The most sublime thing about Christmas is our Savior, there is no doubting that. The yearly celebration of his birth sets in motion a chain of events that takes us to the cross, the empty tomb and our eternal lives with Christ. To celebrate that sublime forgiveness through Christ, Christians began to give gifts to one another to symbolize the gift we all received through Jesus Christ.

So probably the most exciting thing about Christmas is this custom of giving gifts. These treasures of love come to us all wrapped up. They sit there under the tree for several weeks perhaps, or seem to magically appear overnight through the work of happily sleep-deprived parents. And there they are: great mystery surrounding each one. We guess. We wonder. We maybe even hope. That excitement builds as we take our turns digging into to each mysterious gift, unwrapping it, trying to anticipate what is within the box.

We like to see the happiness on the faces of loved ones as they see their gifts for the first time. How meaningless and how unsatisfying if the gift is no surprise, if the gift was earned or expected! We want to go through the trouble of finding the perfect gift because we want our loved ones to be happy.

If you can understand this whole culture surrounding Christmas gifts, then you can begin to understand God’s ardent joy as he gives gifts to you. Normally we think of Christmas as the season of gift-giving. But it is in Epiphany when God’s gifts are finally unwrapped. Let's take a quick look at one special gift.

Your gifts are just that. They come undeserved and unearned. These gifts come from God who considered what each of us needed. And he designed one special gift to match your greatest need. And if you would unwrap this gift and look inside you might be surprised: there is only a simple, white card. The card says in bold letters, “Jesus is Lord.” This is God’s gift? What does it mean that God’s gift to you and me is to be able to say, “Jesus is Lord”? It means that God owns your soul. It means that the responsibility for your eternal destiny is no longer on your shoulders. It means that you no longer must figure out how to be right with God because you were declared innocent of the charge of sin. God’s gift, then, is to forgive us. His gift is to enable us to say in joy and freedom, “Jesus is Lord, my Lord!” and to know in your soul that all is forgiven.

This is the gift of the Holy Spirit, who creates that faith. This is the gift of God who loves. This is the gift of God who knows you. This is a gift from the Holy Trinity who is involved in your life and invested in your salvation. Unwrap this gift each day.