Dear Christian friends:

We have all made our plans as to how we intend to celebrate Christmas this year. Most of us plan to have a fine family dinner and then exchange gifts. A few days ago I read an article about a family that decided not to exchange gifts on Christmas. The father and mother felt that everyone was forgetting the real meaning of Christmas. "It is Jesus birthday, not ours," the father told the children, "we should bring gifts for Jesus, not ourselves." But the children cried, and were very sad. One said, "We love Jesus, too, but we want to exchange gifts to show our happiness." So the father said, "Let's go ask our pastor.

So they did that. The pastor told them "Exchanging gifts at Christmas may be good and it may be bad. It depends on how you feel in your heart when you do it or do not do it. Even those who do not exchange gifts may have a bad heart and spirit."

That's true. Its not what you do on Christmas, but how you do it is important. We need the right heart and spirit then all that we do on Christmas will be right and pleasing to God and satisfying to ourselves. We may not do the same things as some other family, we may not even go to the church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but if our heart and spirit is right what we do at home or on a trip will be pleasing to God and happiness to ourselves.

In fact, some families or people who go to church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day may go with a wrong heart and bad spirit and not please God or find happiness for themselves.

However, in my judgement I feel that if we have the right heart and spirit we will want to go to church on Christmas Eve or on Christmas day, perhaps on both times. I would feel very sad and disappointed if I could not go to Church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. But I'm not sure I have the right heart and spirit either. The devil can easily deceive us and blind us to the real joy of Christmas.

In our text today we listen to Mary who was filled with the Holy Spirit and sang a Christmas Hymn of Praise to God. If we listen carefully to her words we will find help to get and keep the right spirit this Christmas. So let us consider:


The angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary and told her that God had chosen here to be the mother of His Son, who would be born of her and would save His people from their sins. Mary believed the angel's words and promises. The angel also told her that her cousin Elizabeth, who was past the age of child bearing was now a miracle of God expecting a baby who would prepare the way for Christ. So Mary went to visit Elizabeth and when she came into her home Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and knew that Mary was expecting the promised Savior. She said to Mary, "Why is this honor given to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me." Blessed are you among women because you have believed the word the Lord spoke unto you." Then Mary sang her beautiful Christmas hymn of praise.

What did she sing? "My soul magnifies the Lord and rejoices in God my Savior." Because of the expected birth of Jesus Mary says her, "soul magnifies the Lord" and "rejoices in God her Savior."

Mary did not have all the Christmas customs that we have to pull her heart away from God. No Santa Claus, no drinking office parties, no wild rush to buy presents and exchange them: Nothing to tempt her from the true meaning of Christmas. Mary believed that she would be the mother of God's Son, her Savior. Her heart is filled with worship and praise to her great and kind God.

So we need to be careful and watch ourselves. Our Christmas activities should all be done with faith in God's promises concerning the Savior and with joy and praise to God who gives us His own Son. This does not mean that we can't have a fine dinner. We can if we eat the dinner with thanks to God and joy because of His Son our Savior.

But if we have a fine dinner without faith in the Baby Jesus and without joy for our salvation the dinner is nothing. It does not please God and does not satisfy our souls. So also our gift exchanging. If we give our gifts because we are very happy in Jesus, because we want to show love and kindness to one another because God shows great love and kindness to us in the Baby Jesus. If we also give gifts to the poor and needy at Christmas, who can't give us anything back. If we show mercy and kindness and forgiveness to those who have sinned against us, then our giving and gifts are pleasing to God and make our hearts glad.

But if we exchange gifts without faith in Jesus and without true love for one another. If we are sad and complain about our few and cheap gifts; if we only hope to receive and don't enjoy giving them our gift exchanging is a shame and does not please God and we will find bitterness, complaining and quarreling in that family. They may have fine expensive gifts and a very fine ham dinner, but their hearts are not really glad. While another family that has only meatloaf and cheap gifts but has Jesus in their hearts is very happy and has a very good time. In that house the peace and joy of Christ lives and rules.

Mary's heart and spirit attended to the infant Savior she was expecting, not to the fading things of earth, and so she could sing a truly beautiful Christmas hymn of praise.

May God's Holy Spirit enter into our hearts today and help us to see the real value in Christmas, the Infant Jesus, God's Son, our only Savior from sin. Let us sing with Mary, "My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior."

Amen.