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But I finally get the real joy of the season now and it blows away all of my yuletide resistance. So let me be the first to wish you, Merry Christmas ! What made me change my mind? If you give me a couple minutes right now, I’ll share with you the best news you’ve heard in a long time…maybe ever.

Since I was a small boy I can remember singing, “ Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so .” Do you know the song? Do you know that Jesus loves you? I’m not just asking if you know the information. More than 2 + 2 = 4; more than some impersonal factoid, do you know that Jesus loves you? I don’t mean know like you could recite a recipe for a Denver omelet. I’m asking if you know what those ingredients taste like together? Have you tasted God’s love? Have you experienced God’s love for you personally?

It’s only been more recently in my life that I’ve known in my heart that God loves me, that He loves me . I’m a little embarrassed to admit this. I mean, why does a 45-year-old man need to know that God loves him? That’s for kids, right? How stunned I was not long ago to have God meet me in such a powerful, personal way, and immerse me in this idea that He loves me !

I told you that Christmas turned around for me several years ago; here’s why: I came to experience and taste His love—to know , not just with my head but with my heart, that God loves me. The good news that I promised you is this: God truly loves you, too !

I know what you may be thinking, “Well yeah, God loves me. I mean, God loves everybody, and I’m part of everybody, and so here I am in this big city, in this big world.” Listen, God doesn’t love you like He’s looking down on a football stadium full of people and says, “Yeah, I love that group over there also.”

How does God love you? Let me count the ways …. The Bible says that He has engraved you upon the palm of His hand (Isaiah 49:16) and that He numbers the hairs of your head (Matthew 10:30). The Lord tells us that He saves your tears in a bottle (Psalm 56:8). Do you see? This is a message that is very personal. It doesn’t matter where you’ve been, it doesn’t matter what you’ve done, it doesn’t matter what you’ve experienced—God loves you. It doesn’t matter what you have thought about yourself or what other people may have said about you—God loves you . This is what God says about you! You are honored, you are precious in His eyes, and He loves you! (Isaiah 43:4). Isn’t that a wonderful thing?

Maybe some of you are like, “Exactly how much love does God have for me? Could you break it down for me?” Sure—most often when the Bible attempts to express God’s love, it makes a beeline for the cross.

The cross of Jesus Christ is God’s statement about how much He loves you. Wait a minute, James. It’s not Easter, it’s Christmas! Yeah, but don’t you see how they’re connected? When you think of the immensity of God’s love, the first thing the Bible often asks us to do is to consider the price that was paid. “God so loved the world that He gave His Son ” (John 3:16). “This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. ” (1 John 4:10)

What makes this love so amazing is that it is highlighted against the backdrop of a debt that each one of us owes. At the core of God’s being is His holiness. In order for us to have any kind of relationship with Him, we have to find a way to get our sins forgiven. Problem is, there’s nothing we can do to accomplish that—it’s way too big of a problem. We can’t buy God’s favor, we can’t work for God’s favor, we can’t ever be good enough to earn God’s favor. Some would argue that God’s defining characteristic is love, but if that was so, God could welcome us all into heaven and say, “Just c’mon, we’ll work it out when you get here.” But God’s holiness demanded that sin be paid for before there could be any relationship, and then God’s love found a way. That’s exactly why Jesus had to come. “In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [payment] for our sins. ” Because God is holy, He can’t look on that sin—it must be covered. Jesus’ blood covers our sin. Hebrews 9:22 says that “without the shedding of blood there is no payment for sin.”

I know, I know, some nice people want to hush me here, “You’re getting blood on the snow. Don’t wreck Christmas!” But listen—I don’t want us to miss the amazing truth about Christmas! Don’t simply accept the glossy Christmas card version of Jesus anymore, “ Oh, Jesus, look at the sweet baby .” The truth is so much more. Jesus, light and love incarnate, left heaven that first Christmas night to be born a baby, to live a sinless life, to die in your place, so that you could be forgiven of your sin—a holy transaction made possible by the amazing love of God. That’s the message of Christmas. We need a Savior and that’s why Jesus came.

I proclaim God’s love to you today. He loves you with an everlasting love that words fail to describe. And I’ve got to say this: If you can’t look to a time when you turned from your sin and embraced Christ by faith for your forgiveness, man, what are you waiting for?! You don’t know when or even if you’ll have another opportunity to embrace Christ by faith, as the Lover of your soul. Let this Christmas mark the decision that changes your life— forever . Step out of some generic understanding of love into this amazing, committed love of the Lord for each of His own children through faith in Christ. For more information, get to a church that tells you the truth about your need and God’s amazing love that reaches out to meet you.

The wonderful people in our congregation don’t have to worry about me “bah-humbugging” on Christmas anymore. I’ve got the real joy of the season now and we raise the roof in our celebration—real joy comes from receiving the gift Jesus offers to each one of us. It’s something we can’t get ourselves—only a sinless God could give such a holy gift and only love would make the way.

Accept God’s love in the free gift of His Son—do it by faith today and you’ll have the best Christmas ever.