“MARY WRAPPED A PRESENT TO THE WORLD”
Luke 2:1-12
David P. Nolte
Christmas is a time for loving, for including, for remembering, and for giving. Christmas is a time when we can truly discover that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Christmas is a time for joy and peace and generosity.
Christmas began in the heart of God and finds ultimate expression in God’s Christmas Gift, Jesus.
God is the Greatest Giver; Jesus is the Greatest Gift, we are the greatest recipients.
This morning I want to draw some simple parallels between the gifts we give and the Gift God gave to us all. LET’S READ THE TEXT:
“Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’” Luke 2:1-12 (NASB)
The virgin Mary was chosen ion Heaven to be the one to deliver God’s gift – and as we consider that recall Brenda’s song:
Mary wrapped a present to the world,
On that first Christmas morn, when King Jesus was born,
Mary wrapped a present to the world.
I. CONSIDER HOW SHE WRAPPED GOD’S GIFT:
A. “And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths.”
B. Speaking of gift wrapping, I have seen some very clever, creative, thoughtful ideas!
1. Some packages are decorated in various shapes to look like a shirt or a clown or t.v. set
2. Some gifts are adorned with holly, mistletoe, glitter, ribbons and bows.
3. Some presents are wrapped in expensive, ornate, attractive, shiny, flamboyant, gaudy paper!
C. Not so God’s Gift. No: the text says, “she wrapped Him in cloths.”
1. God’s Gift was wrapped in cast off rags, strips of old cloth; not warm, snug, cozy jammies, not a nice blue receiving blanket. But there is significance here:
a. It speaks of poverty: 2 Corinthians 8:9 “for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
b. It speaks of humility: Philippians 2:5-8 “Christ Jesus, Who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
c. It speaks of simplicity: Isaiah 53:2 “for He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.”
2. There was nothing ornate, distinguished, or fancy about His birth though it was the most significant birth ever!
D. Because He was born to such low estate, He would have understood the situation of a little boy who wanted to go to church. Now he was 75 years old. He hadn’t been in a church building for 65 years. His excuse for staying away related to a childhood experience. He was one of many children in an impoverished family. When he was about ten, some neighbors invited him to church and he enjoyed it very much. But, after class was over, the teacher took him aside and said, “Son, please don’t come again dressed as you are now. We want to look our best when we come worship the Lord.” He stood in his ragged, unpatched overalls, looked at his bare, dirty feet and said, “No ma’am, I won’t, ever!” And he never did until the day of his funeral. Making too much out of how the boy looked, the teacher contributed to his lost condition. Because Jesus was wrapped in cloths, plain and unadorned, He would have understood and treated him differently.
E. Consider how Mary wrapped God’s gift and remember that in His lowly position He identified, sympathized and empathized with the lowly; the rejected; the lonely; and the poor.
SO, CONSIDER THE HUMBLE WRAPPING OF GOD’S GIFT!
II. CONSIDER WHERE SHE PLACED GOD’S GIFT:
A. “Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
B. Some place their gifts on the tree; or under it; or on the mantle; or in a closet. We place our gifts in some secret, protected place; or in a showy place; or in a place we won’t forget where it is!
C. Not so God’s Gift! According to God’s will:
1. She placed Him in a tiny obscure village, Bethlehem.
a. Not Jerusalem or one of the more noble cities. The prophet said, “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.” Micah 5:2 (NASB).
b. Later she took Him to Nazareth, another lowly town.
2. She placed Him in a manger, a cattle feeding trough.
a. Not a fine hospital with trained nurses in attendance.
b. Not in a TemperPedic, sleep numbers bed. W
D. It was not a fine and fancy location where God had Mary place His Gift. A man named Geoffrey Bull described it after he spent Christmas eve in a Tibetan inn, on his way to a communist prison. He said, “My boots squashed in the manure and straw. The fetid smell of the animals was nauseating. I thought, ‘To think Christ came all the way from heaven to some wretched eastern stable, and what is more, to think He came for me’. How men beautify the cross and crib as if to hide the fact that at birth we resigned him to the stench of beasts and at death exposed him to the shame of rouges. God forgive us!”
E. Imagine! He was not a passive player in this event. He emptied Himself! He left it all.
1. The splendor of heaven knowing His destiny was to be placed in the very pits of earth and to die on the cross.
2. The presence of the Father and the angels to be placed among men who couldn’t care less and who would shun and condemn Him.
3. “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:5-11 (NASB).
CONSIDER WHERE MARY PLACED GOD’S GIFT AND THEN:
III. CONSIDER GOD’S GIFT MARY WRAPPED:
A. “In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” The gift is always more important than the wrappings or where it has been placed!
1. A very small box may contain a diamond ring, or the keys to a new Camry.
2. Or, on the other hand, one could wrap a pile of potato peelings; or a rock; or shredded newspaper in a gaily decorated box. Great exterior appearances, but lousy gifts!
B. Not so God’s Gift! It was simple but rich.
1. God’s Gift was not merely a new philosophy or a new religion or a new ethical system.
2. God’s Gift was appropriate, meaningful, and thoughtful and meets the deepest and most real needs of all mankind!
3. God’s Gift is His Son, the Savior, the Lord, the King, the Christ, the greatest Gift of all!
C. When Jesus came He brought the gift of
1. Rest for the weary soul. “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 (NLT).
2. Peace of mind. “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart.” John 14:27 (NLT).
3. Peace with God. “Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.” Romans 5:1 (NLT).
4. Grace. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;” Ephesians 2:8 (NASB).
5. Joy. “When you obey Me, you remain in My love, just as I obey My Father and remain in His love. I have told you this so that you will be filled with My joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!” John 15:10-11 (NLT).
6. Hope. “He will not crush those who are weak, or quench the smallest hope, until He brings full justice with His final victory. And His name will be the hope of all the world.” Matthew 12:20-21 (NLT).
D. James said “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” James 1:17 (NASB).
E. We ought to appreciate His gift, yet many misunderstand and overlook it. It’s like a boy who was graduating from high school and had hoped his parents would give him the car that he and his dad had been looking at.
When the big day came, the boy was surprised – and disappointed – when his dad handed him a package saying “Son this is the greatest gift I know how to give!”
Opening the box the boy discovered a Bible, leather bound and embossed with his name in gold print in an act of immature ingratitude hee ran to his bedroom to sulk.
Carelessly tossing the Bible onto his desk he went to bed. The following morning, he was moving the Bible aside when he noticed a paper sticking out. It was a note that said, “your car is waiting in the garage – congratulations!”
Hurrying into the kitchen he humbled himself apologized, asked forgiveness and was reconciled to heaves loving parents. Only then did he visit his new car.
So, many fail to see the good, or the need, of God’s Gift! But it is the Gift that everyone needs; it is the Gift that goes on giving; it is the heart of Christmas. There’s no disappointment in God’s Gift. It contains all His love, truth, mercy and grace.
I hope you have a great Christmas. I hope that you get what you want! But most of all I hope that God’s Gift has taken on new and richer meaning. I hope that what He gave will go on being important to us every day of our lives. He gave to us; let us give to Him. But what can we give to one who already owns it all? We can give our best. It may not be riches or wealth; it may not be earth changing service; but is it our best? That’s the challenge this morning. As we sing, make it the number one item on your giving list: Give the best of your life, and will, and heart and mind, and earthly possessions; give it freely, give it unconditionally, and give it all to Jesus.
