The Greatest Gift – by Greg Mattson
Posted on December 29, 2015 by No comments
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23
As you are reading this, Christmas from a calendar and secular view is over once again! It seems each year Christmas decorations, cyber Mondays, black Fridays are coming earlier and earlier. The big box stores move from one holiday to another at break neck speed and seemingly without effort. People rush from store to store often in the middle of the night or search Amazon in pajamas looking for that special gift. Trees are cut down or taken out of boxes and decorated. Food is purchased and prepared. Presents are wrapped carefully and then unwrapped at warp speed in seconds leaving piles of boxes and wrapping paper on the floor in the midst of the chaos. Just writing this makes me exhausted.
Growing up, Christmas was the most exciting holiday I could think of. We lived in Chicago but would jump in the old station wagon packed with presents and drive to Bemidji, Minnesota where my grandmother lived. Back then, there were no freeways. We would go through all the little towns along the way. I remember we would leave Chicago, that was often without snow and in the 30’s, but by the time we got to Bemidji, it was below zero with lots of snow on the ground. I have a lot of great memories but, I’m sure as many of you can remember, there are a few presents that were memorable ones. They stood the test of time and were used for a long time even after Christmas had come and gone. For me “Creepy Crawlers” was that gift! Again many of you, if you are under 40 years of age, probably have no clue what this was but I loved it as much as my future wife loved her Easy Bake Oven. I could make all kinds of insects by putting this liquid plastic in molds and then baking them to form different color insects. I would create all kinds of weird insects. I don’t see those around anymore probably because they found the fumes from the plastic caused some kind of cancer like everything else today.
For most people Christmas is synonymous with gifts. Ask any child what they like most about Christmas and they will most likely say they like the presents. Presents are even part of the story of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ when the magi brought gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Presents are even part of the story of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ when the magi brought gold, frankincense and myrrh.
As I prepared to write this pondering, being overwhelmed by all the commercialization of Christmas, I was able to reflect on the ultimate gift that we at New Life have received. It’s one that is nonperishable, eternal, and perfect. It’s the very thing we hear about every week at New Life and will continue to hear about every week. That is the gift of Jesus Christ. Our sins have been forgiven as far as the East is from the West. We no longer live in condemnation. We rest assured in our eternal life because of the birth and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ. This is the ultimate gift which makes every other gift insignificant. It is the very reason we should celebrate Christmas year round. I think that’s why we leave our Christmas lights up year round.
I want to conclude by asking you to reflect on the free gift we have been given. Don’t place this gift on layaway, or return it to look for a better gift, or let it become mundane, because there is no better gift! Rejoice in it, enjoy it, and make sure you share this gift freely with everyone you come in contact with. and may we continue to celebrate Christmas for the rest of our earthly lives.
Christ Greg.
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