I've noticed that the one thing everyone thinks of around Christmas is money. Whether people step into a church or not all season, if they're participating in Christmas at all, they are out shopping. They are considering, more than at any other time of the year, how much things cost. Many are surprised at high prices and disappointed in how much they've spent. All are looking for a good deal. Some people complain about this. "Christmas is all about money. It's a commercial holiday." We've all heard it. Many of us have said it.
What I've not heard in relation to the money focus of the season is how appropriate it may be. Everything having to do with Christ is costly beyond imagination. His birth, life, and death are all amazing examples of a good deal for believers. Jesus pays the high price and we get heaven and everything in this life that leads up to it. In His ministry, Jesus talked about money and hell more than any other topics. Both point to value. How we handle money teaches us much about what we really believe. What we believe about heaven and hell flows from what we think is needed in terms of value to stay out of hell and get into heaven. Some think a good life earns us credit with God. Christians believe that Christ's life and death alone earns us, who trust in Him, credit with God.
PRAYER: Lord, help me, even as I shop, to think about true value this Advent and Christmas. The birth of Christ represents an expenditure I cannot begin to imagine. What you gave us at Christmas is the most expensive gift ever. Help me realize this. Help me believe in You, Lord Jesus, as the One who really has paid the price for my sins and set me free. No one else has done or can do this for me. Amen.
TOMORROW: Advent and Cats
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