“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” - Isaiah 7:14
When I shop for Christmas gifts for people in my life I try to be intentional about what I get them. I try to think about what they like, what could be useful to them, what they need or would enjoy. I’m not saying that I do this perfectly, or that I know exactly what people need, but I try to make an effort to be intentional. This is certainly easier with some people on my list, and much more difficult with others.
As I was doing my Christmas shopping this year, I often found myself wondering what would be the perfect gift for each person on my list. While pondering this question, I realized that the greatest gift ever couldn’t be bought in a store, it couldn’t be purchased online, and it certainly wasn’t made by man. Rather, the greatest gift the world ever received was wrapped in swaddling cloths, lowly placed in a manger, and called Immanuel.
Matthew tells us that Immanuel means God with us. The God who created the universe humbled himself, and took on flesh to live amongst us. See God knew exactly what we needed before we even knew ourselves. He knew that we were a sinful people in need of a savior. He knew that the only way was to step down into the world, live a perfect and sinless life, die the death we deserved for our sin, and rise from the dead, victorious over sin and death.
God knows that this is certainly a gift I didn’t deserve and I couldn’t earn it. Yet, God freely gives the greatest gift to anyone who would receive it. Paul writes in Romans that it is the free gift of God given to us. Ephesians 2:8-9 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Rejoice this Christmas, because the greatest gift has been given to us. It won’t be found nicely wrapped under a tree and it can’t be bought or earned. Rather, the greatest gift came humbly lying in a manger in David’s city and His name is Immanuel.
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