The Ultimate Christmas Gift Exchange

by | Dec 23, 2015

Matthew 1 23

We often talk of the price Jesus paid when He died for our sins…

But have you ever considered how much it cost Christ to come to earth, to take on flesh and dwell among us?

My husband preached a beautiful sermon on this topic, and on this almost Christmas Eve, I wanted to share his thoughts with you…

“[Jesus] made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” Philippians 2:6-7

Imagine, Jesus in heaven…
         Fully God with all the privileges of omnipotence
         Choosing to come in flesh
                   To serve man
                   To give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).

Jesus…Fully God, yet choosing to become fully man.
         To be tempted and tested in every way like us (Hebrews 4:15)
         To experience everything we experience.

Sovereign God… In Himself, needing nothing.
         Free to do whatever He wishes
                   whenever He wishes
                   however He wishes
                   for whatever purpose He wishes.

Sovereign, utterly independent God, chooses to come as a baby…
         Totally dependent on everyone around Him.

         God – the Giver of all life
                   Receives life through the womb of a teenage girl

         God – dressed in robes of glory
                   Comes to earth wrapped in swaddling clothes

         God – the Bread of Life
                  Is laid in a feeding trough

         God – the Nurturer of all Creation
                   Receives nourishment from His mother Mary

         God – the Clean and Pure
                   Now as a babe, requires bathing

         God – the Changeless One
                   As an infant, now needs changing

         God – who holds the entire universe in His hands
                   Clings tightly to His mother’s hand

         God – who spoke the world into existence
                   Must learn to speak

         God – who walked in the Garden with Adam and Eve
                   Must learn to walk

         God – who protects His own
                   Scrapes His knee as a toddler

         God – the Rock of Ages
                   Skips stones as a boy on the Sea of Galilee

         God – the Perfect One
                   Is mocked by His peers as illegitimate

         God – who formulated everything in creation
                   Must learn how to do math

         God – who wrote the Law
                   Must go to school to learn that Law

         God – who grew the tree
                   As a man, embraces that tree, climbing upon a cross to
                   die for you and me

Photo by Jaimie Trueblood/newline.wireimage.com<br /></p><p>Jesus became a man by choice – a costly choice.</p><p>And in the act, He initiated the <strong>GREATEST GIFT EXCHANGE</strong> the world has ever known.</p><p>         Exchanging all of heaven, to come as a baby…<br />                    Exchanging omnipotence for helplessness<br />                    Exchanging streets of gold, for dust, dirt, and mud<br />                    Exchanging the beauty and order of heaven, for the chaos of earth.</p><p>         Jesus exchanged it all so that we could be restored to relationship with our Father.</p><p>But the story of Christmas calls for a second exchange…A giving on our part.</p><p>If we’re willing to accept His invitation, God wants to exchange<br />          <i>Our darkness…</i>for His light<br />          <i>Our sadness…</i>for His joy<br />          <i>Our emptiness…</i>for the fulfilment and hope only He can bring<br />          <i>Our sickness…</i>for His wholeness<br />          <i>Our purposelessness…</i>for life with meaning<br />          <i>Our sin…</i>for total forgiveness<br />          <i>Our shame…</i>for complete acceptance</p><p>This year…<br />          Don’t get distracted by what the world offers you<br />          Don’t hold on to your past<br />          Don’t cherish the temporary.</p><p>Instead, accept the Gift.</p><p>         Emmanuel<br />          God is <i>with</i> us<br />          God is <i>for</i> us.</p><p>Don’t miss the ultimate Gift exchange.</p><p>– Pastor John Weaver, December 2015</p><p><strong><em>I’d love to hear from you…what part of Christ’s coming means the most to you?</p> <span class=

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