Christmas = Love

Over the holidays while watching The Muppet Christmas Carol with my family, a line in the song for the ghost of Christmas present caught my attention: “Where you find love, you find Christmas”.

How profound. Christmas is a time associated with family. Being with family equates being with those who accept us for who we are and love us regardless. I think this concept of where you find love, you find Christmas is why the Hallmark Christmas movies are so popular. Each movie features people finding love at Christmas. We all desire being loved for who we are.

The true Christmas story is the ultimate love story. “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). The purpose of Jesus’s birth, which we celebrate at Christmas, was to become our savior by dying as a sacrifice for our wrong doing and returning to life. “Greater Love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friend.”(John 15:13).

“See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God” (1 John 3:1). Wait. Children of God? How does that happen? “But when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order that He might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Gal. 4:4-5). God chose us. He adopted us. I remember in elementary school being divided into teams for physical Ed classes. Team captains were designated and they would select their respective team. I was never athletic so was usually one of the last to be picked. Occasionally, however, one of my friends would be captain and would select me early because of our friendship. I remember that feeling of being wanted, being selected. “Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” (Eph. 1:4-5).

Because of Christmas, because of Jesus being born as a baby, we are able to receive adoption by God and become one of His children. Loved equally by God. Accepted as we are and loved by Him. Loved unconditionally.

“Where you find love, you find Christmas”