After hearing the king, [the magi] went their way; and the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

—Matthew 2:9-10

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people.

—Luke 2:8-10

In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

—John 1:4-5

It’s that time again! Time for flickering lights and silver bells. Time for the smell of balsam and a fire in the fireplace. And time for gifts! 

I have always loved giving my loved ones gifts at Christmas. It’s an absolute thrill to finally find that one thing you know he or she will love, and then there are the weeks of excitement leading up to the wonderful moment when you get to see them pull back the brightly colored wrapping paper and light up in a smile.

During this time of year, I live for those smiles and the hugs that follow. It’s pure joy to show my love for my family and friends in that way! Especially during this time of year, there’s almost nothing better than knowing that I’ve given someone I love a good gift and they have accepted it with joy.

I think the same is true of God. I think He loves giving us exceedingly good gifts, and the accounts of the first Christmas in the gospels are full of gifts. As we approach the celebration of God’s entrance on the world stage as baby Jesus, we’re going to take a closer look at these gifts and see just how amazing our God is at giving good gifts. 

The first gift we’re going to look at, might not be one you’ve noticed before, but it’s no less amazing than the others when you look deeper. The first gift of Christmas is light.

It is interesting that out of the four gospels, three of them begin with light. Matthew tells the story of the wise men who follow the star to find Jesus, Luke recounts the glory of the Lord shining forth on the shepherds when the angels appear, and John describes Jesus not just as the Word of God, but also as the source of life and light. So this is the first gift of Christmas—light.

Light is an amazing thing. It allows us to see and understand the world around us. It affects our sleep cycles and allows plants to grow and bloom. It can even have a significant impact on our mood and mental health. In short, its mere presence and effect on the world is a wonder, but when we look at the light surrounding the Christmas story, there’s something more going on.

The light referenced in these accounts isn’t described for its beauty or brilliance. Instead, the defining characteristic of the light in Matthew, Luke, and John is what comes with it. In every account, whether it is speaking literally like Matthew and Luke, or figuratively like John, the light is accompanied by life and joy.

That in and of itself is pretty cool. I wouldn’t mind being surrounded by light that filled me with life and joy, but if we stop there, we’ll miss something even more amazing.

The question is why. (1) Why does this light always happen at the beginning of these books and (2) why is it always accompanied by life and joy?

To find the answer, we have to look at another book of the Bible that begins with light—Genesis. The very first thing created in the very first book of the Bible is light. 

It’s important to note that when God creates light, He is not creating the sun. That comes later in creation. Instead, this Light is light that comes directly from God, the Source of all life and joy, and everything that He creates after this, every last atom of creation, comes into being in the warmth and love of His Light. There was never meant to be any separation between the Light of God and creation and there never was any separation until sin entered the world.

So why does each of these three gospel accounts begin with a reference to light that brings with it life and joy? Because Jesus came to restore creation. He was the second Adam Who came to right all wrongs and reverse the curse. He came to heal the broken and reconcile that which had been lost, and that process began at His very birth. Just His presence brought with it evidence that creation was being brought back into right relationship with the God of Light.

That’s our gift to unwrap this week: we have the hope of Light. Our God looked down into our darkness and chose to make a way to bring the Light of life and joy back into our lives. His work is not done, and even now He is still faithfully working to restore creation. Hallelujah!