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The Living Word
By: Dr Phyllis J. Arno
“ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” John 1:1
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” John 1:14
John 3:16 tell us:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
God has given us a very precious gift, HIS ONLY SON.
This Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, let’s ponder on some of the gifts that Jesus has given us:
The gift of eternal life to all that ask – John 3:16
The gift of freedom from sin—Gal. 5:1a
The gift of access to God – Colossians 2:10b
The gift of wisdom – I Corinthians 1:30
The gift of joy – John 15:11
The gift of righteousness – Galatians 2:16b
The gift of Peace with God– Romans 5:1 14:27
The gift of His strength – Philippians 4:13
Matthew 2:11 tells us that wise men came to worship Jesus, and they brought him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
God wants us to give Jesus our love and adoration. If, in your heart, you went to the manger and held baby Jesus, I know that your heart would overflow with love for Him.
Once we have been to the manger and held baby Jesus and we find that we have this deep love in our hearts for Him, I believe God wants us to open our hearts and let Jesus flow through us to help minister to others.
Whatever you do for others is a gift for Jesus—if you do it with love in your heart.
Jesus said in Matthew 25:40:
“And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, you have done it unto me.”
Have you considered what gifts you have that you could give to Jesus this Christmas?
For the CHOLERIC they could use their gift of leadership to organize Christmas events such as church plays, Cantatas, Christmas luncheons, Christmas meals for those that are alone or unable to attend the Christmas events, etc.
For the MELANCHOLY they could use their gift of creativity to make gifts for shut-ins, write Christmas programs, build props for the social events, etc.
For the PHLEGMATIC they could use their gift of peacemaking to help ensure that the Christmas events run smoothly and without incident by paying attention to the minutest details, etc.
For the SANGUINE they could use their gift of sunshine—bringing happiness and joy to all those around them by making people feel welcome to the Christmas events. They would also do great performing in the Christmas programs!
For the SUPINE they could use their gift of serving by helping with the preparations for the Christmas events such as decorating, setting the tables,
making casseroles, meat dishes and delicious desserts, etc.
In addition to the above, all the temperaments can be lifting the Christmas activities up in prayer.
We can all present ourselves as a living sacrifice to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ not only at Christmas but all year long.