The Greatest Gift Comes From the Greatest Giver - Serenity in Suffering
All eyes at Christmas turn to Emmanuel, the baby in the manger. We give tribute to Mary, Joseph, the angels and shepherds, even the wise men. All of which appear in many of our nativity sets. We read the familiar Christmas story throughout the Advent season, hailing the Son of God come to earth as the Greatest gift. But do we acknowledge the Greatest Gift comes from the Greatest Giver?
Many of us enjoy delightful Christmas pageants depicting the Greatest Story ever told. Maybe we have even played a part in one either as children or adults. But a part overlooked may be the most important of all players in this greatest of all stories. God the Father, who so loved this world, He sent His only Son to make His worst enemies His own beloved children.
the greatest giver revealed as father
Of all the players in the Christmas story, none played a role more significant than God the Father. Advent reminds us each year of Emmanuel, the Savior, Redeemer, King. But a careful eye sees also that we have a Heavenly Father whose relentless love fashioned that first Christmas and every one that followed.
Jesus, revealed as the Son of the Most High, existed as Son, because God is His Father. God, eternally, inescapably Father. In the birth of Jesus, God chose to reveal Himself not as Creator, or Ruler, but Father. Seeing God as Father, we marvel that the Greatest Gift comes from the Greatest Giver because it was forged by the Greatest Love.
the greatest gift sent
Jesus, sent as the Son of God was the radiance of God the Father’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s nature. (Hebrews 1:3) Many times we comment that a child looks exactly like a particular parent. You may even hear the expression “well, they can’t deny that one”; implying the resemblance clearly defines the parentage. Jesus bore the exact image of the Father; and reminded Philip in John 14:9-10, that if he saw Jesus, he also saw the Father.
Jesus continually taught that He came from the Father, and God the Father sent Him for a purpose. In Jesus’ beautiful High Priestly Prayer in John 17, just before His death, He confirmed He finished the work the Father gave Him. Jesus mentions multiple times within this prayer that God “sent” Him. In John 17:20-21, Jesus expresses His desire that the world know that God the Father sent Him.
The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.
in the father’s heart from the beginning
Before the foundation of the world, God determined Jesus as the “Lamb slain”. (Revelation 13:8) He spoke the beginning words of His plan to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:15 and curated His Story throughout the Old Testament with figures of what filled His heart. The books of prophecy, replete with promises of the Messiah spill forth a plan too wonderful for belief.
The Christmas Story doesn’t originate in the New Testament; it began before even the sun broke forth on Day Four of creation. It began before God took the dust of the earth and formed Adam, in His image; breathing His own sacred breath into the nostrils of His beloved creation. Before that first man and his wife sinned, God’s plan lived in His heart. He poured forth His Story throughout time, until the moment He ordained to send His only begotten Son to redeem the fallen creation.
forgotten father
The Silent Presence each Christmas, the Father appears forgotten. Perhaps as we follow the Christmas Story to the Calvary Road, we struggle to reconcile the Loving Heavenly Father with the horror of the Cross. We struggle at the thought of the Father’s will to crush His Son; pouring the full fury of His wrath upon the Sent One, the beloved of the Father.
Our finite nature cannot reconcile this dichotomy between the God of love and the God of wrath. We feel drawn to the Savior, as prisoners set free, yet perhaps distant from the Father, who set the price of our ransom. But let us not forget the Father allowed His Son to bear the wrath intended for us, that we might go free.
the greatest gift comes from the greatest giver
Though God the Father’s plan from before the foundation of the world to redeem His creation included crushing His Son, Jesus came shrouded in the Father’s love. Jesus came to a world His Father loved enough to give his only begotten Son, the radiance of His glory, the exact imprint of His nature, a ransom to redeem. (John 3:16)
The Father set His love upon us at the agonizing expense of his Son. As Jesus bore the full fury of God the Father’s wrath at Calvary, God did not love Him less, He loved Him more for His willing and obedient sacrifice. God’s love for His Son did not keep Him from sending Jesus, His love for us compelled the Godhead to send, come, die, rise again and reveal.
Let us remember no one anticipated and rejoiced at Jesus’ coming that first Advent more than the Father. This Christmas let us remember the One whose heart so desired His creation be with Him forever, that He gave the Greatest Gift ever given. The Greatest Gift came from the Greatest Giver, forged in a steadfast, eternal, gift-love poured out on us.
new resource
Whether or not you have a specific Advent tradition, my new resource, “Welcoming Emmanuel” Bible Verse Reflections to Prepare Your Heart For Christmas”, is a wonderful addition or stand alone resource designed to enrich your daily quiet times. The best part? It’s FREE! Sign up below and grab your copy today!
