SERIES: “GIFTS UNDER THE TREE”
TEXT: LUKE 2:1-7
TITLE: “JESUS – THE PRICELESS GIFT”
INTRODUCTION: A. Have you ever desired a certain gift? Gone to great lengths to make sure that everyone
knew what gift you wanted only to find that no one was really listening?
1. I heard about one woman who told her husband that she wanted something that
would make her more loveable and beautiful
--He got her an exercise bike and a bathroom scale
2. I read some time ago that about 15 million pounds of fruitcake are given every
Christmas
a. Of course, no one knows how long a particular fruitcake has been around or how
many times its been passed from one person to the next
b. I would imagine that only a small fraction of those 15 million pounds is actually
eaten after being given
B. Many of you may have already opened gifts this morning
1. Over the last several weeks, we’ve been talking about the gifts that God gave us on
that first Christmas morning
a. The first gift was “Joy – The Enduring Gift”
b. The second gift was “Peace – The Mysterious Gift”
c. Then came “Purpose – The Indispensable Gift”
d. Next week is “Salvation – The Eternal Gift”
2. But this morning, I want us to look at “Jesus – The Priceless Gift”
a. 1 Pet. 1:18-19 – “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as
silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down
to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb
without blemish or defect.”
b. Paul puts it this way in 2 Cor. 9:15 – “Thanks be to God for his indescribable
gift.”
3. Jesus is the greatest gift of all.
a. None of the other gifts matter if we don’t first of all have a relationship with
Jesus Christ.
b. All of the other gifts that God wants to flow into our lives flow through Jesus.
C. Lk. 2:1-7 – “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be
taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while
Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem
the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there
to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a
child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave
birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger,
because there was no room for them in the inn.”
I. A GIFT OF HUMILITY
A. We’re often attracted by the glitter and gold of Christmas
1. We like the “bling”
2. It’s what stands out when we look at Christmas presents
B. But it’s important to remember that the first Christmas gift came wrapped very simply
--in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger
1. God came to visit this earth and He came through humble circumstances
a. His mother and stepfather were peasants from an obscure village
b. While most kings are born in a palace and sit on a throne, this king was born in a barn and laid in an
animal’s feeding trough
2. The apostle Paul reminds us of this humble gift in Phil 2:5-8 – “Your attitude should be the same as
that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to
be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature[b] of a servant, being made in human
likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to
death— even death on a cross!”
3. Jesus was equal with God
a. He came to earth in humility
b. Because of His submission in humbling Himself, you can’t look at the wooden manger without
looking ahead to see a wooden cross
II. A GIFT OF HAPPINESS
A. Christmas Day is a happy day for most people
1. They share gifts with people that they love and receive some nice gifts as well
2. However, the weeks leading up to Christmas Day are not always that happy
a. December can be such a hectic, hurried month
b. A few days before Christmas, two men in Florida decided to go sailing while their wives went
Christmas shopping. While they were out sailing, a terrible storm came up and they had great
difficulty keeping the boat under control.
As they maneuvered their way back to land, the boat got grounded on a sandbar. They had to
jump overboard and push with all their might to try and get the boat into deeper water.
The wind is blowing terribly, the waves are crashing down on them, they’re soaking wet, and
sinking into the sandbar. One of the guys looks at his buddy and say, “You know what? It sure
beats Christmas shopping.”
B. Jesus is a gift of happiness because He changes our viewpoint from that which is temporary to that
which is eternal
1. Happiness and joy are a result of the fulfillment and the rewards that come from serving Jesus Christ
2. Jn. 10:10b – “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
3. Your attitude determines your level of happiness
a. If your attitude during December and the rest of the year is “The one with the most toys wins,”
then you probably won’t know a lot of happiness because it’s always in something else
b. However, if your attitude is that Jesus is all that you need, you’ll find a happiness and joy
unparalleled in anything else
4. Jesus didn’t come to earth in order to give us another holiday
--He came so that we could have abundant and eternal life
III. A GIFT OF HOPE
A. Jesus is a gift of hope because He was the fulfillment of hundreds of Old Testament prophecies and
promises
1. The prophecy concerning the “seed of the woman” in Gen. 3:15
2. The prophecy concerning birth through a virgin maid in Is. 7:14
3. The prophecy concerning where Jesus would be born in Micah 5:2
4. The prophecy that Jesus would be a descendant of Abraham and David
5. The prophecy that Jesus would be born during a time when innocent children would be killed
--as was accomplished by King Herod
6. The promises that the Messiah would be a savior, a healer, a liberator, and a prophet
7. The promise that He would be Immanuel – “God with us”
8. The people of God were awaiting hopefully for a Messiah
--we too await the fulfillment of all things in Jesus Christ
B. God is always faithful in fulfilling what He says He will do and His timing is perfect
--Gal. 4:4 – “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son…”
1. Perfect time culturally
--Alexander the Great, Hellenistic culture and language – Koine’ the most accurate language ever
2. Perfect time politically
--Casesar Augustus built roads all over the Roman Empire – and the early Christian missionaries
utilized these roads to spread the Gospel; Pax Romana
3. Perfect time spiritually
a. God had been silent for 400 years – no written or spoken revelation
b. Christ came to shine light into the darkness
-- Jn 1:4-5 – “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness,
but the darkness has not understood it.”
4. A 50-year-old man went to the movies. While he sat there, a young lady, about 25 years old, sat
down beside him. She extended her box of popcorn for him to eat. He hesitated, since he didn’t
know this lady.
When he hesitated, she looked at him and realized she’d sat down in the wrong row. Her
boyfriend was several rows more toward the front. She was embarrassed and said that she was sorry
– she had sat down in the wrong place.
The 50-year-old man replied, “Honey, you’re not in the wrong place. You’re just 25 years too
late.”
--God’s never late. He always right on time
C. Jesus is a gift of hope because He promises the gift of eternal life that we hope for; not just at Christmas
but every day of our lives.
a. When we open that gift, we’ll never be disappointed
b. Rom. 5:5 – “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts
by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”
CONCLUSION: A. Jesus is most certainly the most precious, the most perfect, and the most priceless gift
ever given
“For God so loved the world” – that’s Bethlehem
“That He gave His One and Only Son” – that’s Calvary
“That whoever believes in Him, shall not perish” – that’s salvation
“But have eternal life” – that’s forever!
B. At Christmas time, there are lots of gifts that are gifts of obligation.
1. Maybe someone not on our gift list gives us something and when they do, you say,
“Oh, no! I’ve gotta go and get them something!”
--It’s not a gift of love. It’s a gift of obligation.
2. Sometimes there are strings attached to gifts that given
C. God offers us the gift of His Son – not as a gift of obligation but as a gift of love.
1. Lots of families do gift exchanges.
--You draw names and exchange gifts with that person.
2. God didn’t expect an exchange for His gift through Jesus Christ.
a. But He does hope that we do
b. He wants us to accept His gift of Jesus Christ and then exchange that gift for our
lives. He wants us to say, “God, take my life and use it for your purposes.”
--Rom. 12:1 – “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer
your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your
spiritual act of worship.”
