Today scripture reading is John 4 verses 7 through 10 a Woman from Samaria came to draw water Jesus said to her give me a drink Where his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food The Samaritan woman said to him How is it that you a Jew asked for a drink from me a woman of Samaria? For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans Jesus answered her if you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you give me a drink You would have asked him and he would have given you live in water May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and the hearing of it I don't think there's any denying That Christmas is one of the more popular holidays of the year Let's be honest. It's not hard to see why It's a Christmas time that we sing and we hear we've already done so this morning. We sing and we hear great songs We we get to enjoy great food and and there's wonderful fellowship times I mean, it seems like there's a party every weekend during Christmas time I mean not only is there food not only is there great songs, but then there's all the decorations The churches look beautiful with all these decorations and brothers and sisters if you have never been to New York City During Christmas you need to add it to your bucket bucket list, okay? It's just beautiful Rockefeller Center the the the the Macy's Windows on Fifth Avenue. It's a beautiful Thing to see One song I think gets it right when it says that Christmas time is what it's the most wonderful time of the year These trappings around Christmas time make it an enjoyable holiday for many But I believe What really takes Christmas over the top and And why it is such a a beloved holiday and I am sure the children among us would agree It's the gifts It's the gifts. Let's be real children are not excited about the about Christmas morning because of the songs and because of the Christmas decorations They are excited about the gifts. I know that's why I loved Christmas so much growing up It was the anticipation of receiving what I asked for or Being surprised by what I didn't expect Yes, we love songs love the songs we love food and the decorations, but it is the exchanging of gifts that really Indeers this holiday to many Truth is no matter how much you try You can't separate Christmas From the gifts They are a part a Huge part of the holiday Christmas is about gifts, but but we must acknowledge that gift giving Around Christmas often can and does take away from the main reason for the season The unintended consequences of giving gifts at Christmas is that we can sometimes forget the greatest gift that came to us at Christmas Or what is perhaps even more common we treat the greatest gift as though he is just like the gifts we give to each other And how do we treat the gifts that we give to each other? Right? We fake excitement Oh Look at this lovely tie Just just what I needed another tie, right? We use it for a little while and Then throw it in the closet never to be seen again How many of us still have that toy or gadget or piece of clothing item that we really wanted that we really believe That we needed how many of us still have that gift from when we were a top I remember I remember one year really wanting a portable stereo Now a portable stereo, you know, it had a cassette tape and these things called cassettes and CDs and had detachable speakers. I really wanted and believed that I needed that portable stereo radio Do I still have it today? No, I don't have it Don't need it. It's since past technology has improved You see our NAMMOR We we outgrow gifts. We exchange with one another Not only that we trade in it in for something that we believe is better Or the gifts we receive We lack gratitude and appreciation for the gift You see it's easy to treat the greatest gift like we treat the gift that we exchange with one another Our NAMMOR with gifts around Christmas Can easily draw our attention away from and even cause us to mistreat the gift of God Now now listen brothers and sisters the the goal of this sermon is To not is not to make you feel guilty about giving and receiving gifts If you've done your Christmas shopping and everything like that you don't need to take them back after this message, right? This isn't we're not gonna bash gifts gifts are not a bad thing as James says all good and perfect gifts come from above gifts Have the ability to foster gift giving have the ability to foster generosity and when we receive gifts It fosters gratitude in us. This this is not a bash on the commercialization of Christmas That's what that's not what this message is about this message is about the greatest gift given and Appreciating and celebrating him My hope this morning Is that as we reflect on the gift of God That it would help us to see the gifts we receive From one another That we would that we would see them in perspective That that we would be able to enjoy them in light of the greatest gift given The backdrop for our message this morning is a familiar passage The encounter Jesus has with the Samaritan woman was a subject of a Sermon of another sermon just a few weeks back, but this morning we want to focus on a different aspect Jesus you remember the story He strikes up a a conversation with a Samaritan woman A Samaritan woman who was out of well and she was there drawing water and you remember Jesus comes up to her and he asked her for a drink of water But but this request she's caught off guard by this request because culturally and customarily speaking Jesus she recognized as a Jew and she was a Samaritan and these they they were not supposed to interact They did not interact both culturally and customarily So she is perplexed by Jesus question of him asking her for a drink of water and she answers back with the question How can you a Jew ask me a Samaritan for a drink of water? Jesus answered with the following statement And this is the sub this is the this is the subject for our time this morning John 410 He says to her If you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you give me a drink You would have asked him and he would have given you living water if you knew the gift of God If you knew the gift of God it would bring clarity and fulfillment and the fulfillment you are looking for So so that is what we want to do this morning we want to explore and get to know better the gift of God That we may have clarity and fulfillment The clarity and fulfillment that is only found in Jesus before we do that I Think it would be helpful To reflect a little bit on the one who gives the gift The one who gives the gift it is the gift of God who is the giver of this gift God is God the Father is the one who gives the gift and I want to impress upon you that God is a gift giver He is a gift giver. He is the giver of gifts Understand this hour Heavenly Father who owns the cattle on a thousand hills is not stingy He's not stingy. He could never be accused of such a thing no brothers and sisters the God of the Bible He is full of Generosity he is an extravagant giver God doesn't hoard he doesn't skimp on the gifts he gives you that the Bible describes a God who is guess what? scandalously generous scandalously generous Paul alludes to this generosity in Romans 8 by appealing to reason and rationale listen to this Romans 8 32 He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all how will he not also with him graciously give us all things you see the reason there Doesn't doesn't that say that God is a generous and extravagant giver? Oh listen to the psalmist in Psalm 84 11 for the Lord God is a son and a shield the Lord But those favor and honor what no good thing does he withhold from those who walk up rightly? God is generous He is a giver of good and generous gifts I've had the privilege of knowing some very generous people I've been I've also been the recipient of countless acts of generosity that have been shown to me by the sisters I can tell you some some stories of People who have been generous and blessed me in significant and my family and and this church in significant ways These acts have left me humbled Blown away words words can't express the gratitude and the sense of unworthiness that these generous Justers have produced in me, but I must tell you With all the generous people I have encountered and All the generous acts I have seen on display It pales in comparison to the generosity of God What did they say right you can't out give God? You can't you cannot out give God think about this the greatest philanthropist the world has ever known. I think Bill Gates is shooting for that distinction But I don't think he's gonna catch Andrew Carnegie Bill Gates and you Carnegie are no match for God God is a generous giver and the scriptures bear that out Malachi 310 Bring the whole tie into the storehouse that there may be food in my house the Lord Test me in this says the Lord Almighty and see if I will not throw open the flood gates of heaven and Pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it now listen This verse is sometimes used to manipulate people into giving and it is a verse about giving we should give the Lord Calls us to give but the emphasis is not on our giving the emphasis on this mind on this mind blown generosity Is the generosity of the Lord God Almighty? That's what's being communicated here. He is not stingy He gives Generously he gives he gives he gives What does he give I'm glad you ask I am glad you ask now sit tight because there's some verses here We're gonna go through some verses but sit tight. He gives he gives he he gives life Job 33 and 4 the spirit of God has made me and the breath of the Almighty gives me life He gives wealth and possessions Ecclesiacities 519 Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possession and power to enjoy them and to accept his lot and rejoice in his Toil this is the gift of God Oh, he gives to his beloved Sleep some 127 to it is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest eating the bread of anxious Toil for he gives his beloved sleep He gives us a future and a hope Jeremiah 29 and 11 For I know the plans I have for you to cleanse the Lord plans to prosper you and not to harm you plans to give you a Hope and a future He gives counsel some 16 seven. I bless the Lord who gives me counsel in the night also my heart instructs me He gives holy spirit Luke 11 and 13 if you then who are evil know how to give good Children how much more will the heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him and brothers and sisters He gives grace James 4 and 6 but he gives more grace Therefore it says God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble you see you see you see these are just Some of you of the wonderful gifts that the Lord gives and and these gifts Speak to his generosity Because you know what you know what these gifts are These gifts are just stocking stuffers You see these are just stocking stuffers you know what stocking stuffers are those those little gifts that are just extras Little thoughtful trinkets that people put in stockings, but the stocking stuffers are of God are not little They're not little these gifts are substantial and they communicate the generosity of God Because these aren't even his greatest gift They're wonderful gifts. They're substantial gifts, but those aren't even his greatest gift They are just the benefits that flow from his one Glorious gift in other words the gift of God is the gift that keeps on giving
That's the gift of God We serve a generous God Who gives gives gives All those things I mentioned they they're just stocking stuffers. They pale even in comparison to the greatest gift given The greatest gift of God he would have us to know is his son Jesus John 316 For God so loved the world That he gave his only son That whoever believes in him should not perish But have eternal life Standing next to that woman at the well Was God's greatest gift And she had no idea just how glorious that gift was Those ancestors I fear that our infatuation with gifts Causes to take for granted and even perhaps miss the glorious gift of God His gift is incomparable to the gifts we exchange with one another It's incomparable they're incomparable So for the rest of our time this morning I want to highlight The glorious aspects of the gift of God With the hopes of us remembering again or maybe for some of us Seeing for the first time That Jesus is the greatest gift that has ever been given And furthermore if you receive him He will be the greatest gift you will ever receive Question is why is that the case Why is Jesus the greatest gift given and the and the greatest gift received Why is this why is the gift of God that way For the gift of God Reason this is the gift of God Is God Himself The gift of God is God Himself You know in our materialistic culture Many have come to believe that giving people material items are the best gifts Diamond earrings puppies Although I heard recently somebody say I read something that says some I said puppies aren't Christmas gifts They're 10 to 15 year commitments That's right I got a 10 to 15 year commitment at home Right We think diamond earrings or puppies or toys gaming system Clothes and shoes you name it we believe These are the best gifts we can give and even receive But I would argue and I think many of you would agree that some of the best if not the best gift given Is the presence of loved ones It is what Mariah Carey is getting at in her song all I want for Christmas is you right Parents want their children home for the holidays Love ones want to be together presents fellowship togetherness is what makes for the best gifts And that is what makes the gift of God So glorious His gift to us is Himself It's Himself Behold Matthew one in 23 says the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name Emmanuel On that first Christmas morning there wasn't Expensive jewelry or a new gadget wrapped in a box no It there in that manger was God Himself wrapped in human flesh God showed up God showed up our creator Our Redeemer our covenant keeping God made a promise long ago that he was coming to set things right And he came he came and fulfilled his promise he gave us his presence What a gift you have been The recipients of God Himself The Alpha and the Omega the sovereign God of the universe who was all powerful and all knowing full of Compassion and love he is the one who has come he gave Himself to us And he came bearing gifts bearing gifts The gifts he had his his presence his presence would bring peace peace it would bring Isaiah 96 for unto us For unto us the child is born To us the son is given In the government shall be upon his shoulders In his name shall be called wonderful Counselor mighty God everlasting Father Prince of peace he would bring peace Not only that his presence would bring salvation What did the angel tell Joseph in Matthew 1 and 21 she will bear a son And you shall call his name Jesus For he will save his people From there says Jesus came gave us his presence His gift to us wasn't self and he brought peace and he brought salvation What makes the gift of God so glorious Is that he gifted us himself But not only that The gift of God is personalized It's personal It's personal You know gifts that are personalized really do take that gift to a whole nother level When when someone takes the time to have Something engraved with your name on it or it has a personalized message etched into the material It means that they thought about that gift It communicates that That they brought that gift specifically For you It's yours Your name is on it belongs to you Brothers and sisters Jesus Christ was sent to you To you he was given he is a gift given to you I know that we read like a we what we read before in John 3 16 says for God so loved the world that he gave his son And that is right God's love for the world was the with the motivation for forgiving his son But please understand that this general love for the world is trumped by his particular love for you His love for you listen if you believe in Jesus then he has loved you with a particular love He sent his son for you personally Jesus has been given to you he knows you Romans 8 and 29 For those whom he for new that is a personal knowledge that isn't looking down through the poor dorses history and Loving you because he thought that you would believe in him. No, this is a personal knowledge and intimate knowledge He knows you Here's the deal If you have responded to his call He knows you you know him John 10 and 14 I am the good shepherd I know my own and my own know me And then he will later say and John 10 and 27 my sheep him my voice I know them And they follow me The the particular love of Christ is a glorious reality I think the song writer gets it right in his stanza in before the throne of God, he says my name is graven on his hands My name is written on His heart You belong to Jesus And he belongs to you Your name is written on his heart and therefore you don't you don't have to wonder if Jesus still loves you You don't have to worry if God is going to take take him back from you. No, no He was sent for you. He died on the cross for you the gift of God is personal It's personal personal
We should also know But the gift of God Is undeserved It's undeserved I'm sure you're familiar with the popular Christmas song Santa Claus coming to town a song Is known for a verse that many have used to try to get their children to behave and act right You know how the verse goes you know how it goes Santa Claus is coming to town He's making a list and checking it twice He's going to find out who's naughty or nice or brothers and sisters Santa may be keeping a list But God doesn't keep a naughty or nice list He doesn't keep a naughty or nice list in fact if he did no one would be on the nice list No one would be on the nice list. I don't know about you, but I'm glad God doesn't have such a list when it comes to his gift Now the wonderful reality is that God's greatest gift to us is not predicated on our behavior God is not searching for those who have been nice and therefore deserving of his gift He would have no one to give his gift to then You remember when Abraham told when when Yahweh told Abraham that he was going to destroy Saddam and Gamora And Abraham pleaded with the Lord to save the righteous certainly Lord There are some righteous in Saddam and Gamora and you remember what God said and I'm pray I'm paraphrasing God said all right go ahead if you can find some righteous Go find them. I wait
Go find them I wait There was none There was none to find You see if God kept a list There would be no one on the list deserving of his gift But this is why we call God's generosity scandalous Because God gives his gift of Jesus Not to the nice but to the naughty To the naughty He freely mercifully and graciously gives his gift to the undeserving Romans 5, 6 and 8 for while we were still weak At the right At the right time Christ died for the ungodly For one scarcely will scarcely die for a righteous person No, perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us You see The gift of God You and I receive Is undeserved Some deserved he gives his greatest gift To unworthy undeserving sinners Which means God doesn't look at people like we look at them He doesn't judge them like we judge He doesn't give tiered gifts based upon what you have or haven't done The value of his gift is not determined by the closeness of the relationship The gift of Jesus is the gift God gives to all and he does so indiscriminately All you need to do is receive it All you need to do is receive it Whoever believes in him shall have eternal life God's gift is given to all the question is will you receive it For if you do For if you do You shall see That the gift of God is satisfying Is satisfying Getting any gift Is a blessing and should cause us To have a heart of gratitude But I am sure we can all testify to the feelings of joy Experienced when you are given a gift That you really need That it meets a need Just that meet a need are satisfying they leave you contented The gift of God in the person of Jesus Christ is all that and more Jesus satisfies our greatest need Our greatest need he is the one who deals with our sin and reconciles our relationship to the Father Brothers and sisters people think they need clothes They think they need toys or the latest gadget But the truth is every human being born in this world has one pressing need They need to be reconciled to a holy God And that can only happen if our sin is dealt with We need a mediator And at Christmas God gave us the gift we need First John 4, 9 and 10 In this the love of God was made manifest among us That God sent his only son into the world So we so that we might live through him In this is love not that we have loved God But that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins God sent Jesus to appease his wrath His wrath against sin against your sin To remove the anger to remove the guilt to remove the shame so you and I could fulfill what we were created for Namely to worship God for all eternity For all eternity Jesus as we have alluded to before Fills that God shaped a hole in our heart Did Jesus fills the missing piece and satisfying the law and satisfies the longing of our heart And here's the deal When we receive Jesus We realize That he's it That he's it This is all we ever wanted and all we will ever need I don't need anything else I've been given Jesus It's all I need All I've ever wanted He is the missing piece that satisfies my soul As the song says turn your eyes upon Jesus And when you look full at his wonderful face What happens the things of this world grow strangely dim right You realize All that this world has to offer Pals in comparison to having Jesus
You remember what Jesus said to the woman at the well about the living water John 413 and 14 Jesus said to her everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again Speaking of the well But whoever drinks of the water That I will give him will never be thirsty again The water that I give him will become in him a spring of water Welling up to eternal life Brothers sisters Jesus is the only gift you need because he is the only gift that satisfies But he doesn't just satisfy in this world He satisfies in the life to come Jesus is the gift that gives for eternity For eternity This gift it never goes out of style This gift never rust This gift is always there It is always satisfying the deep longing and desires of your soul Jesus the greatest gift Given The gift of God is personal the gift of God is undeserved The gift of God is satisfying This gift from a great and glorious and generous God So This Christmas As you exchange and receive gifts Don't Don't let What you receive Or don't receive Distract you from the gift of God Don't don't don't let it happen Jesus Has been given to you He has been given to you He's your gift he is the gift that you need he is the gift that has been given to you during this season Give gifts to one another we should give Generously to one another be those who receive gifts with a heart of gratitude But remember nothing under the Christmas tree is better than Jesus nothing is better than I phone 15 Nope, not gonna do it right even a new car not gonna do it puppies They may be cute, but they're not going to be better than Jesus And here's the thing Maybe you don't exchange gifts may be this Christmas you won't receive anything But that's okay That's okay Because remember you have Jesus He is all that you've ever wanted and he is all that you will need He is the only one Jesus is the only one that can satisfy you for all eternity He is the gift of God From a generous merciful and kind and glorious God Receive him and find he will satisfy you satisfy you for eternity Let's pray