The Mission Briefing – December 2023

Gift giving is such a blessing! What is on all your loved ones’ wish lists this year? If they do not provide some spot-on ideas, you really must know someone well to give them the perfect gift. According to my reckoning, for a good gift to be perfect it’s important to satisfy both a desire and a need. I don’t even try with one gift anymore that’s super difficult. Instead, with my kids, I ask for ideas or think about what they want and what they need, then give them both. God, on the other hand, is a much better Gift-giver than any of us. He knows the desires of every heart and knows our needs far better than we do ourselves. Advent season ending in Christmas is the time to reflect on our Father as the perfect Gift-giver.

When we think of Christmas, we think of Jesus, the Father’s perfect gift for us. Jesus meets both criteria for a perfect gift. I’m sure no one reading this will debate that Jesus is the best response to our greatest needs. He is the Savior, the One who rescues us from eternal alienation from God. He forgives us, cleanses us, shepherds us, frees us, walks with us, empowers us, comforts us, and protects us. When it comes to needs, He is the universal provision. I don’t know how Maslow came up with his theory for the Hierarchy of Needs, but Jesus meets them all in the most effective ways. Jesus is truly a great gift, which alone should inspire our worship.

Jesus is not just a great gift, however. He is THE perfect gift. He also satisfies our greatest desires. He brings happiness or what we label at Christmas as great joy. Jesus’ time on earth is bookended with joy. When the angels appeared to the shepherds outside of Bethlehem they said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:10). Then, after Jesus ascended into heaven, Luke writes, “Then [the disciples] worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God” (Luke 24:52-53). Jesus came to meet our deepest desires!

I think, as Christians, we are convinced that Jesus meets our every need, but we do not always connect Jesus with our greatest happiness. It’s like we expect the perfect gift to come as two gifts, one we need and one we want. If we do this with Jesus, we will always be looking for something more to add to Him. Jesus plus power, Jesus plus money, Jesus plus another desire of our hearts. If we live this way, we will NOT find happiness, at least for long. I encourage you to stop looking for the perfect gift in two gifts. God is the perfect Gift-giver and Jesus is the perfect Gift.

Everything you need is in Jesus and everything you want is there too. This may be a big shift in thinking and feeling but it is the most important one you will ever make for finding happiness that cannot spoil or fade.

Merry Christmas,
Pastor Kyle