The hardest thing about the Christmas season, to me, is December 26th—the day after Christmas. Partly, this is because I have young children and post-holiday meltdowns are a real thing; however, as an adult, I also struggle with a somewhat negative rush of feelings. After days and weeks of buildup, it’s suddenly all over, and all we have to look forward to are New Year’s Eve (which, if you have young children, isn’t the most thrilling evening on the calendar) and a drop in temperature.
It reminds me of the times our youth group would travel up to senior high camp at our local church camp. The van ride there was just the beginning of a week of bonding, learning, growing, and making memories and inside jokes. But the ride back was a bittersweet time, the magic of the unique togetherness we had breaking apart as we all contemplated going back to our respective homes, schools, and activities.
When we experience highs in life, whether they are spiritual or emotional, we often want the feeling of that moment to go on and on. But seeking those highs or letting them sustain us apart from God only leaves us empty and searching for the next mountaintop moment.
Our Hearts Seek the True Gift
On Tuesday, Jaime asked us to imagine opening a present to find we had been given the gift of strength. If you were to walk into a room elegantly but humbly decorated with a sense of the sacred, you might see a tree with gifts crowded underneath until the trunk is no longer visible. Upon further inspection, you see that all the gift tags are quite similar.
All are signed “Heavenly Father,” “Emmanuel,” “Lamb of God,” “Comforter,” … “Redeemer.” But they are all addressed to “Believers of every tribe, tongue, and nation.” When you lean in even closer, the light seems to shift, and every tag has your name on it. Some might have your first name or your middle name, others have the name your dad called you when you asked to ride on his shoulders or the nickname your best friend gave you in high school.
As you carefully tear the paper on each package, you realize that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights… (James 1:17a). Gifts like hope and strength. Yes, the Father gives good things (Matthew 7:11), and He even uses the evil of others for good (Genesis 50:20) because He is working all things to make His children more like Christ (Romans 8:29).
“But, wait!” you cry. “I don’t deserve all of this!”
Exactly.
And that’s when you open the final gift. The one that makes all of the other gifts make sense. Redemption. Because you can’t be perfect, you can’t be enough, you can’t earn all of the other gifts God wants to give you, you must first accept this one.
Redemption is Necessary
Left to our own devices, not just the day after Christmas but our whole lives are empty and devoid of meaning: “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors,” (1 Peter 1:18, NIV). Since the fall in the garden, all of Adam’s descendants have inherited a sinful nature, complete with futile thinking and darkened hearts (Romans 1:21).
Not only are we broken inside, but we can’t simply will ourselves to God or godliness. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) This falling short is like the image of an archer drawing back his bow and taking aim; yet, the arrow not only misses the mark but doesn’t even come close to the intended target. The Bible is God’s story, inspired by the Holy Spirit, handed down through the ages to reveal His perfect character, purposes, and plan. But there is also a substory of the generations of man who thought, in their own wisdom and self-righteousness, they could work, will, or wish themselves to acceptance, whether from God, their peers, or themselves.
And each and every generation has, without fail experienced failure, sin, and death.
With the exception of one Man.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” —Romans 3:23-24
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. —1 Peter 1:18-19, NIV
Because Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life; because He was and is not merely a good teacher or example but Son of God and Son of Man; because he was tempted in the same ways we are—experiencing hunger, thirst, mockery, and betrayal—and withstood the tests (Hebrews 4:15), He alone can be our Redeemer. He alone can “give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). He alone can stand in our place, taking our judgment, shame, and punishment, replacing it with righteousness, freedom, and eternal life.
Redemption is Costly
“No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them—the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough—that they should live on forever and not see decay.” (Psalms 49:7-9)
Recently, my middle child was talking to a friend who was telling him all about a virtual reality headset he had received as a gift. My son asked, “If you were to combine what you spend on my birthday presents and my Christmas presents, would I be able to get one of those?” Laughing, I replied, “Honey, that would take you six years’ worth of birthdays and Christmases!”
This particular child would have to wait almost his whole lifetime over again to be able to earn this kind of extravagant gift; yet, God’s Word tells us that we could give every breath we might ever take on this earth, and it still wouldn’t be enough to ransom the life of another. Life is precious to God. We are the imageo Deo, the image of God; thus, unlike any of His other creatures, He requires “a reckoning”—a settlement of our account with him, which can only be satisfied one way:
“And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” —Genesis 9:5-6
It’s a gruesome and beautiful truth: my life is so precious to God that only the lifeblood of another can atone for it. In the New Testament, we see Jesus fulfilling the roles of all the Old Testament sacrifices meant to atone for the sins of the individual and of Israel.
“For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.” —Hebrews 2:17, NIV
In Hebrews 9, Christ is revealed to be our High Priest but also our perfect sacrifice. What He accomplished on the cross was:
- once for all, never needing to be repeated, never running out.
- by means of His own blood.
- securing our eternal redemption.
- purifying our consciences from dead works so we can serve the living God.
- granting us an eternal inheritance.
- redeeming us from our transgressions, forgiving our sins.
“…But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” —Hebrews 9:26b
Redemption is Free
Christmas can be full of so many expectations from us that we wonder how we can meet them all and still be Christlike. But Jesus says: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Cease striving, dear brother or sister. Rest in the knowledge of the truth that He has done what was necessary to give you a gift that can never be taken from you. If you have trusted His work on the cross to save you from your sins and that “empty way of life,” then you are redeemed, and you are His.
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