The Greatest Present is The Presence

What a wonderful time of year! The giving and receiving of Christmas gifts, or presents, filled many households this year. I find those words “gift” and “present” interesting. Webster defines “present” in the noun form as something presented, as in a gift. Present can also be a verb which is defined as an offer to view, as in to show. The word gift can also be a noun or verb. The noun means a notable endowment or something voluntarily transferred to another person without compensation. Gift is also a transitive verb (sorry for the English lesson). A transitive verb means just that, to transfer something, to endow to someone, or to present to someone.

We often celebrate themes of hope, peace, love, and joy at this time of year. For those who celebrate the Advent, these are the candles we light each week and the messages given at Church. All of these flow from one central candle and that is the candle of Christ. Christ is the source of all hope, peace, and joy.

When a gift is given, it reflects the heart of the giver. It conveys love, care, generosity, and a desire to improve the life of the receiver. A gift can meet a need, a desire, or something lacking in the life of the receiver. A gift enhances the life of the receiver, it brings joy, happiness, peace, and excitement for the future.

This is exactly what happened on Christmas day so many years ago. Matthew 1:23 states, “See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel”. Immanuel is translated “God with us”. The true gift of Christmas is Jesus Christ himself. It is His presence. God with us.

Hebrews 1:3 says “the Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of God’s nature”. This means Jesus reveals exactly who God is, because Jesus is God. Colossians 1 says the same, “Jesus is the image of the invisible God” and God was pleased to have all God’s fullness dwell in Jesus”.

Adam & Eve enjoyed the presence of God in the garden. They walked together, talked, God gave them a purpose, jobs to do, and provided peace and security for them. They enjoyed to presence until their sin separated them from God. But God always had a plan of restoration and when Jesus came to earth, Immanuel, that plan was put in place. A plan to bring the presence of God to humanity and to show humanity who God truly is.

God wanted humanity to know Him and to have a relationship with Him. God took the form of a human in Jesus Christ as a GIFT and PRESENTED Himself to all the world. Jesus said in John 14:6-7, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will also know the Father. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him”.

Jesus is the GIFT. The presence of God the Father, Son, & Spirit can be experienced today. Jesus’ life, what He taught, how He treated people, is exactly who God is and exactly what God wants us to know about Him. God PRESENTED Jesus as the Messiah, the Savior of the world, and the EXACT representation of who God is. We can know God, have a relationship with God, experience the presence of God, because of the gift of Jesus. John also states in 17:3, “This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the one You have sent, Jesus Christ”.

Jesus is the true gift of Christmas. His presence in our lives is the greatest present we could receive. God wants you to know Him and He wants a relationship with you. He desires it so much that God sent His one and only Son to become a human and ultimately pay the price of death so we could be restored into the presence of God. The presence of God is the greatest present we could ever receive.