The Gift of Jesus

In the 1990 Christmas movie, Home Alone, Macaulay Culkin plays 8-year-old Kevin McCallister who is accidentally left home by himself while the rest of his family goes on Christmas vacation to France. In the movie, young Kevin is left to fend for himself. On top of all that, Kevin defends his house and outwits a couple of bungling robbers who keep trying to break into the McCallister home. The movie is a fun holiday classic to watch at Christmas time. But of course, the thing that makes it a comedy is that the premise of the film is based on something completely ridiculous, that an 8-year-old child can manage independent living while successfully thwarting burglars.

However, there is something else going on in the movie Home Alone that makes it worthwhile. All good films have lasting impact when they tell stories that are relatable. It should go without saying that an 8-year-old left home alone while the rest of the family flew off to France is not relatable for most people (hopefully not relatable for anyone). The part of the movie Home Alone that resonates with absolutely everyone is the way it helps us think about and understand family. Little Kevin McCallister has some difficult moments with his family as they are all packing for a trip to France; and in his anger Kevin says that he wishes his family would just disappear. It is the next morning that the rest of the family wakes up and heads off to the airport accidentally never waking Kevin up and mistakenly leaving Kevin behind at home all by himself.

Home Alone — the youngest character in the movie and the oldest character in the movie experience the exact same thing: desiring a family in which to belong

Because I tend to overanalyze movies, I think the most important scene of the entire film is a conversation that takes place between young Kevin McCallister and his neighbor old Mr Marley sitting in church on Christmas Eve. It’s there that Kevin realizes that even though his family can be difficult and he experiences struggles with his family relationships, in his heart he loves his family. What Kevin realizes is that having a family in which to belong is worth all the relationship challenges that come with it. Ironically—or as it turns out, very unironically—old Mr Marley has the exact same issue. The youngest character in the movie and the oldest character in the movie experience the exact same thing: desiring a family in which to belong. You are never too young or too old; the longing for family in which to belong is basic for every single person. That’s what the movie Home Alone is really about. It’s a good one; watch it this week if you can.

We are up to the final message in our series on the gifts of Christmas. Today we light the Christ candle on the advent table. It is the gift of Jesus himself that we celebrate on Christmas. But what is it about Jesus coming into the world that makes this a gift for all of us? Every week in this advent series we have been tracking with different passages in the book of Romans as a way of seeing the gifts of Christmas. Today once again we see a few verses from Romans. And today I am going to connect this reading with a very similar passage which also comes form the apostle Paul in the book of Galatians.

Romans 8:14–17 (NIV)

Romans 8:14–17 NIV

14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Galatians 4:4–7 (NIV)

Galatians 4:4–7 NIV

4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

salvation is not only backward-looking, it is also forward-looking

It is notable to me just how often the apostle Paul frames salvation in Christ within a forward looking direction, not just backwards. Often we may think of salvation as just backwards-looking. In order to be saved there is something we need saving from: lifeguards save people from drowning, first responders save people from serious car accidents, firemen save people from a burning building. We think of being saved in terms of what is behind us. And certainly to a degree our salvation in Christ is no different. In Christ we are saved from the guilt of our sins. We are saved from a punishment that we deserve as a consequence of our sinful ways. Yet, if this is the only way in which we think about the gift of Jesus at Christmas, I think there is something more we are missing.

Christmas gift bag

what it is we are saved for, into, towards

Perhaps you have had the experience of receiving a present at Christmas which contains several items. You dig into the tissue paper of a gift bag and pull something out; and the person who gave the present tells you to keep going, there is more. This is what Paul is doing with the gift of Jesus at Christmas. He is reminding us to keep going; there is more. Because Paul does not just think of salvation as looking backward—what it is we are saved from. Paul also thinks of salvation as looking forward—what it is we are saved for, into, towards, etc.

the gift of Jesus includes adoption into a covenant family

The gift of Jesus we see in these passages today is the gift of a family in which to belong. It is adoption into the covenant family of God which comes to us through Jesus. Faith in Jesus for justification from sin is the only requirement for coming into the community of God’s covenant family. The righteousness of Jesus given to the church by the grace of God through the sacrifice of Jesus is the only basis for connecting people with the family of God. Paul says this message over and over again in his New Testament letters, that we are saved by grace through faith.

our place in the covenant family of God depends entirely and only upon Jesus

All this comes as a reminder that your identity as a child of God is based entirely upon faith in Jesus. Your value and your worth before God has nothing at all to do with the kind of person you are. Rather, it has everything to do with the kind of person Jesus was. This is the point Paul makes over and over in his New Testament letters. Your place in the covenant family of God depends entirely and only upon Jesus. It is the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus which places you as a child of God.

This means you have nothing to prove. You do not have to convince God or anyone else here how good you are or how worthy you are to be a part of God’s church. There is not a single reason that anyone here should ever think that we do not belong. There is never a reason to hold back from being a part of God’s church because we feel like we have nothing valuable to offer. Because your place as a child of God in the covenant people of God has nothing at all to do with what it is you offer. Rather, it has everything to do with what Jesus has already given for you and for me. Own that identity you have been given by grace through faith. You are a child of God. No one can ever change that or take that away. You are here today because you belong to Jesus.

practical implication — live right now like a child of the heavenly Father—a coheir with Christ—called by God saved by grace through faith

baptism date

Now for a practical implication of this gift of covenant community we are given through Jesus. Open the gift. Put it on. Wear it. Live like a child of the heavenly Father—a coheir with Christ—called by God saved by grace through faith. Set this as your first and primary identity. The early church after the time of the apostles developed a habit of changing a person’s birthday to the date of their baptism. It set a mark in place on the life of that person which pointed to a new and different identity. Through Jesus we are made to be part of God’s family. We are adopted into his eternal covenant community. That is not just a someday future thing. Your part in the covenant family of God is here right now.

it is within the context of this covenant family that the Holy Spirit is working to shape our hearts and to conform us into the image of Christ

But hang on, then. This means we have to admit the same obvious reality that the characters in the movie Home Alone bring to mind. Kevin McCallister and old Mr Marley both realized that families can be complicated. We all know that; it resonates with every single one of us. Since living within the covenant community of God’s family does not wait to begin until some distant afterlife, we deal with the complications of pressing into this covenant family while also living in a broken world. The apostle Paul tells us that through Christ we are already part of this covenant family. And at the same time the apostle Paul writes letter after letter in the New Testament acknowledging and addressing the struggles and difficulties this covenant family is working through. True enough that families can come with some struggle. It can often be the case for us that families have times of being complicated and difficult. But like those characters from the movie Home Alone, may we realize that it is all worth it. Having a covenant family in which to belong can take some work. But it is within the context of this covenant family that the Holy Spirit is working to shape our hearts and to conform us into the image of Christ. It is here in the covenant family of Jesus that we continually learn how to live as coheirs with Christ.

Christ’s commitment to the gift he gives us is ongoing — we are continually enfolded more and more into his covenant community

May we as God’s covenant community of faith never stop living like that. May we always be pressing forward in faith knowing that we have been received into this family of God as a gift.