Love Came Down at Christmas

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. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.                                               John 3:16-19

Our journey towards Christmas has almost come to its destination.  We have been following the star of Bethlehem to the place where we receive the greatest gift of all.  The gift of love.  The walk to the manager has brought us many good gifts already!  We have the gift of Peace, hope and joy wrapped up and tucked away in our hearts.  Today we will look at the greatest gift of all, the gift of love.

Who are the people you love the most?  What would you be willing to give up for them?  How much do you think God loves you to be able to give the life of His Son for you?

So what does love look like?  When my son, Kyle, was little we would read stories in his Children’s Bible. There was a time when Kyle would ask me to read him the story of Abraham and Isaac. He made me read this story to him every night for many, many nights.  In this story from the book of Genesis, God tells Abraham to offer up his son Isaac as a burnt offering.  It is a test of Abraham’s faith (See Genesis 22:1-18 for the story).  Abraham places Isaac on the altar, however, God at the last minute provides a substitute offering, and Isaac lives.  Is this what love looks like?

The great point of Abraham’s faith in God was that he was prepared to do anything for God. – Oswald Chambers

I have several friends with special needs children.  In each of these situations, the children are now young men in their twenties.  The level of care that is required in these homes, includes not being able to leave these guys unattended for any amount of time.  Can you imagine the sacrifices that have been made by the entire family to enable this level of care?  Let me repeat; this is more than twenty years of providing continuous care.  There were no last minutes trips or outings, at no point did these families get to the point where the kids could stay home for a while by themselves while you ran to the grocery store. My mind cannot fathom what this feels like in reality, but I know these moms, and I know how much they love their children and I have seen more sacrifices than I think I could handle.  So, let me ask you again, what would you be willing to give up for those you love?

Our response to God’s gift is to live a life that is an expression of His love.  As we anticipate the arrival of the birth of Jesus, our hearts are becoming transformed.  In the waiting and the anticipating of this great love, how can our hearts not be changed?

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Dear friends, since God loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:9-11

When Matthew asks Jesus what the greatest commandment is, the teacher replies that it is to love God with all your heart and then to love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.  It is because Love came down at Christmas that we can know what love looks like.

In the silence of the night, as love came down to earth, my heart beats in a steady rhythm to the sound of peace.  The sound of His love crashing into the humanity of our sin could be nothing louder than the sound of silence.  – Lulu

Let us worship our King in prayer as we welcome the love of Christ into our hearts.

Heavenly Father, Oh how happy I am your love came down to earth and laid His head in a manger. Let me worship you in my heart today as I bow my head in awe of your great gift to us.  Your love has crashed into my soul and saved me, let me love you and others well.  Amen