As a church we have been spending our time leading up to Christmas discussing the reality that, at the end of the day, Christmas in our culture is about the presents. Christmas in our culture is driven by the presents we receive from others and Christmas in our culture is driven by the presents that we give to others. And everything around us reinforces that reality. The advertising on TV and radio reinforces the important of presents. The scenes in the stores and the shopping malls reinforce the importance of presents. The conversations that we have with those around us reinforce the importance of presents. And our desire to get just the right gift for someone reinforces the importance of presents.
We then asked ourselves the following question: After all the energy and effort that we expend on finding just the right present for that special someone, have you ever found yourself disappointed in the response to the present? I mean just think of all the energy and effort that we spend on finding just the right present for someone. And is it not only the energy and the effort that we take to find just the right present; it is also the energy and effort that goes into making sure the present is opened at just the right time.
Have you ever been there? Have you ever been in that place where that special gift had to be opened at just the right time, in just the right order? I remember growing up and spending the days leading up to Christmas anticipating what was in each box as it appeared under the tree. I remember thinking through which box I would want to open first. And then Christmas morning arrived and as I went to grab the present that I wanted to open first, I remember my parents saying, “no you can’t open that present yet; you have to open this present first”. And I remember being so frustrated and so excited at the same time. Because, when it comes to presents, timing is everything.
Have you ever been there? Have you ever been in that place where you open a gift that seems to open up even more anticipation, more excitement, more questions? In our home growing up, we were allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve. And of course, there were some presents under the tree that I was not allowed to open yet; so frustrating as a child. One Christmas Eve, I remember picking one present to open that seemed fairly large and fairly heavy, which seemed like a good pick, because as a child we assume that the bigger and heavier the better, didn’t we? Well I opened the present to discover that it was a package filled with batteries of every size and shape. And for the rest of the night, which was a long night, I wondered what those batteries were for, because when it comes to presents, timing is everything.
Have you ever been there? Have you ever been in that place on Christmas Eve where you are looking out the window of your home or office, hoping that the UPS truck arrives with that special present that you waited until the last minute to order? Maybe, I am the only one who has ever done that. And when the truck arrives, your heart begins to race and your mind begins to ease, because that special present has made it on time.
Because, when it comes to presents, timing is everything. There is something powerful when that special present that you spent so much time finding is opened at just the right time, in just the right place. There is something powerful when the timing goes off just as planned and we see the response that we had hoped for when that present is opened. Because, when it comes to presents, timing is everything.
And that is why it can be so devastating for us when the UPS truck does not arrive on time. That is why it can be so devastating when our presents are not received with the response that we had hoped for after all of the energy and effort that we placed into that present. That is why we can find ourselves watching with amazement as our children spend an entire day playing with the box that the present came in instead of the present that they said they so desperately wanted. That is why we can feel incredibly disappointed when that gift that was so desperately desired by someone ends up gathering dust in a closet only a few weeks after its arrival?
And we are all guilty of this, aren’t we? I mean for the vast majority of us, we do not even remember what or how many presents we received for Christmas last year, or who gave them to us. We have all been in that place where, despite all the efforts going into finding the right present to be opened at just the right time, that present really did not have the lasting impact that we thought that they would. And we have all been in that place where the presents that we thought would fulfill a desire and need in our lives ended up being unable to fill that need.
Because, when it comes to presents, while timing is everything, could it be that Christmas can become about the wrong kind of presents. You see, Christmas began not so that we could experience presents; Christmas began so that all of humanity would have the opportunity to experience God’s presence. Christmas is all about God revealing His presence in the most radical way imaginable, so that all of humanity could know that God was real and that God was present and active in the world.
You see God’s presence was desperately needed because we have a problem. Christmas is about the reality that God’s presence cannot and will not be present with selfishness and rebellion. Christmas is about God responding to the problem of selfishness and rebellion that created a void that separated humanity from God. Christmas is about God responding to the problem of selfishness and rebellion with a promise. A promise of His presence being delivered; a promise of His presence being delivered in time to provide an opportunity for the rescue all of humanity.
Because, when it comes to God’s presence, timing is everything. This week, we will see this reality revealed for us as we look at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in our Bibles called the book of Galatians.
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