DECEMBER 23RD
Father Christmas
Galatians 4:4-7 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.
A few years back, an airline staged a promotional event in which an actor playing Santa asked passengers on a particular flight what they wanted for Christmas before they boarded the plane. Passengers laughed as they answered Santa's questions. One man joked that he hoped for socks, but others listed their dream gifts - big screen TVs, jewelry, and toys. The surprise came when the plane reached its destination. Airline employees in that city had purchased and wrapped each passenger's Christmas wish. When the baggage carousel started up, hundreds of gifts poured onto the conveyor. As the passengers started to see their names on the label and realized what was happening, confusion turned to delight, and everyone was beaming as they opened their gifts. (Even the gentlemen who had asked for socks!)
The passengers would have been perfectly content to simply arrive safely at their destination. That was the airline's only legal obligation, and that's what the passengers expected for their ticket price. That would have been enough, but in the spirit of Christmas, the airline went to great lengths not just to give each passenger a gift but to surprise each one with the exact gift they wanted, far exceeding the customer's expectations in the process. In hindsight, many of the passengers probably wished they had asked for something bigger. God went infinitely further than this for us. The airline was obligated to at least transport paying passengers, but God was under no obligation to rescue us from our sins and to ransom us from death.
Thankfully, in His grace and unfailing mercy, God sent us a Savior, and if all we could expect from Jesus was that He would pay our debt and free us from sin, that would be more than enough. He didn’t stop there; we read that God sent His Son not only to redeem us but also to make us His adopted children. We who were sentenced to die for our sins weren't just pardoned; we were given an inheritance and the right to relate to God as Abba Father, a very intimate and personal term. It's difficult to wrap our minds around how much this adoption as God's children should amaze us. The Jewish people had been expecting a Savior for thousands of years, but in all that time, they never dreamed that God would send his own Son to save them. They never expected the intimacy and privilege God would grant them through this Savior. Jews rarely addressed God as Father, which seemed a bit too familiar to the holy creator of the Universe. We are told not only that we are His children but also that God Himself invites us to be on the same speaking terms with Him as Jesus was. Adoption is always intentional and by choice. We don't pick the children we have, but we can pick the children we adopt. We've all heard of unwanted or unplanned pregnancies, but there is no such thing as an unplanned or unwanted adoption. People adopt because they want to, not because they have to. The miracle of Christmas is that God not only saved us but He chose us and adopted us as His children and heirs. Just like His own Son, we too can call Him Father.
The passengers would have been perfectly content to simply arrive safely at their destination. That was the airline's only legal obligation, and that's what the passengers expected for their ticket price. That would have been enough, but in the spirit of Christmas, the airline went to great lengths not just to give each passenger a gift but to surprise each one with the exact gift they wanted, far exceeding the customer's expectations in the process. In hindsight, many of the passengers probably wished they had asked for something bigger. God went infinitely further than this for us. The airline was obligated to at least transport paying passengers, but God was under no obligation to rescue us from our sins and to ransom us from death.
Thankfully, in His grace and unfailing mercy, God sent us a Savior, and if all we could expect from Jesus was that He would pay our debt and free us from sin, that would be more than enough. He didn’t stop there; we read that God sent His Son not only to redeem us but also to make us His adopted children. We who were sentenced to die for our sins weren't just pardoned; we were given an inheritance and the right to relate to God as Abba Father, a very intimate and personal term. It's difficult to wrap our minds around how much this adoption as God's children should amaze us. The Jewish people had been expecting a Savior for thousands of years, but in all that time, they never dreamed that God would send his own Son to save them. They never expected the intimacy and privilege God would grant them through this Savior. Jews rarely addressed God as Father, which seemed a bit too familiar to the holy creator of the Universe. We are told not only that we are His children but also that God Himself invites us to be on the same speaking terms with Him as Jesus was. Adoption is always intentional and by choice. We don't pick the children we have, but we can pick the children we adopt. We've all heard of unwanted or unplanned pregnancies, but there is no such thing as an unplanned or unwanted adoption. People adopt because they want to, not because they have to. The miracle of Christmas is that God not only saved us but He chose us and adopted us as His children and heirs. Just like His own Son, we too can call Him Father.