Treasure the Savior’s gift.

 

Sermon for Christmas Eve, 2021

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  By His great mercy He gave us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  Amen.

Beloved children of the heavenly Father,

            I would like all of you to do me a favor this evening; I want you all to close your eyes and think about the best Christmas gift, or gifts, you ever received in years past.  Take one minute and think about what that great Christmas gift was—who gave it to you—where it is today—and what kind of condition it is in.  Take your time—I’ll time us while we ponder.

Sixty seconds is a long time to ponder with your eyes closed, isn’t it?  Did you all think of something from your past?  What was your favorite gift?  What stirs your heart as you thought about it?  A pretty doll, a bicycle, a certain game, your first baseball glove, or if you were thinking a bit older in your youth, maybe an X-Box, Gameboy, a computer, or a car, or diamond ring? 

Those of us who have lived more than a few years have probably received quite a few precious gifts over that time, so how did we treat those things?  Do we still have them all in like-new condition?  Did you wear out the gift with much use?  Did you put it on a shelf thinking it was too precious to touch or do anything with it?  Have you forgotten what happened to that thing that was once so precious to you?  When you thought about that gift were you also reminded about the person who gave it to you?  I sure am asking a lot of questions, aren’t I?

The reason I ask is because I wonder how many of us thought of the most precious gift any of us have ever received.  When we think about what is most precious to us, are the first things that come to mind material things, or our children, our spouse, or our reputation, farm, or business?  All those things are precious to us, as they should be, but with the text we consider this evening, the Holy Spirit encourages us to do so much more than simply maintain a fond memory of the most precious gift we have ever been given.  Through the writer, the Holy Spirit teaches us to Treasure the Savior’s gift.

Titus 2:11-14  ¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people.  ¹²It trains us to reject ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age, ¹³while we wait for the blessed hope, that is, the glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.  ¹⁴He gave himself for us, to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are his own chosen people, eager to do good works. (EHV)

            The letter to Titus reminds us that Jesus entered this world to bring salvation to you, me, and all people.  No other gift in the history of the world compares to what God the Father gave us in that manger bed at Bethlehem.  No other gift has ever cost so much.  No other gift has ever been shared with so many people yet lost none of its value in the sharing.  God in His great love, a love we did nothing to deserve, sent His Son on what some would call a suicide mission.  God calls it redemption of those He loves.

Most people give gifts to people they love, especially their dear children and grandchildren.  We perhaps give a gift to some of our favorite helpers and associates, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)  Jesus left His glorious home in heaven to redeem people who were in that moment His enemies.  So often, as we think about the pretty scene of the Baby Jesus in the manger with angels singing His praise in the skies above and the parents and the shepherds adoring the newborn King, we forget that this Child entered our world—to die—for us. 

The point of this text is to remind us that the gift of God has changed those of us who now believe in the Child born of Mary.  By Christ’s holy life and sacrificial death, Jesus redeemed us and set us free from the devil’s corrupt control.  Furthermore, by the work of the Holy Spirit, our hearts have been transformed and our lives along with that.  We went from people who knew nothing of the God who created this world and everything in it to people who know that we belong to God, that we are loved by Him, and that He has set us free from the devil’s control and free from the doom that once darkened our future.

When we look into that Bethlehem manger, we see the Son of God who by His life, death, and resurrection completely transformed our existence.  This is, and should be, the most precious gift we have ever received.  By the work of the Spirit in Word and Sacrament, we have peace with God, total forgiveness of all sin, a sure and certain hope of eternal life in heaven, and the power finally to live God-pleasing lives.  Our sins have been removed and wiped from God’s memory.  Now, how will we treat that gift of God’s grace?  Paul instructs us to Treasure the Savior’s gift.

This is where the rubber meets the road.  We owe our lives and our souls to Jesus.  Through His willingness to live and die on our behalf, Jesus has made us precious in His Father’s sight.  Now, if you are considered precious by God, don’t you think we should see ourselves as quite valuable?  As we remember that Jesus died for all people, shouldn’t we view every soul on earth as someone worth reaching out to with forgiveness and the promise of eternal life through faith in Jesus?

Paul wrote, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people.  It trains us to reject ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, that is, the glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.”  God’s grace comes to us by faith.  Faith is the greatest gift one could even imagine, yet faith isn’t like any other gift you have ever received. 

Faith isn’t some precious trinket that God wants you to set up on a shelf as something too precious to monkey with.  Our heavenly Father doesn’t want us just dusting it off when we have time.  We dare not neglect our faith because it is a living part of us that needs regular nourishment and exercise just as our bodies need to be fed, strengthened, and even healed if illness or injury strikes.  For that training, the Holy Spirit has given the Gospel and sent men out with that message of forgiveness and salvation.  He commands believers to keep on sharing that good news to strengthen faith in Jesus.  Jesus also gives us His own precious body and blood in the Sacrament while urging that we partake of it, often, for the forgiveness He has won for us, for the strengthening of our faith against the attacks of devil and world, and as medicine of immortality to heal the degeneration that came with the fall.  In all these ways, the believing Christian Treasures the Savior’s gift.

Grace trains us to live as part of the body of Christ.  Most people would be horrified to knowingly put poison into their bodies.  Just as much so, we should recoil in horror from the sinful ways of our former selves and the world around us.  The new man of faith, that God has raised up in us by His grace through faith in Christ, desires to walk in harmony with our Savior, and why wouldn’t we?  Christ Jesus rescued us from certain damnation.  Jesus saved us from the torments of an evil overlord and set us free from the works of darkness so that we could truly serve our Rescuer. 

Paul wrote, “He gave himself for us, to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are his own chosen people, eager to do good works.”  Through faith in Jesus, we are connected with holiness.  We are joined with the Savior who lived perfectly obedient to the Father on our behalf, who sacrificed His life in payment for our sins, and who continues to reign over all things for our everlasting good. 

Dear friends, the call to all people at Christmas time is again the call that goes out from our Lord continually.  Jesus invited all poor and lowly sinners, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)  As most of you know, the yoke joined two together to make tough jobs possible.  When we, who once were lost sinners, are joined together with Christ, we can walk in holy living.  With Jesus at our side, we can take on forces that alone we had no power to resist. 

By the grace of God, Jesus entered our world, humbling Himself to be one of us, yet remaining without sin, so that He could be the atoning sacrifice that rescued us out of eternal darkness and despair and brought us into the glorious kingdom of the everlasting, Almighty Creator of heaven and earth—the God who has loved you with an everlasting love, and brought to you the saving message that made you a believer in Jesus.  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  By His great mercy He gave us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, into an inheritance that is undying, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.  Through faith you are being protected by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed at the end of time.” (1 Peter 1:3-5)  That is a gift worth holding on to, and a gift worth sharing.  Treasure the Savior’s gift.  Amen.

1.    He gave His life for us.

2.    We owe our lives in return.

3.    He purified us for service and salvation.