English Sermon

- English Sermon

- 12/21/2025
Christmas Sunday Worship Service

Romans 6:23
“Christmas Gift”
- Introduction
Hallelujah!
I welcome everyone who has come to our Christmas service in the name of the Lord.
Let's exchange Christmas greetings with the person next to you. Merry Christmas!
If you meet a Spanish friend, say "Feliz Navidad," and if you meet a French friend, say "Joyeux Noël."
Everyone likes Christmas, right? There are very few people who dislike Christmas.
There's even a Christmas carol called "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year."
The song says that the Christmas season is the best time of the year. Why is that?
Because students are on vacation and having fun, business people are at their busiest, families who live far apart come together, and it's a time to laugh and share with friends.
I also have fond memories of staying up all night at church with my friends on Christmas Eve during my school days, and I really miss those times.
We played all night, and then went caroling in the early morning.
I remember being so tired during the actual Christmas service that I couldn't stay awake.
Back then, I was so immature and only cared about having fun, but now I've become a pastor, all thanks to God's grace.

And one thing you can't leave out when it comes to Christmas is gifts.
Christmas decorations often include gift boxes.
In fact, Santa Claus is a grandfather who gives gifts, isn't he?
So, I asked Chat GPT for fun about what makes a good or bad Christmas gift.
I'll share the results. First, I'll introduce the Top 4 Worst Presents.
4. Clothes that don't fit, 3. Items you already have at home, 2. Gifts that don't suit your taste.
And the number one worst gift is a gift that can't be exchanged because there's no receipt. Please keep this in mind when you're giving gifts.
Now, I'll tell you the Top 3 Best Presents.
Number 3 is practical items, that is, gifts that can be used. The second place is gift certificates, gift cards.
And the highly anticipated first place is cash. Cash is said to be the best gift for people of all ages.
- ChatGPT seems quite smart, doesn't it?

1. God's Gift: Eternal Life in Jesus Christ
But do you know that God also gave us a gift on Christmas?
Christmas is the day God gave us the greatest gift.
What is that gift?
Verse 23, latter half: "...the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
In fact, it's easy to think of the word "gift" only in terms of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but the original meaning of "gift" is simply a present.
That's why the English Bible translates God's gift as "the gift of God."
That's right. The gift God gave us is eternal life. Eternal Life, living forever.
In fact, humans were originally created in God's image, eternal beings like God.
However, due to the sin of Adam and Eve, the ancestors of humanity, all people became subject to death.
Isn't death the most frightening thing for humans?
Now, with the advancement of medicine and science, we live in an era where people can live up to 120 years.
But still, everyone will eventually die.
But God gave us eternal life. And He gave it as a gift.
The fact that He gave it as a gift means that there is no price we have to pay.

How wonderful this news is!
If you think about a gift, from the recipient's perspective, it's definitely free.
However, from the giver's perspective, a price must be paid.
So, from the giver's perspective, a gift is never free.
Imagine you're giving a gift to someone.
You pay money to buy the gift and give it to the other person for free, but the gift itself isn't free.
It's the same with God. God paid a price to give us the gift of eternal life.
That price is His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. - That's why today's passage also speaks of "eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Through Jesus, we are saved from sin and death and receive eternal life as a gift.
Christmas is the day Jesus came to this earth to pay the price for this gift.
Christmas is truly the season of gifts, isn't it?
The reason stores are so crowded is mostly because of gifts.
But the most precious Christmas gift is eternal life in Jesus Christ.
I hope you will all receive this gift of eternal life from God.

2. Why is it a gift?
You might be wondering:
We are the only creatures created in God's image, and even secular people say that humans are the highest of all creation, so why did God give us salvation as a gift?
Isn't humanity a remarkable being?
When we say that humans are the highest of all creation, the word "highest" means the wisest and most intelligent.
"Highest" means intelligent and wise, and "of all creation" means the best, the most outstanding.
In fact, aren't humans the ones who govern the world that God created?
Considering human capabilities, they are amazing.
We build skyscrapers, fly in the sky, and now we're trying to go to the moon and Mars.
Even smartphones are amazing. These are all inventions created by humans.

But why did God pay such a tremendous price to give us eternal life as a gift? The reason is that we cannot obtain eternal life through our own abilities.
No matter how hard we try, no matter how much we struggle, no matter how much we beg, we cannot obtain it.
That's why He gave us eternal life as a gift.
If you think about it, people receive most things in this world through effort.
You get good grades if you study hard. You can't go to a good school if you don't study.
You earn money according to how hard you work. Just because you stand still doesn't mean a persimmon will fall from the tree.
The principle of the world is that you reap what you sow, and this is also the principle of life that the Bible speaks of.
The current president of the United States is Trump, whether you like him or not.
But did Trump just become president? Was the presidency simply given to him as a gift? No.
Being a former president doesn't automatically make you president again.
Trump must have put in countless efforts to become president.

However, when it comes to the matter of salvation, of gaining eternal life from death, the principle of reaping what you sow does not apply.
Is there anyone who still wants to try?
Is there anyone who wants to receive eternal life not as a gift, but through their own efforts?
Then I will tell you the method.
Matthew 5:48, “Therefore be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
That's right. You just need to be perfect like God. Perfect means flawless, without sin.
If you are without sin, you are qualified to be saved from death and gain eternal life.
But what happens if you have even a little sin?
The first part of verse 23 says, "For the wages of sin is death..."
That's right. If you are without sin, you can gain eternal life through your own efforts, but if you have sin, you must surely die.

Who among you is without sin?
Occasionally, there are people who say they are without sin, but these people don't really understand what sin is.
Just because you haven't committed a crime that would send you to jail doesn't mean you're not a sinner.
The Bible says that not only sins committed through actions, but also sins committed in the heart are considered sins.
Also, not doing what you should do is a sin. Not loving your neighbor is also a sin.
Therefore, everyone is a sinner.
They say there are only two kinds of sinners in this world. The sinner who was caught, and the sinner who wasn't caught.
Because we humans have absolutely no possibility of being saved from death and gaining eternal life in heaven, God the Father sent God the Son to this earth to save us.

3. Let's accept that gift.
Therefore, "Merry Christmas" is, strictly speaking, a blessing that only those who have received eternal life in Jesus, the gift given by God, can enjoy.
But what does the world look like these days? They are trying to remove Jesus from Christmas in any way possible.
Today we greeted each other with "Merry Christmas."
However, most people in the world have been saying "Happy Holidays" for quite some time now.
This is because there are various holidays for each nation around this time, not just Christmas.
So, Jewish people greet each other with "Happy Hanukkah!"
Hanukkah is the Festival of Dedication, which commemorates the purification of the Temple. This is a festival mentioned in the Bible, and one that Jesus also observed.
It is a meaningful festival that commemorates the Maccabee brothers cleansing the temple that had been defiled by the Greek Empire and rededicating it.
Although Hanukkah is a precious festival, it seems that Jewish people are highlighting Hanukkah even more to overshadow Christmas.
There are also people who say "Happy Kwanzaa!"
Kwanzaa is a cultural festival created by African Americans that lasts for a week from December 26th.
Because there are several holidays during the Christmas season, the greeting has changed from "Merry Christmas!" to "Happy Holidays!" in order to respect other nations and cultures.
Furthermore, Santa Claus has long since become the main character of Christmas instead of Jesus.
The world's movement to exclude Jesus from Christmas is tremendous.

My daughter once participated in a Christmas Concert with her high school choir. - The last song of the concert was White Christmas, and we all sang it together very emotionally.
But as soon as the song ended, the music teacher grabbed the microphone and urgently shouted something as if something terrible had happened: "Happy Holidays!"
This was because he was afraid that saying "Merry Christmas" might cause problems.
It was actually quite funny. We sang a song about Christmas, but the greeting was "Happy Holidays."
But this is the reality of the world we live in.
Another shocking fact is that Jesus has disappeared from Christmas cards.
There are many cards with themes like Santa Claus, white snow, snowmen, gifts, and parties, but it's become really difficult to find cards with Jesus on them.

Everyone, this is the current state of affairs regarding Jesus.
Another shocking fact is that Jesus has disappeared from Christmas cards.
There are many cards with themes like Santa Claus, snow, snowmen, gifts, and parties,
but it's become really difficult to find cards that feature Jesus.

Doesn't this modern trend resemble the night Jesus was born in the stable?
The Son of God, the Creator of the entire universe, came to this earth, but there were no rooms available in any of the inns.
The Son of God, the Lord of the universe, came to this earth, but there was no place for Him to stay.
People all rejected Him. Because there were no rooms, Joseph and Mary went to a stable.
A stable is absolutely not a romantic or beautiful place.
A stable is a place where livestock like horses and cows live, and the manger is their feeding trough.
It was in this smelly, dirty stable that Jesus, the Son of God, was born.
Because people rejected Him, Jesus was born in a stable.

Even now, there are clearly evil forces trying to fill Christmas, which should be centered on Jesus, with other things.
But Christmas shouldn't be without Jesus. Christmas is Jesus' birthday, so shouldn't we give glory to Jesus above all else?
This Thursday is Christmas, and our church will be holding a special Christmas morning service.
Even if you can't make it on other days, I hope you'll come to the morning service on this day to remember that holy and mysterious night, the Holy Night, when Jesus was born.
Please come with the same heart you had when you used to go caroling.
If even the believers don't celebrate Christmas, Jesus' birthday,
Christmas will become even more secularized and degenerate into a worldly holiday completely unrelated to Jesus.

Conclusion
Now, I will conclude my message. - You know O. Henry's short story, "The Gift of the Christmas" right?
It's about a poor couple who give each other Christmas gifts; the wife cuts her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, and the husband sells his watch to buy hairpins for his wife.
On Christmas Day, the couple exchanges gifts, confirming their love for each other and being deeply moved. What a touching Christmas gift!
But God gave us an even more touching and greatest Christmas gift.
That gift is eternal life in Christ Jesus.
Whether we receive this gift or not is our choice.
I believe that all of you here have already received this gift.
Because we have received this gift, we can boldly say, "Merry Christmas!"
However, for those who don't believe in Jesus, Christmas is not actually a joyful day.
To those who still don't know what Christmas is or what it means,
To the people of the world who are only caught up in the Christmas atmosphere and enjoying themselves,
I pray in the name of the Lord that you and I will all be able to share the most precious gift that God has given us, and the true meaning of Christmas, which is Jesus Christ.