Learning from One of God's Saints How We live Christmas

Officially, Christmas Day was last Sunday, December 25. I assume most of you gave gifts this Christmas, or received them. So, now that the gifts are opened, what will you do with the gifts you received? Maybe you received presents that were just what you were hoping for, presents that you will use time and time again. But, possibly you received some gifts that you’re not sure what to do with. Maybe you say thank you for those gifts, but they will be put away and never used. Maybe they even end up being donated to Bishops’ Attic or to another resale store.

We all also received another gift again this Christmas. When God spoke to the shepherds, he also spoke to us, to you. “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11) Jesus, the Savior, has been born for YOU! God Himself has come to this earth to save us. God’s gift of Jesus is the greatest gift we have ever received. By the way, our Lord’s Christmas gift to us is why Christians give gifts at Christmas.

Let me tell you what God does NOT want done with His gift to us of Jesus. Our Heavenly Father does not want a polite thank you in worship, and then for the gift of His Son to be forgotten the rest of the year. God does not want us to ignore His gift. He does not want us to doubt, or to live like He does not exist, to live like there is no Savior, like we have to make our own way in a tough world by ourselves.

What God DOES want us to do with His gift of the Savior, the gift of Christ the Lord, is what we see the shepherds doing. “17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, . . . 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.” (Luke 2, 17, 20) The shepherds heard the surprising good news of the angels. They found the infant Savior in the stable. Then they glorified and praised God for the gift of Jesus.

In many ways praising God is done with the lips. Praise is thanks and honor spoken about God. However, God is glorified with more than just words of praise. God is glorified with actions, with lives of faith and obedience. How do you think these shepherds, these common laborers, ended up in this Gospel? After they saw Jesus, the lives of these shepherds were never again the same. They lived differently, and told the story. They shared with their words and their lives what they had heard and seen.

So, God has given you the gift of love again this Christmas in Jesus. Have you heard the good news about this child? Have you believed it? Have you received this gift of God in faith? Will you receive and use God’s gift of the Savior? Will you glorify and praise God with your life? Or, will you put God’s gift away in the corner?

Let me share with you someone who knows the lesson of the shepherds. On December 17 I visited with a 96 year old child of God at a nursing home in Soldotna. Katie McLeod once lived in Palmer and was an active member of St. John Lutheran Church. Katie’s nephew, Mike Sweeney, his sister, Karen, and their families are still active members at St. John. Years ago Katie and her family moved to the Kenai Peninsula. They have been active in the Lutheran Churches there. Katie’s family and our family have been friends for over 25 years. But, at 96 Katie is ‘fading,’ and she was recently put on comfort care. As I visited with Katie and her family on December 17, knowing her situation, I asked her what she wanted me to pray about for her, as we wait for Jesus to come. We were not just expecting Christmas. Jesus is coming for Katie in more ways than one. Do you know how Katie answered? She replied to my question, “Please pray that all the people in this home turn their eyes to Jesus and know His love.” Katie could have asked prayers for herself, but she asked me to pray for others. Katie has heard the words of the angels and she believes that God gave her the gift of a Savior. Katie is not is not ignoring that gift, not putting that gift away. Katie is sharing the gift of Jesus with her words and with her actions. She is sharing the Savior with others so that they may also receive that gift, that they may receive the “Savior . . . born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”

Christmas Day is over. What are you doing this year with God’s gift to you of Jesus, your Savior? Will you put this gift away? Or will you glorify and praise God with words and actions which share Jesus with others?