Long ago there lived in Persia (Iran) a wise and good king. He loved his people. He wanted to try to identify with  them and to know more about the hardships they suffered. Often he dressed in the clothes of a working man or beggar and went to the homes of the poor. No one whom he visited ever suspected he was their king.

One time he visited a very poor man who lived in a cellar. He ate the coarse food the poor man ate. He spoke cheerful, kind words to him. Then he left. Later he visited the poor man again and disclosed his identity by saying, “I’m your king!” How surprised the poor man was. The king thought the man would surely ask for some gift or favour, but he did not. Instead, he said, “You left your palace to visit me in this dark, dreary place. You ate the coarse food I ate. You brought gladness to my heart! To others you have given your rich gifts. To me you have given yourself!”

This simple allegory clearly and succinctly depicts the purpose of Christ’s coming at the celebration known as “Christmas”.

Yes! Jesus Christ is the King of Glory, who came not to give us rich gifts, but to give Himself for humanity. Thereby, He has given the greatest gift of all – eternal life.

From a human perspective, the road to salvation began when a virgin gave birth to a son. Seven hundred years before, the prophet Isaiah wrote: “A virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” The virgin Mary would conceive, not by the ordinary course of human reproduction, but rather by the miraculous, gracious influence of the Holy Spirit. Paul in the New Testament expresses this in the words, “God was manifest in the flesh.” So, of all that Christmas means, it ultimately means “God with us,” Immanuel. But there is more. It’s the wrapper that makes this gift so significant. I can remember how my mother used to tell me, “Try to save the paper! Don’t rip it; unwrap the gift carefully, we can save it for next year”. Same with ribbons and wrappings. She had a point. Beautiful wrapping paper is worth keeping, and in these days who can argue against recycling? Think about this! Instead of choosing to exhibit Himself in a showy, ostentatious way, He chose a less spectacular way, but oh, so much more personal way.

Of all that Christmas means, it ultimately means GOD WITH US, IMMANUEL! But there is still more!

It’s the wrapper that makes this gift so special. Christ came wrapped in the likeness of humanity. John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Hence He knows me, understands me and empathizes with me. He is not a stranger to my struggles; He knows my joys and sorrows. He is my “Advocate – Lawyer” representing me before the Father with an understanding heart, because He was wrapped in the likeness of humanity. The writer to the Hebrews expressed it this way: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:15,16)

As a little kid, I was known to snoop under the Christmas tree ahead of time. Not having the privilege of siblings, it was pretty obvious the gifts that were for me. I could tell by the designs on the paper. Wrapping paper with planes or trains or cars were usually concealing gifts for me. Wrappings on mum and dad’s gifts were usually just plain, colourful, but plain.

One glance at God’s gift and wrapping tells me that it holds something for me. Paul declares of Christ in Philippians 2:7,8 that He “made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!”

You see, the markings on God’s gift show Christ’s commitment to serve me, to save me. All the way to the cross – to the shedding of His blood. As a servant Christ becomes relevant to my need, providing freedom from the bondage of sin, death and hell and assurance of heaven gained!

I’m reminded today that we are all wrapped in some kind of paper. In fact, we spend most of our lives wrapping and rewrapping ourselves in clothes, cars, houses, positions, social networks and other symbols we think will enhance our appearance. Soon we will once again see beautiful, usually luxury vehicles pulled up in front of Christmassy scene, a mansion in the background, urging us to really make this Christmas special by giving a vehicle like the one shown to a worthy spouse or young adult son or daughter. But if the paper we choose is made only of these earthbound things, we have missed something vital about the meaning of Christmas. The fact that our Saviour wrapped Himself in the likeness as a servant carries very real implications for how I live my life.

If we have received into our hearts the Lord Jesus Christ, as God’s gift, we then need to wrap ourselves in the spirit of understanding, empathy, grace, kindness and sacrifice, just as loyal servants do. We who know Him as personal Saviour should wrap ourselves with Him, that we might bear His likeness to a weary, watching world.

It becomes clear that Paul begins His description of the Incarnation in Philippians 2 by saying, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” And that’s the challenge to each of us this Christmas!

“Recycle the wrapping paper” by giving ourselves as a gift to others. Like mum used to say, “Save the wrapping paper!” Good advice. When it comes to Christ, there is something terribly wrong with taking the Gift and throwing the wrapping away.