Philippians
2:5-11
“Let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who
though he was in the form of
God, did not regard equality with God as something to be
exploited, but emptied
himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human
likeness.”
(Philippians 2:5-7)
In O. Henry’s classic Christmas short
story, “The Gift of the Magi,” Jim and Della Young are faced with a
dilemma. They have little money, yet
each want to do something special for the other for Christmas. They each have something in mind for the
other, but no way to pay for it. Della
decides she will sell her prized possession, her beautiful, long hair, and Jim
decides to sell his handsome, gold watch.
Quietly they sacrifice these treasures for something far
greater…love. As Jim comes home on
Christmas Eve, he opens the door and is immediately greeted by Della, but there
is something different…her hair. He
seems nearly speechless as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the present
he has bought for Della. She excitedly
opens the package to find a set of combs to adorn her beautiful hair. She hands Jim his package and he opens the
box to find a fob for his handsome gold watch. There are tears and laughter as each one
recognizes what they have lost, but much more, what they have gained. The sacrifice of love is a
powerful.
The apostle Paul speaks to us on this
Christmas Eve of the sacrifice of love in the gift of Bethlehem. Christ was willing to disregard equality with
God and take on the form of a servant, a human being like you and me. Not only was he willing to become one of us,
but he was also willing to take upon himself our sin and suffer the humiliation
of the cross, all because of love. It
would seem that he gave up too much, yet love made the sacrifice
worthwhile.
Jim and Della willingly gave up what
they each treasured, because of love.
God gave up his Son, because of love.
“For God so loved the world that
he gave his one and only Son…” Sacrifice is a central theme of the Christmas
story. It is a central theme of the
Christ-like life. It is an important way
in which we proclaim that Jesus Christ is
Lord to the glory of God the
Father.
Prayer: Gracious God, you have given
everything in the gift of your Son. In
the story of Christmas, teach me once more the joy of sacrifice.
Amen.
Jim
Abernathy
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