Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Three Gifts We Can Give Others For Christmas

Three Gifts We Can Give Others For Christmas

Last updated on: June 13, 2018 at 11:11 am by Jim Erwin

Three Gifts We Can Give Others For Christmas 2018-06-13T11:11:30-05:00 Jim Erwin

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Three Gifts We Can Give Others For Christmas

Three Gifts We Can Give Others For Christmas is a simple thought Lectionary reflection from Micah 6:6-7 about three gifts we can give others: respect, loyalty, and humility.

December 24, 2015 Year C

Micah 6:6-8

Everyone is probably thinking about the Christmas gifts they are going to give or receive. Some of you have probably not finished shopping for Christmas – you better hurry.   But some are thinking: I can’t give gifts to everyone on my Christmas list. I just don’t have the money to buy everyone a gift for Christmas. So that is a dilemma everyone has.

The wise men gave the baby Jesus three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These were really expensive gifts that showed other people that Jesus was highly valued. They came to worship Jesus with these gifts. But we don’t have to give such expensive gifts to Jesus. We don’t need to worship God and give Him all kinds of animal sacrifices (Micah 6:6-7).

In this passage, Micah lists three gifts we can give to everyone – people whom God highly values. These are gifts we can direct both outward and upward. These three good gifts are precious and show how much we care for other people and in turn, God. Unlike the presents under your tree this evening, they don’t cost a penny. What are these gifts?

THREE GOOD GIFTS YOU CAN GIVE OTHERS FOR CHRISTMAS

You can give the gift of (Micah 6:8):

1. Respect – “act justly”

To act justly is to give other people respect. Outward, we show respect with other people. You may disagree with them. You may even hate them, but you can be respectful. You be civil with others – especially with those you disagree with. You can treat people with dignity. Don’t rob them. Don’t degrade them. Don’t insult them. Treat them with respect. Respect is something that you can upward to God as well. When you show respect to God and His laws for example, it reveals that you realize God is larger than you in life.

2. Loyalty – “love faithfulness”

You can give another person the gift of trust, your trust. To love faithfulness is about loyalty. Giving loyalty outward to other people is a precious gift. It is so easy in today’s world to abandon someone. We drop a relationship, or a responsibility. Some are looking for more money, or better conditions. Sometimes they opportunities come. But many times, God teaches us to be loyal. We learn a valuable lesson when we are committed to a job, to a family, to a church. This is a gift that other people value when you give it. We can lift this gift upward to God. When we do, it tells God how much we love Him by our loyalty. The gift is one you can give to God for what He has done for you.

3. Humility – “walk humbly with your God”

As a person shares this gift outwardly to others, we learn a special lesson ourselves. A humble person plays second fiddle, learns to be supportive, and accepts that they may not get to shine in the spotlight all of the time. This is a gift husbands can give their wives, and wives can give their husbands. It is a gift that one can give to others when conflict stirs its ugly head. It is a gift that one can give away when the good things at work are rewarded. It is a gift that we can share when we share our faith. Humility toward others speaks volumes about my submission to God.

God wants us learn humility. God never promised that you would get everything in life. He just promised that He would be there with you. With God, life can be abundantly rich. In other words, for your life to be full and exciting, you have to let God lead you.

Three good gifts – respect, loyalty, and humility. Let us enjoy the gifts we receive. At the same time, let’s be generous this Christmas season in sharing these gifts with others.

Prayer: God, thank You for the free gift of Your Son at Christmas. Help me as I give these gifts of respect, loyalty, and humility with others.

Previous Post

December 23, 2015

Give God High Praise

Next Post

December 25, 2015 The Heavenly Family Tree of Jesus

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1 Chronicles 1 Corinthians 1 John 1 Kings 1 Peter 1 Samuel 1 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Chronicles 2 Corinthians 2 John 2 Kings 2 Peter 2 Samuel 2 Thessalonians 2 Timothy 3 John Acts Advent Amos Book Review Colossians Comics Culture Watch Daniel Deuteronomy Ecclesiastes Ephesians Esther Exodus Ezekiel Ezra Galatians Genesis Guest Post Habakkuk Haggai Hebrews Hosea Humor Inspiritational Isaiah James Jeremiah Job Joel John Jonah Joshua Jude Judges Lamentations Lectionary Lent Leviticus Link Love Luke Malachi Mark Matthew Micah Movie Review Nahum Nehemiah Numbers Philippians Political Watch Prophecy Watch Proverbs Psalm Revelation Reviews Romans Ruth Science Watch Sermon Series Sermons Simple Thoughts Song of Solomon Titus Top Ten Uncategorized Video Review Zechariah Zephaniah

Select a Month May 2026 October 2025 September 2025 June 2025 February 2025 January 2025 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 July 2024 June 2024 April 2024 March 2024 January 2024 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 June 2023 May 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 January 2022 June 2021 January 2021 October 2020 July 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2009 June 2008 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 October 2006 September 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 September 2005

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What Christian group refers to their main worship service as "Mass"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Methodists Baptists Catholics Presbyterians