The True Meaning of Christmas

 

The True Meaning of Christmas: God’s Ultimate Purpose Unwrapped... Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year—yet it’s also the most misunderstood.

We love the lights, the gifts, the family gatherings, the carols, and the food. But strip away the tinsel, and what are we really celebrating?

Christmas is the moment when God’s eternal purpose broke into human history.

The Bible tells us that before the foundation of the world, God had a plan (Ephesians 1:4–5).  

He chose us in Christ.  

He predestined us for adoption.  

He decided to make us holy and blameless in His sight.

And the way He accomplished that plan?  

He sent His Son to become one of us.

John 1:14 puts it so beautifully:  

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Think about that for a second.

The eternal Son of God—who spoke the universe into existence, who holds all things together by the word of His power—stepped out of eternity and into time.  

He took on human flesh.  

He was born as a helpless baby in a feeding trough in Bethlehem.

Why?

Because sin had separated us from God.  

We were dead in our transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1).  

We were by nature deserving of wrath (Ephesians 2:3).  

We were without hope and without God in the world (Ephesians 2:12).

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the greamoot love with which He loved us, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved (Ephesians 2:4–5).

Christmas is the beginning of that rescue mission.

The baby in the manger is the same One who would one day hang on a cross, bearing the sins of the world.  

He lived the perfect life we could never live.  

He died the death we deserved to die.  

He rose again, defeating sin, death, and the grave.

And now He offers us the greatest gift imaginable:  

Reconciliation with God.  

Forgiveness of sins.  

Adoption into God’s family.  

The indwelling Holy Spirit as a guarantee of our inheritance.  

Eternal life.

Paul captures it perfectly in Ephesians 1:7–10:  

“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.”

Christmas is the unveiling of God’s mystery—His eternal plan to redeem and restore everything through Jesus.

So this Christmas, let’s LOOK PAST the presents and the parties to the Person who is the reason for it all.

Let’s worship the One who left the throne of heaven to be born in a stable.  

Let’s thank Him for becoming poor so that we might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).  

Let’s receive afresh the gift of salvation that is offered freely to everyone who believes.

And let’s live every day in the wonder of this truth:  

The God who created the universe knows your name, loves you personally, and has made a way for you to be with Him forever.

That, my friends, is the true meaning of Christmas.

May your heart be filled with the joy of knowing Jesus this season—and every season.

Merry Christmas, everyone...

Article written by Shaun Fereday,Leader @SFGH Church