will never get tired of new life, eternal life.

#2

The Christ of Christmas is the perfect Christmas gift because even after 44 years, the gift of Christ is still working in my life.

Lamentations 3:22-23 (NKJV)

22 Through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not.

23 They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.

If I were to ask the children in the church today, where are there Christmas gifts from five years ago, or four years ago, or three years ago, the answer is that they probably are thrown in the trash either because they got broken or parts have been lost. In other words, the gifts have stopped working.