Of all the gifts that could be given, only one gift far surpasses everything, even when combined: the gift of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that God so loved the world that He gave us His only begotten Son, that whoever would believe on Him should not perish but have everlasting life (see John 3:16).
Because of God's love, we have Christmas day today – the very day our Lord Jesus Christ was born a human being. He brings to us God's gift of love, of forgiveness, of life, and of reconciliation with God.
Knowing that God is able to do anything in the blink of an eye, even our salvation, why did Jesus have to come in the flesh? Why did He have to experience being human, live as a human, and die a human?
It's very simple, my friends. It's so that He could save us fully and make way for us to be restored to God.
Historical wrong
The Bible tells us in Genesis that God made man to take dominion over creation. God wanted man to govern creation, and as such gave him authority over all that God had made.
Genesis 1:28 records for us, "And God blessed [Adam and Eve]. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.""
Man, however, fell off the seat of authority when he fell into sin by disobeying God. Because of sin, man was separated from God and was destined to die.
Redeeming history
For a long time, since the time of the fall, the devil took authority over the earth. This is why Jesus, in John 14:30, called him "the prince of this world" – a world marred by sin and death. This world is in a pitiful, hopeless state.
That is, until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. 1 John 3:8 tells us,
"He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil."
Christ came to correct a historical wrong. He became the "last Adam" who came to bring abundant life to all who believe (see 1 Corinthians 15:45; John 10:10, 3:16). He came to undo the work of sin since the fall of man and to rescue him from sin and death, doing this by His own death on the cross. Hebrews 2:14-15 tells us,
"Because God's children are human beings - made of flesh and blood - the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could He set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying."
Because of Christ, we can live freed from the fear of death. Not only that, Christ came to take away our sin – the sin that separates us from God. Hebrews 2:16-18 tells us,
"We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; He came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for Him to be made in every respect like us, His brothers and sisters, so that He could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then He could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since He himself has gone through suffering and testing, He is able to help us when we are being tested."
Because of Christ's death and resurrection, we can now live a life pleasing to God. We are given grace to live holy lives, being sanctified continually by God's own Holy Spirit who is living in us who believe.
In Summary
To make it short, Christ came to restore us to what God intended that we would be. He came to pay the price of the forgiveness of our sins so that we could be reconciled with the Father. He came to destroy the work of the devil in our lives so we could be free to live abundant lives in obedience to God. He came to take us for Himself and make us a holy people ready and able to do His will on earth.
Friends, this is why Christ came: because God loves us. This Christmas, I pray that we would all realize and acknowledge the vastness and immeasurable depths of His love for us all, as evidenced through the coming, dying, and raising of His one and only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
