THE GIFTS OF CHRISTMAS: Unwrap LOVE // a conversation about REALLY examining LOVE

What if the gifts we unwrap each Christmas could teach us something profound about love? Join me, Tosha Williams, in this story of my daughter Annalarie, whose childhood curiosity about our family's Christmas gifts is a metaphor for us to understand love. Let's examine real love versus the counterfeit versions often presented to us. Listen in, reflect on love in your own life (using the following guide), then be encouraged to let this devotion lead you into talking about love with your family and friendships this Christmas season.

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“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His faithful love endures forever.” Psalm 136:1 CSB

SEEK HIM: Devotion is Meeting with God in Our Own Lives!  The world offers all kinds of gifts labeled “love,” but God’s faithful love is entirely unique. As we look at “The Gifts of Christmas," let’s "unwrap" God's gift of love and seek Him about how He loves us!

• WHAT:  What is God saying through this Scripture? God is good and gives really good gifts. We can see His generosity in so many ways. God’s greatest gift is His love that never stops. The people of Israel rejoiced in this, as the leaders would proclaim "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good," and then name a way God showed His love. After each gift, the people would respond:  "His faithful love endures forever."  ~ What are some gifts you’ve received that have stopped working? Name some ways God has helped you. What can you thank God for right now?
• WHY:  Why does this Scripture matter? While other gifts wear out or break, God’s love always lasts. Scripture says, “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life…” (Psalm 23:6a NIV). Every single day, God’s love follows us, not just at Christmas, but always. Long after even the best presents are forgotten, the gift of God’s love will still be ours. ~ Can you imagine fifty years from now? What does it feel like to know that even years from today, God will still be loving you? 
• HOW: How does God want us to respond to this truth? Scripture reminds us, “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children, and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us…” (Ephesians 5:1-2 NIV). Because God loves us, we can love others. As we unwrap His gift of love in our own lives, we can share it with others, at Christmas and always! ~ What about God’s example stands out to you? What is one way you "walk in the way of love"? 

SPEAK HIM: Discipleship is Making God Known to Others!  As we lead others in Devotion Driven Discipleship, Psalm 136 is an example for conversations about God's love. With those entrusted to you, share different ways He's shown you His love. After each example, repeat the refrain, “His faithful love endures forever.” This is a way to “Seek Him Speak Him”!

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The Family Disciple Me ministry exists to catalyze devotion driven discipleship in our homes and around the world. We believe that discipleship starts with a conversation, and FDM provides free, easily-accessible, biblical resources to encourage these meaningful conversations  along life's way. Sign up through our website to be "the first to know" about upcoming releases and resources (including the FDM App - coming soon!!!) You can also follow Family Disciple Me on social media. 

Family Disciple Me  is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ministry, and all donations are tax deductible. More information, blogs, statement of faith and contact info can be found at familydiscipleme.org 

Transcript

Unwrapping the Gift of Love

Speaker 1 0:00

I imagine that every family probably has one of those kids who just can't wait for Christmas to open their presents. They're the sneaky ones who are looking at everything under the tree, examining the name tags and figuring out a way to get into their presents in the days and weeks before Christmas arrives. We had one of those in our family. Her name is Anna Lurie. And the thing about Anna Lurie she didn't just examine what her gifts were, she liked to look into what everyone else's gifts were as well. She's all grown up now, but we still laugh about those holidays when Little Miss Nosy was all up in the business of Christmas, investigating the gifts well before it was time to open them. That might have been kind of annoying as a parent back then, but years later these are such fond memories for our family and well.

Speaker 1 1:02

As I think about Anna-Laurie and her insatiable desire to open Christmas presents and investigate them, I also think about our next conversation in the Gifts of Christmas series and in this one I actually think that perhaps we should all be a little bit like her when it comes to our next gift. Now I know you've got a lot going on right now. If you're like me, you're busy figuring out just the right presents, wrapping them, making sure that all the details of your family's gifts are just right, making sure you've not forgotten anyone or anything. There's a lot wrapped up in gifts, quite literally. But along the way with the Family Disciple Me ministry, we've been looking at what we're calling the gifts of Christmas, and in the past conversations we've already considered the gifts of hope and peace.

Speaker 1 2:01

Well, now, in the midst of all the holiday craziness, especially as it gets closer to Christmas, I'd like for us to take just a few minutes and unwrap yet another gift the gift of love. Now, this gift may seem like a given, like it's a no-brainer, but thing is, there are countless gifts in this world that are labeled gifts of love. In this one, I think that we should all be a little bit like my. Anna-larie was unwrapping these presents and investigating them. So stay with me for a moment. I'm going to cue the podcast intro and then let's take a few minutes to look around the Christmas tree and see what God wants to show us about the gift of love.

Speaker 2 2:54

Welcome to the Family Disciple Me podcast. If you have a real relationship with Jesus, then you're in the right place to be encouraged, challenged and blessed as you seek Him, speak Him. The mission of the Family Disciple Me ministry is to inspire devotion-driven discipleship, which is something we believe every Christ follower can do. Discipleship starts with a conversation, so let's get going with that right now.

Speaker 1 3:23

We live in a world where love is confusing. Yes, christmas is all about love. God so loved the world that he gave his son. But let's face it these days, there are so many descriptions of love, there are so many definitions of love. There are so many definitions of love. There are so many assumptions about love. We all know in our minds that Christmas is about love, and yet in our world there are so many other things that are offered up as real love as well. Because of this, I believe it's really important for us to not just take a casual glance at what is called love, not just to say that what we're giving or receiving is love and call it good.

Speaker 1 4:15

The Bible tells us in Romans 12, verse 9, to be a bit more proactive than that. This verse says proactive than that. This verse says let love be genuine, abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good. So right now, let's spend some time with the Lord and seek him in his word about this gift of love. Let's examine the types of love. Let's consider what's real or fake. Let's inspect what's genuine or not, what's quality or what's counterfeit. Let's unwrap love. In so doing. This is how we can abhor or get rid of what is evil or not real love, and that we can hold fast to the love that's good and that we can hold fast to the love that's good. So when we're trying to figure that out figure out what type of love is real and what type of love is counterfeit we have to decide whose standard are we going by. I believe and since you're here with me in this podcast, I'm assuming that you believe that the true standard for love is found in scripture.

Speaker 1 5:25

And while there are so many scripture verses about love, but one passage in particular has just captivated me this year, and that is Psalm 136. This psalm has 26 verses, and the unique thing about this chapter of scripture is that the second half of every verse in this psalm says the exact same thing. It says His faithful love endures forever. This psalm is traditionally called the Great Hallel and it is a psalm of praise, thanking God for so many things that he's done, but it especially highlights the fact that his love is faithful, his love is enduring and that it lasts forever. So when we're trying to decide who sets the standard for love, well, I think we've got to start with the type of love that doesn't stop. God's love lasts forever, and not only that, god's love isn't limited. God's love is for everybody. You know the verse John 3, 16,. For God so loved who, he loved the world. And because his love lasts forever, he still loves every single person.

Speaker 1 6:46

So as we come into this particular devotion-driven discipleship conversation, let's start with those two attributes of love. When we decide whose standard of love we're going to pay attention to and live by, when we decide what worldview we're going to follow and live by, let's make sure that it reaches this standard that God himself sets, that his love doesn't stop and that his love is for everyone. Personally, I have not found any other worldview, religion or person that reaches that standard. So I'm going to pay attention to what God says in the Bible about love, and nowhere does he more clearly define love than in the famous chapter 1 Corinthians 13.

True Love Versus Counterfeit Gifts

Speaker 1 7:35

This chapter tells us specifically what counterfeit love looks like and what real love looks like. I encourage you to open up your Bible to 1 Corinthians 13 and just spend a few moments there. But as a way of highlighting it, let me remind you that 1 Corinthians 13 says that counterfeit or fake love well, it's envious, it's boastful, it's rude, it's self-centered, it's irritable, it's boastful, it's rude. It's self-centered, it's irritable, it's resentful, it celebrates sin, it's conditional, it's short-lived. So if someone presents to you or to your kids, or to the world, whomever, a package labeled love that has these attributes, well, according to the Bible, it's not love, these attributes Well, according to the Bible, it's not love. But then, on the other hand, this chapter tells us what real love, god's kind of love, is, the kind of love that's true, the kind of love that's genuine, the kind of love that we want to hold on to. Real love is patient, it's kind and truthful.

Speaker 1 8:41

There's so much to be said about every attribute of what love is in 1 Corinthians 13, but that's not the point of this podcast. I'll leave that to you to go do some further research and to spend some time seeking the Lord about what he wants to say to you about those. But right now, my hope is to get you to look at this just a little bit differently than perhaps ever before. We've briefly talked about who sets the standard for love. God is the standard of love. His faithful love endures forever. He loves the whole world. And then we've talked about some of the attributes of love that 1 Corinthians 13, not to mention so many other passages of scripture tell us about. But with all that in mind, I want you to imagine a scenario with me.

Speaker 1 9:29

This is a word picture I've been thinking about. That's been helpful for me in my understanding of love and I'm hopeful that it will be helpful to you and then for all of us, as we talk about love with those that God's entrusted to us. So imagine with me that you're home by yourself one wintry afternoon. All the Christmas decorations are up, there's Christmas music playing and you're just enjoying time being there by yourself, thinking through the holidays and meandering through the house, and all of a sudden you hear the doorbell ring. So you go to the door. You're curious about who it is, what it is. You answer the door and nobody's there. But you look down and on your patio, there on your porch, it's covered with presents, absolutely filled up with presents. You open the screen door and you kind of peek out because, well, you want to see who dropped it off. Is there a car going down the street, or was the Amazon delivery truck just here? Or you don't see anybody. So you glance back down at all these gifts that are sitting there and you notice, upon further inspection, that on every single one of them there's an exquisite label that says a gift of love. Well, on the outside, every single one of them there's an exquisite label that says a gift of love. Well, on the outside, every single one of these is beautiful. They're wrapped in these beautiful boxes that have lids and they're tied with beautiful bows. And well, you think these must be for my family, this must be for us. You're so excited, because who doesn't like more presents for Christmas? So you load them up in your arms and bring them inside.

Speaker 1 11:07

Well, the rest of the afternoon, your curiosity just grows and grows, because you're wondering what are these gifts of love that have been delivered to my family? This is where you become a little bit like my Anna-Laurie. And well, this is where I become a little bit like Anna-Laurie too, because we realize these packages aren't just tied up with paper and taped together with that invisible tape that'll show if you open it. No, no, no. These are those kind of gifts that are in beautiful cardboard boxes, that are not held together by tape and paper, but that are held together by bows. And well, nobody will know if you take the bow off. So you decide to sit down next to these presents. After all, you have some time before anybody else in the family comes home. Nobody's going to know if you take a peek.

Speaker 1 12:00

So you sit down and well, you grab the first present and you notice that the name tag is for your teenager. Well, on the side it says a gift of love. So you're so excited, what's there for your teenager? And so you gently untie the bow so that, respectfully, you can put it back together Nobody will notice. And you lift the lid off and you look down inside and you're stunned.

Speaker 1 12:24

Sitting there in the box is a brand new phone. How cool is that? A beautiful gift of love. You pick it up, you glance at it, you admire the color of it and then you turn it on. But immediately you're horrified because the screensaver is pornography. You're like me, you're a nosy parent. So you keep thumbing through the phone and looking onto the photos and you realize that it is completely full of just egregious pictures and pornography and things that you never want your teenager to be looking at. You throw it back in the box and you don't even bother tying the bow back on it. You push it aside and think who in the world calls that love? And just as quickly as you think that you know that that's what the world calls love, just because the exquisite label on the package says, a gift of love doesn't mean that it's real love, that's like God's love.

Speaker 1 13:20

Well, you throw that package aside and you decide you want to investigate and see what's in the other packages, what exactly is coming into your home, into your life, into your family. So you pick up the next package. This one is little, and as you gently take off the bow of this one and lift the lid off, you notice that there's a wallet inside. That's interesting. And you lift out the wallet and you notice that it has a blank check in it along with a note, and the note says I want to cover your debt for, and then says exactly what debt is being covered.

Speaker 1 13:58

You sit back for a moment and you think about the fact that you had no way to pay this debt on your own, but this person is willing to pay this debt for you, no strings attached. This is amazing. This is something you had hoped for. This is absolutely overwhelming. And well, you're mindful of the fact that true love covers the payment for debts. That's the kind of love that God has for us. He covers the debt, he pays the price, he bears our burdens. And this gift, this wallet, wow, that's a gift of love and you're so struck by the sacrifice of that person and you think, wow, that's a gift worth keeping, that is a gift of love when somebody pays a debt that you cannot pay for yourself. That's sacrificial love.

Speaker 1 14:53

You close the wallet, you set it back down inside, you put the lid back on the box. You gently and respectfully tie that bow back together and you put the lid back on the box. You gently and respectfully tie that bow back together and you put it underneath the Christmas tree. Because this gift, unlike the other one, this gift is real love. It doesn't just have the label a gift of love on it. It is actually loving according to God's standard, according to the standard in Scripture loving according to God's standard, according to the standard in scripture.

Speaker 1 15:26

Well, having received that amazing gift, now you're a little bit more optimistic again. So you pick up another gift and you bring it close. It's a really big present. It's got a magnificent bow on top and well, because it has a lid as well, you gently undo the bow and you lift the lid off and you find inside this gift that you have been wanting so much for your family. Like this is something that you've had your eyes on, that you have not been able to purchase to get for yourself. You're so excited so you lift it out of the box, but then underneath you find an empty, blank thank you card.

Discerning True Love Amid Gifts

Speaker 1 16:08

And although this gift had the label a gift of love, you suddenly realize that there was nothing really loving about this gift Because, even though it was amazing and something you've been wanting, the person who gave it to you was expecting a thank you note. So much so that they left the empty note in your box, already addressed and stamped. You just need to write your thank you note and all of a sudden, as you're sitting there, you realize that this gift that at first appearance looks so amazing and is exactly what you want, it's not a gift of love at all because it comes with expectations. And you realize that, according to 1 Corinthians 13, this is not love. Love isn't resentful, love isn't irritable, love isn't rude. And you're pretty sad about that because, although this gift could have been the most amazing gift of love, you realize that it's just a present. Sadly, you set that one aside. You're not sure what you're going to do with it because, well, when it comes with strings, you just don't really want to keep it With that all afternoon long, you continue working your way through the gifts, one present at a time.

Speaker 1 17:18

Continue working your way through the gifts, one present at a time. Remember, they all have the same label on the outside. Every one of them has that exquisite tag that says a gift of love, and different people that you love are the recipients of these gifts that you're looking at, that you're examining, that, you're inspecting Some of these gifts. Well, they are the most kind gifts that you've ever seen. Some of these gifts are so true, some of these gifts are so valuable and genuine and lasting. Some of these gifts you realize your family members are going to be able to cherish and hold on to the rest of their lives, like God's love that lasts forever. And yet there's other gifts in that pile that's coming into your home, gifts that are labeled a gift of love that you know, without a doubt, ain't love at all. So enough of that scenario. I think you get the point scenario. I think you get the point.

Speaker 1 18:23

It's important for us who are Christ followers to not just casually accept what's called love as love. I believe that it honors love and, what's more, it honors the God who is love, the God who created love, the God who gives faithful love that lasts forever, the God who loves the whole entire world. It honors him when, according to his standard of love, we examine the gifts of love that come to us, that come to those entrusted to us, and see whether or not they're actually true love according to his standard. Just because it's labeled love doesn't mean that it's real, genuine, quality or true. We have to examine, we have to be well, a little bit like my Anna-Larie getting into those gifts that are called love to see if they actually are love. I think that this is the most powerful devotion-driven discipleship conversation to have, and really it's not just one conversation, this is an ongoing conversation that we can have with those entrusted to us.

Speaker 1 19:37

My hope is that, with this word picture, god will use that, by the power of his spirit, to help you understand and explain love better in your context, in your scenario, in your family, in your relationships, where you can actually go to the word of God. You can hold up God and his word as the standard for love and examine what's being presented to you as love to see whether or not it's real or fake. Okay, so I know that this episode has gone on a little bit longer than usual. And well, you've got a lot to do, just like I do. But I have one more thought I want to give you because, going back to that scenario sitting on your living room floor unwrapping gifts, there's one more and it's a.

Speaker 1 20:30

It's a small gift, it doesn't seem to be that big of a deal, but you gently untie this bow and you take the lid off and inside you see straw and you see wood and you see a thorn and you see a cross and you see a bloodstain and you see a stone, and you look at these things and you think that doesn't look like love at all. But then you pause, because love isn't defined by what the world calls love. You've chosen to believe that love is defined by what God and his word says about love, and you know that this is the season that God sent his only son because he loved us. God sent his only son because he loved us and that son came and was born in a barn that was surely surrounded by straw and dirt. He was laid in a manger that was probably made out of wood, wood that was probably rough, had some splinters in it. You know that love led Jesus to the cross where he spilled his blood. You know that that spilling of his blood led to his death and his burial in a tomb that was blocked with a stone, but you also know the end of the story, because love always triumphs. God's love lasts forever and Jesus arose, and because of his love that God so loved the world, that each of us who will receive his gift of love can have everlasting life. That is the gift of love, that is the gospel.

Speaker 1 22:23

So, friend, I encourage you spend some time with the Lord about this. Don't just take my word for it. Get into scripture, listen to his voice, seek him, unwrap and examine the gift of love and go where he leads you, into these scriptures, into these passages, into these explanations, and then, as you seek him, turn around and speak him into the life of someone or those someones that he's entrusted to you. Oh, friend, give thanks to the Lord trusted to you. Oh friend, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His faithful love endures forever. So now go be encouraged, enjoy this Christmas season Until next time, god bless.

Speaker 2 23:16

Thanks for joining us in this podcast episode. You can find the matching conversation guide in the show notes. To get the latest updates about the Family Disciple Me ministry, as well as word about our soon-to-be-released app, sign up to be the first to know at familydisciplemeorg. Also, if you enjoyed this podcast, help us get the word out by leaving us a review on your favorite podcast platform. God bless you, friend. Now go seek Him, speak Him.