God’s Indescribable Gift
2 Corinthians 9:15
Copyright 2006 by Bruce
Goettsche December 23, 2006[1]
Over the course of several days, most of us will receive a number of different gifts. Some will be practical (clothes, tools, appliances, and business related items). Others will be fun: games, electronic gadgets, and do-dads for our various hobbies. Few of these gifts would be called indescribable. Probably we have described them pretty well so that our loved ones knew exactly what we wanted!
There are some gifts we might say initially are indescribable. There are gifts sometimes you open but don’t know what they are. You open the gift and say, “Wow! Isn’t that something!”
There are special gifts that have deep meaning that you
cannot put into words like the gift of having your child soldier home from
service in
How do you describe the indescribable? How do you describe the color blue or love, or the deep peace God gives to you in a time of crisis? How do you describe what Christmas really mean? Words fail us at times like this. Year after year I preach on the happenings of Christmas and still know that I have not come close to conveying what Christmas really means.
In 2 Corinthians 9:15 Paul wrote, “Thanks be to God for his
indescribable gift.” The context of the
verse is Paul was encouraging the church in
Let’s reflect on this statement, “thanks be to God for his indescribable gift”. What is it about this gift that makes it indescribable?
IT INVOLVES ONE GREATER THAN WE CAN GRASP
One of the reasons the gift is indescribable is because it involves one who is greater than we can grasp. The Bible tells us that Jesus was God become man to dwell among us. For most people, that is a claim that sounds like mythology. It’s a nice thought but absolutely ridiculous. It is like saying someone is Superman or Batman.
However, Jesus is different. The gospel record shows that Jesus claimed to be God (and everyone knew He was claiming to be God because they picked up stones to kill him for blasphemy), He claimed the authority to forgive sin; He administered healing to those who were deaf, blind, crippled, and deeply disturbed. He showed resolute calm as He was railroaded and tortured in death. His followers claimed to have seen Him, talked with Him, eaten with Him, and they professed that they had been instructed by Him for a period of 40 days following His “resurrection” three days after his death. He told us that if we believed in Him we would “live even though we die”.
This was no ordinary man. The idea of Jesus being God may sound incredible, but you have to admit, the facts make a pretty good case for the fact that Jesus was indeed God become man to walk among us. I’m sure you’ve heard this great piece on the uniqueness of Jesus.
One Solitary Life
He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in an obscure village. He worked in a carpenter shop until he was thirty, and then for three years he was an itinerant teacher.
He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never owned a home. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never travelled, except in his infancy, more than two hundred miles from the place where he was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompanies greatness. He had no credentials but himself.
While he was still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies. He went through a mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. His executioners gambled for the only piece of property he had on earth, his seamless robe. When he was dead, he was taken down from the cross and laid in a borrowed grave through the courtesy of a friend.
Twenty centuries have come and
gone, and today he is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of all
human progress. I am well within the mark when I say that all the armies that
ever marched, all the navies that ever were built, all the parliaments that
ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected
the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has this one solitary life.
[by Dr. James Allen Francis]
Jesus is indescribable because He defies our
categories. He was uniquely God and
GOD’S GIFT IF INDESCRIBABLE BECAUSE OF THE BLESSING IT
BRINGS
We are blessed in many ways in life. Our children fill our hearts with life and love. We have friends that stand by us in good times and bad. We know a measure of abundance that makes us the envy of the rest of the world. These are great blessings but they are nothing compared to what God has given us in Christ.
Jesus makes it possible
I know that list may not sound as good as the newest Video gaming systems or a big screen television or whatever else you have on your Christmas list. But let me venture to say that long after these flashy toys are obsolete, what Jesus gives will still be fresh and precious. In fact, almost everything the world gives us will decrease in value. What God gives us through Christ continues to increase in value. At the end of your life it will not matter whether or not you get to play one more game of Madden football, it will matter intensely whether or not you have an assurance of eternal life.
The problem with the blessings of Jesus is that we don’t really know what they all mean. They are indescribable. They are incomprehensible. They are too wonderful for words. Robert Murray McCheyne wrote a hymn in which he looked over the benefits of God’s salvation and then ahead to heaven, saying:
When this passing world is done,
When has sunk yon glaring sun,
When we stand with Christ in glory,
Looking o’er life’s finished story,
Then, Lord, shall I fully know,
Not till then, how much I owe.
When I stand before the throne
Dressed in beauty not my own,
When I see Thee as Thou art,
Love Thee with unsinning heart,
Then, Lord, shall I fully know,
Not till then, how much I owe.
RESPONDING TO THE INDESCRIBABLE
Since Jesus is a unique individual who gave a unique gift, it only stands to reason that a unique response is required. In the book of Romans God tells us how He would like us to respond to His indescribable gift.
if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is
Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be
saved.” (Romans 10:9)
In this simple verse Paul tells us what God is looking for as a
response to his gift. Don’t
misunderstand what Paul is saying. Paul
is not saying you must simply say some “magic words” and you will be
saved. No! It is much more than that.
We must confess
with our mouth that “Jesus is Lord”. In Paul’s day, to confess, “Jesus is Lord” could get you killed. In saying “Jesus is Lord” these early
believers were declaring that Jesus is the one who rules their life. They were proclaiming that He is the one who calls
the shots, not Caesar or anyone else. Christians were taken to the Lion’s Den and
tortured because of this confession. To the true believer there could be only
one King, Lord, and Master and that King is Jesus.
God is not looking for you to make some empty declaration. What God wants is for us to acknowledge the
place of Christ in our lives. When we confess that Jesus is Lord we are not
simply repeating words, we are making a declaration that denotes a change of
ownership.
Let me draw a contrast for you.
You can make a declaration that you are a Cub fan or a Cardinal
fan. This declaration will cause you to
be happy or sad when your team plays. It
may make you the brunt of jokes or give you a reason to celebrate. However, this declaration really doesn’t
change your life. When all is said and
done, you know that it is all just a game.
Whether your team wins or loses will not ultimately have any real impact
on you at all.
Compare this declaration with two people who stand before a Pastor and
profess their love and commitment to each other. It’s a different kind of declaration isn’t
it? What these people declare will impact all they do from that moment on.
Which kind of confession are you making when you declare that “Jesus is
Lord”? Are you simply a fan or are you
making a commitment? The indescribable
love of God demands and deserves a commitment.
We Must Believe in our Heart. The
second thing Paul says is that we must “believe in our heart that God raised
Him from the dead”. Usually we think of believing as something that we do with
our head. When we believe something with
our heart, we believe it to the depth of our being.
Paul tells us that we must have a deep belief about the resurrection of
Jesus. There are people who “believe in Jesus” but do not believe in the Jesus
of the Bible. The Jesus of the Bible was
born to poor conditions, was crucified as a sacrifice for sin, and came back to
life three days later. This is the only Jesus
who can change our lives. What we
believe about Jesus is important.
It is not enough to simply understand the facts about Jesus; we must be
willing to stand on those facts. We must
be willing to bet our lives on the truth of those facts.
Suppose you wanted to be a skydiver.
(Why you would want such a thing I can’t imagine). At what point are you really a skydiver?
Surely it is only the last one that makes you a skydiver. Now keep this in mind when you ask: “What
does it really mean to be a follower of Jesus Christ?” Is it when you find Jesus attractive, start
learning stuff, or even when you like hanging around with Christians? Is it when you “pay the fee” by giving a “nod
to God”. You attend worship now and
again, you get baptized, and maybe even join a church? Or is the true believer the one who actually puts
their hope and confidence in Christ and begins to follow Him in every element
of their living?
I hope you clearly see the answer.
Even though the first two groups sound good, it is only the last group
that believes in the way God calls us to believe.
CONCLUSION
So here we are at another Christmas Candlelight service. We sing about the Lord coming. We sing about adoring Him. We acknowledge that He is the Savior of the world. It is an incredible story. It is an indescribable gift. The one and only Son of God became man to give His life for us. He came to rescue us from the dead end existence we were living. He came to turn us away from depending on the things and circumstances of the world for our happiness. He came to give us new life.
God has done His part and He has done it excellently. The question now is: what will you do? Jesus stands before you with open arms. He promises you a new beginning, eternal life, the strength, wisdom, and direction that only He can give. How will you respond? Will you simply stand and stare at Him? Will you turn away? Will you smile and laugh and clap your hands in appreciation? Or will you run to those open arms so you can be swept up by the One who loves you? That’s the question of Christmas.
I know some of you have objections. You somehow feel that this offer of salvation and new life doesn’t include you. Please hear the words of Jesus: “Whoever comes to me, I will not cast away.” These are His words, not mine. He says “whoever” . . . that would include you. His arms are open to you regardless of your past. The sin you can’t forget is the sin He is willing to forgive. The hurt you’ve caused is the hurt He came to earth to pay for with His life. The mistakes you’ve made are swallowed up in His grace. No matter what you past, if you run to Him, He will wrap His strong arms around you, fill you with new life, give you a new perspective, help you to change the things you hate about yourself, and He will lead you to the life that never ends.
Christmas is anchored to history, but it is also about today. Christmas is about Jesus born in a manger, but also about Jesus being born in you. Of all the gifts you could receive this Christmas, this is the best. It is an incredible gift. It is a life-changing gift. It is an indescribable gift. Don’t leave it under the tree.
Copyright 2006 by Bruce
Goettsche December 23, 2006[2]