Christmas is all about God’s love
Psalm 98
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world…”
John 3:16 — “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Illustrates:
A story is told of a little boy walking home with his father during a winter blizzard. The wind was fierce, and the snow was piling up. At one point the boy stumbled and began to cry, unable to go on.
His father didn’t shout, “Get up! Try harder!”
He didn’t stay warm and dry on the porch.
He came down the steps, into the storm, lifted his child into his arms, and carried him all the way home.
That is Christmas.
God didn’t shout from heaven, “Find your way back to Me!”
He stepped into our storm—our cold, our chaos, our weakness—wrapped Himself in human flesh, and carried us home through Christ.
1. Christmas Begins With the Heart of God
John 3:16 is often called the Gospel in a single verse, but at Christmas it becomes the story behind the story.
Before there was a manger, before shepherds heard angels sing, before Mary held Jesus in her arms—there was love of God.
• Christmas didn’t begin in Bethlehem.
• Christmas began in the heart of a God who so loved the world.
1. Not a world that loved Him back.
2. Not a world that deserved Him.
3. But a world broken, wandering, weary, and lost.
Christmas is God saying, “I refuse to give up on you.”
2. “He Gave His Son” — The Gift We Didn’t Know We Needed
We often say Christmas is about giving, but God started the tradition.
He didn’t give a thing—He gave a person.
• A Savior.
• A Redeemer.
• A King in a cradle.
The manger is not cute—it is costly.
It is God placing His Son into human vulnerability, into poverty, into danger, into our world of tears.
1. The birth of Jesus is God stepping into our story:
2. Into our fears
3. Into our loneliness
4. Into our sin
5. Into our death
Christmas is not God sending a messenger—it is God coming Himself.
3. “Whoever Believes” — The Gift Meant for Everyone
The shepherds were the first invited, not because they were important but because they were not.
If the verse said, “For God so loved the righteous…” most of us would be left out.
If it said, “For God so loved the perfect…” none of us could come.
But it says, “Whoever believes.”
1. That means you.
2. That means me.
3. That means every prodigal,
4. every struggler,
5. every doubter,
6. every weary soul.
Christmas is God flinging open heaven’s doors and saying, “All are welcome.”
4. “Shall Not Perish but Have Eternal Life” — The Promise Christmas Secures
Every gift we exchange this Christmas will fade.
1. Toys break.
2. Clothes wear out.
3. Technology becomes outdated.
4. Even memories dim.
But the gift of Jesus brings a life that does not fade and a hope that does not die.
Eternal life is not just living forever—
it is living with God, beginning now.
It is peace in the storm, joy in sorrow, forgiveness for sin, and a future that cannot be stolen.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for loving us so deeply that You sent Your Son.
This Christmas, help us see beyond the lights and the gifts to the glorious truth of Your gift—Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Open our hearts to believe, to receive, and to rejoice in the life You offer.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
