Unto who?

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:11 ESV).

"Unto you." What unusual language. This is the message that the heavenly host declared to the shepherds watching their flocks at night. 

"Unto who?" The shepherds may have asked.

Instead, they said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made know to us" (Luke 2:15 ESV).

This child was born as a gift unto us, unto the whole world. Have you ever really looked to "see this thing that has happened?" Because this is a very special gift. It is a gift that we must individually decide to receive. And it is a gift that once received, calls us to be those who give in the same way. There are at least three words that help us understand this gift:

• A Sacrificial Gift. Jesus, the Son of God, gave up His heavenly status and stooped down to become a man. Born not in a king's palace, but in a stable. Not in a bed, but in a lowly manger filled with hay. Jesus left heaven's glory and took on man's garbage, becoming a sin sacrifice for us.

• A Relational Gift. God didn't send money. He didn't send a Christmas card. He sent His only begotten Son. Jesus was the fulfillment of the prophet Isaiah's word that spoke of the Messiah to come whose name would be "Immanuel," God with us. Jesus came to be with us. 

• An Incarnational Gift. Jesus is God in the flesh. This is what made the angels sing. Their King had become a man. They came as heavenly heralds proclaiming His entrance into this world. 

Have you received this gift that was given "unto you?" Having received it, are you giving gifts this Christmas that carry the same three attributes?

Are you giving sacrificially to your church and to those in need?

Are you giving your presence, instead of more presents, spending quality time with people who need a friend?

And are you telling them about Jesus? Are you acting as His body in this world, proclaiming that the real meaning of Christmas is that the Savior, Christ the Lord has been born unto us?