“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’).”
The Gospel of Christ is simply this: Every person has broken God’s law, condemning themselves to eternal spiritual death. Because ‘doing good’ is not something God accepts as a substitute for our sin, we can’t be “good enough” to compensate God for our wrongdoing. Only a perfect sacrifice is acceptable to God (per the Old Testament Law).
God determined before even creating us to take the part of Himself we know as the Son and at the right time in our history, send Him in the form of a man to live a life in full and perfect compliance to the Law. And at the right time in His earthy life, to sacrifice Him on the cross, only to raise Him to life after three days.
Every man is already condemned to eternal spiritual death because of sin. For those who come to recognize this and repent and believe in their heart that Christ is the substitutionary sacrifice for their sin, they will be saved from God’s coming day of wrath. Be sure, this is so much more than just agreeing that ‘Jesus is Lord,’ as true saving belief in Christ will necessarily be followed by the change in character that comes from being in Christ and He being in you!
You have to go no farther than today’s news to see the practical working out of man’s sin. As you (and we) open gifts and share abundant portions of food together today, take time to reflect that the whole reason for Jesus’s birth is our sin. Yes, He is the perfect gift, but we absolutely don’t deserve Him! It’s only because;
“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
If you are in Christ this morning, you have every reason to have a “Merry Christmas.” If you’re not, or are not sure, but the question of Christ has been on your mind, please take time to read the book of John in the Bible and/or seek out someone you know who is a serious student of Christ and ask questions. God loves you and desires you to be reconciled with Him through His son.
And if in so doing you come to a true saving faith in Christ, you, too, will understand the true meaning of Christmas.
Lord bless and keep you this happy Christmas morning!