I don't deserve them but God has given me the best gifts ever.
1 John 1:1-4 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.
3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.
Everybody has had their share of disappointments because something isn't as good as it seemed to be. Sometimes good news isn't so good and sometimes good gifts are not really good at all.
The shepherds received great news that may have seemed too good to be true but when they went to the manger to check it out they were not disappointed. While other people were indifferent to the news, they believed that they received the greatest, most perfect gift ever!
I have to wonder what ever happened to all of the people that the shepherds shared the good news with? (Luke 2:17-18) They must have thought that these shepherds had spent too many lonely nights outside with the sheep. How could any good Jew believe that the same God that created the universe was a human baby laying in a manger?
John 1:17-18 For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.
But eventually the news got out to the right people and they did check out the news and found out that the boy in the manger really is God. It is so easy to see from John, the beloved disciple and author of four books of the Bible, that he became convinced that the great news of Christmas is for real.
The book of First John begins with what looks like a sworn deposition for a courtroom trial, John gives his testimony of what he has seen and heard from three years of almost constant companionship with Jesus. John's testimony states that he has met God, not the way that people meet God today, he had a close physical interaction with him, he saw him daily, heard him teach and even him.
John spent the rest of his life writing books and telling anybody that would listen that Jesus is God, the creator of life was revealed to him and we could not keep quiet about it. John tells us even better news than that, Jesus is not only God but he is also a tremendously loving God that is here in our world on a mission. Whoever heard of a God that is so full of love for his creation that he is willing to go to such great lengths to fix the mess that we made?
| Why is Jesus called the Word? |
|---|
| Our words reveal to others just what we think and how we feel. Christ reveals to us the mind and heart of God. He is the living means of communication between God and men. To know Jesus Christ is to know God!
-Warren Wiersbe |
God wrote himself into our story so that we can learn about him and get to know him. We can only know God because he revealed himself to us. But it wasn't enough that God revealed himself in creation, God also revealed himself much more fully by coming to be God with us in the form of a vulnerable baby in our desperate world. (Romans 1:20, John 14:9)
All of that is wonderful news but that's not the end of the list of the gifts that God has given us. Because his son Jesus came into our world it became possible to receive even more wonderful gifts!
God Has Given To Us:
Heaven - I have a priceless inheritance because of Jesus.
Salvation - The redeemed will sing forever "Jesus saves!"
Mercy - Our mistakes do not have to haunt us.
Hope - No matter what is going on around me.
Love - The greatest gift that will last forever.
Peace - We can all use some more peace on earth.
Wisdom - So much better than the world has to offer.
What more could you ask for? What else do you really need to have? Why are so many of God's children so unhappy and struggling to find the gifts that he is already offering to us? God's children are the most blessed and therefore they should be the happiest people on earth.
Do you have "fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ?" (1 John 1:3) This fellowship is offered to anyone that is willing to accept Jesus work on the cross as the only way to have peace with God.
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