What gifts should we give Jesus this Christmas?
As we plan to celebrate this year's Christmas, let us not be oblivious to the fact that Christmas is about the commemoration of the birth of Christ.
The mistake most of us make every Christmas season is that we focus on everything but Christ. We go shopping, we travel, and we feast, but only a few remember to think of Christ and serve the poor and needy. This season usually turns into nothing more than a celebration of things and goods rather than an occasion to serve Christ more.
The question before us is what can we really give to Christ that He will value?
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Evangelizing through missions is a sure way of appreciating Him during this Christmas season. He said, “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). The greatest gift we can offer Him is to point those who do not know Him toward Him; the only source of eternal life. There is no greater gift than the gift of salvation! This gift was given through Jesus, His birth, His death, and His resurrection. We are saved so that we can be involved in winning souls for the Kingdom.
A look at the first birthday gifts which Jesus received through the wise men can help us: “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:10-11). The wise men gave him gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold signifies royalty, frankincense signifies priesthood, and myrrh signifies sacrifice.
Encouraging the unsaved to confess Jesus as their Lord is a golden gift to Him, and spreading the Gospel of His Kingdom is a great royal birthday gift. Frankincense is a gift fit for a priest; He is the mediator and the one who stands in the gap between God and man for the salvation of humanity. He makes intercession on our behalf and draws men to God. Getting involved in intercessions for the unsaved could be a good way of presenting frankincense to Jesus as a birthday gift. The greatest need in missions and evangelism is prayer.
The gift of myrrh is a sacrificial offering. We should aspire to make sacrifices for Christ this season. How many of us will be willing to leave our comfort zones and go on a mission trip and spend Christmas with the unsaved and the unreached? And if we can’t physically go, donations to missionaries and mission agencies should be a good substitute.
Another way of honoring Him this Christmas is to show kindness to His people — our needy brothers and sisters in our local churches.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’” (Mathew 25:35-40).
This is by no means an exhaustive list. But it’s a good start.
The more we pursue the things that He values the more we will bring glory to Him this Christmas season. Let us endeavor to do so with all our hearts.
Oscar Amaechina is the president of Afri-Mission and Evangelism Network, Abuja, Nigeria. His calling is to take the gospel to where no one has neither preached nor heard about Jesus. He is the author of the book Mystery Of The Cross Revealed.
