Introduction
I. It is almost here; that special time of year called Christmas,
A. That time of year when some family members travel great distances, just to be together.
B. That time of year when life gets extremely busy, what with all the shopping, wrapping of gifts, extra church activities, planning and attending Christmas parties; and for most of us, it will run all the way through New Years.
C. The song says, “It’s the most, wonderful time of the year” and for many of us, Christmas does hold a certain amount of “magic.”
II. Christmas, more than any other holiday, really is a universal holiday,
A. Christmas is the one holiday that almost every nation celebrates,
1. When I lived in Germany, the Germans celebrated Christmas,
2. Very few places do not have some form of Christmas
B. Christmas is the one holiday that almost every person celebrates
1. Christmas is not just for Christians,
a. I have Jewish acquaintances that give Christmas gifts, even though they claim not to celebrate Christmas,
b. People that do not even believe in God, celebrate Christmas, of course they probably call it something else.
C. Christmas is universal.
III. Many families have traditions that are wrapped up in Christmas,
A. Maybe it’s a special meal;
1. Many people make another big turkey dinner for Christmas,
2. For the past 30 years, Maryann and I have forgone the big Christmas dinner, in favor of spaghetti and meatballs.
B. Maybe its that special trip to grandmom’s or some other family members on Christmas eve or Christmas day.
C. For some, it is scheduling a trip to a church service.
D. When I was young, my family used to gather on Christmas Eve at my sister’s home, (she had like seven children, so that was easier for her) and we would get to open one present on Christmas Eve.
1. We almost looked forward to Christmas Eve more than Christmas day, because that one present seemed so special.
2. This year, again for Maryann and I, we look forward to our scattered children all being home at the same time.
IV. Christmas, that special time of year for gift giving and receiving.
A. When someone asks us, “What do you want for Christmas, many of us probably say something like,
1. “O, I don’t know.” or
2. “Anything will do.” and a few of us even say,
3. “I really don’t want anything this year.”
B. BUT, probably most of us have an idea of at least one special gift that we are hoping to receive for Christmas this year.
1. That one very special present,
a. It might be something you need,
b. It might be something you’ve put off getting for yourself.
c. It might simply be some little luxury that you just want,
2. But most of us have an idea of one gift we are hoping or planning to receive, and for us, that gift, regardless of cost is valuable.
V. Let me ask you a question this morning,
A. “What is it that makes a gift ‘valuable’ to us?
B. What criteria do you use to analyze the value of a gift you receive?
1. Is it the size of the gift?
a. The larger the package the more value it has.
b. That was often the case when I was to young to realize that “good things come in small packages.”
2. Is it the weight of the item.
a. Did you even notice how many people will pick up a package and check it’s weight.
b. Often the first comment is, “It’s heavy.” as if weight might determine value.
3. Maybe it’s how many carats it has; life was simpler for some of us when we thought carrots were only something to eat.
4. Sometimes the “usefulness” of the gift might determine it’s value.
a. If I need it, it has value,
b. If I can put it to use, it has value.
c. But listen guys, most folks really don’t want a new vacuum cleaner for Christmas.
VI. Did you know that the Bible has a lot to say about gifts?
A. The word “gift” is used some 55 times in scripture.
1. John 4:10 reads - “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”
2. 2nd Cor. 9:13 says - “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”
3. Prov. 127:3 - “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; The fruite of the womb is a reward.”
4. Just a sampling.
B. The word “gifts” is used some 65 times.
VII. The bible says that God has given us several gifts, but it says that He has given us one very special gift, and this morning I would like us to look at three ways to measure the value of God’s gift to us.
A. If you have your bibles, please open them to 1 John 4:7-11 - 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.
B. First, God’s gift to us can be measured by it’s USEFULNESS.
The Value of God’s gift is measured by its USEFULNESS.
I. God’s gift is useful; think of it this way,
A. I have made a mess on the floor, and I need a vacuum cleaner.
1. I call in to Maryann, and ask her to bring me the vacuum so that I can clean up my mess.
2. In she bounds to the living room, and says “I have just what you need!” and she hands me an expensive Rolex watch.
B. My response might be, “That’s great, BUT, it’s useless to me.”
C. The only use that Rolex will have in cleaning up the mess, is that I can probably sell it and go buy a Hoover vacuum cleaner.
D. In and of itself, that watch is useless.
II. Now don’t get mad at me, I’m not saying that Christ is no better than a vacuum cleaner, but the fact is, Christ came to this earth, but if people don’t accept Him, His coming was “Useless.”
III. So, what is the usefulness of God’s gift to us? Look at verse 9
A. Verse 9 clearly states that Christ was sent, “that we might live through Him.”
1. The implication of course is that without Christ, there was no life, or perhaps better stated,
2. Without Christ there IS no life.
B. See that word “through”
1. It is also often translated as “by” or “in”
2. The value of God’s gift of His son, is that life is received through the acceptance of that gift.
IV. But what does it mean to live “in Christ?”
A. It means to live in accordance with that Christ has said; listen to Jude verse 17 -But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ,”
B. It means to live for the same purposes as Christ; it says in Phillippians 2, verse 5 - “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,”
C. It means to live our life with the works God planned for us in eternity past for listen to Ephesians 2 verse 10 - “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
D. In the context of this passage, it means to acquire and demonstrate the love of God to this world.
V. One way we can measure the value of God’s gift is to remember that it is USEFUL for bringing life, where life did not exist.
A. Jesus said it this way in John 10:10, “...I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly”
B. Listen to some of the nuances of the Greek word “abundantly”
1. beyond measure , vehemently, very highly, exceeding abundantly above, over and above, more than is necessary, supremely, superior, extraordinary, uncommon, remarkable, excellent
2. Now that sounds like some kind of life to me.
VI. But you say, I have accepted Christ, yet I don’t feel that way.
A. Look again at verse 9, for I think there is a key in it that we need to accept - By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.
B. Do you see the phrase,
1. Many people say, “just accept Jesus, and you will have this wonderful life.
2. John 4, verse 9 says, “Christ was sent into the world, so that (in order that) we might live, (here’s the key) ‘THROUGH (in, by) Him.”
C. Yes the gift has been given, but have I really accepted it.
1. Yes, in Christ we have eternal life, BUT
2. When I live “in, by, and through” the power of Christ; then I will truly experience life.
VII. The second way to measure God’s gift, is by its COST.
The Value of God’s Gift Is Measured by it’s Cost
I. Once upon a time, I thought that the less an item cost, the greater was it’s value.
A. We see things like,
1. Value pricing, or
2. A great value for it’s price, or
3. Priced at ONLY
B. As I have grown older, I have often found just the opposite to be true,
C.
II. Actually, quite often just the opposite is true,
1. Buying the cheapest mattress you can find will often leave you with a back ache in the morning; what value is that!
2. I needed a new watch, so a couple of weeks ago I went to Walmart, and purchased the least expensive watch I could find,
a. Just last week, Maryann asked me what I wanted for Christmas; do you know what I said,
(1) I need a new watch,
(2) I just bought this one, but every few hours it stops running.
(3) I have to thump it on the fact to get it restarted.
b. Now think with me for a moment,
(1) I paid all of ten dollars and 84 cents for this watch,
(2) A great value; except now I need a new one,
(3) I would have been much better off to spend a few more dollars, and had a watch that would actually keep time for a while.
III. Look at 1st John 4, verse 10 - “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. “
A. Love is never free,
1. It cost something to love your wife,
2. It cost something to love your husband,
3. And it certainly cost something to love your children.
B. Consider, when you love your spouse it is most typically predicated on the fact that they love you in return, and often falling in love is predicated on the fact that the object of your affection loves you first.
C. But some of us may also know how difficult it is to demonstrate love for someone that does not demonstrate love for us in return.
IV. John writes that God demonstrated His great love for us, even though we did not love Him.
A. And that He loved us so much that He sent Jesus Christ to the cross to make the payment for our sins.
1. That word “propitiation” means a “means of appeasing,”
2. We can also think of it as meaning, “in the place of.”
B. Yes, God is love, and because of His love, God does not desire that anyone be separated from Him, most especially eternal separation.
C. But God is also just, and because of His justice He cannot allow sin to go unpunished; His justice demands an appeasing.
V. Paul said it this way in Ephesians - But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), (Eph. 2:4-5, NASB)
VI. The cost of God’s love for us was the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sin.
A. In “The Message” Peterson translates verse 10 this way, “This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he love us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.”
B. God knew that if our Connection with Him was to be restored, it could only be at a great cost.
VII. The value of God’s gift is found in its usefulness, AND
VIII. The value of God’s gift is found in it’s great cost.
The Value of God’s Gift Is Measured by its EFFECTIVENESS.
I. Have you ever received a Christmas gift that you had to ask,
A. “What does it do, or
B. What is it for?”
II. Unless we know what a gift is designed to do, it is essentially useless to us, or anyone else for that matter.
A. So what is it that God’s gift is supposed to do for us;
1. Well most of us know that God’s gift brings about eternal life, but is there anything else.
2. Look at 1st John 4 verse 12 - 12 No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.
III. Verse 11 essentially stated that because God loved us, we are under an obligation to demonstrate love to others; but why,
A. Because it is in that love that God’s love is demonstrated to others.
B. No one has seen God, but when we demonstrate what true love looks like, God is made visible to a world that desperately needs Christ.
IV. When the value of a gift is based on usefulness, God’s gift is valuable because it demonstrates for us what real love looks like.
V. When the value of a gift is based on cost, God’s gift is valuable because it cost more than I can really imagine.
VI. When the value of a gift is based on it’s effectiveness, it’s ability to do the job, God’s gift is valuable because it makes God visible to the world, and if God cannot be seen, then salvation will not be accepted.
VII. This is one case where a gift that we received is not just for us alone.
A. When we receive the gift of God’s love, we become partners with God in demonstrating that love to others.
B. And the more that we demonstrate the love of God to others, the more we come to understand the value of God’s gift to us.
VIII. Have you opened God’s gift yet?
