The Ole Seagull will be the first to admit he’s not the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree and has confusing feelings about how any father could expect his son to die for him. He rejoices, however, in the hope of salvation that celebrating the birth of the Christ Child on that first Christmas brings to those who are “brighter” and have less “confusion” than him.
“Now hold on, Seagull, what do you mean ‘hope of salvation?’ John 3: 16-17 says, ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.’” “True, but what value is any gift that the receiver does not accept?”
There’s a package with your name on it under the Christmas tree, but you make the choice, for whatever reason, not to accept or open it. It makes no difference what’s inside the package. It could be a $1 million check, a new fishing reel, or anything else. You will never know what’s inside the package or receive any benefit from it until you open it, determine what’s inside and accept it.
The gift of “hope” Christmas represents is “eternal salvation” for “everyone who believes in Him,” Christ the Son of God, whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. There’s no problem in determining what the gift is. It is the hope of the gift of “eternal salvation.” The joy of this gift is there’s not much “opening” to it. Anyone who hears the “Christmas Story” or reads or hears the words of John 3:16 knows what the gift is.
The question is, “Do they accept that gift?” Accepting the gift of the hope of eternal salvation is believing in Christ, the Son of God, whose birthday Christmas celebrates. Without that acceptance, the gift of the hope of eternal salvation is about as valuable to a person as opening a gift containing a $1 million check and not cashing it.
“Seagull, you keep on saying the gift of Christmas is the ‘hope of eternal salvation.’” “Doesn’t everyone who accepts and believes in Christ get the gift of eternal salvation?” “On that first ‘Christmas’ and until ‘Easter’ it was a gift of the ‘hope of salvation.’ Christ had choices. Today, because of the choices He made and Easter, that ‘hope’ is a certainty if accepted. ‘Everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.’” What a wonderful gift for those who will accept it!
An Ole Seagull, his family, and your family here at the Branson Globe wish you and yours a blessed and Merry Christmas.
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