God Gave Himself

Welcome to the Days of Praise podcast, a daily devotional by the Institute for Creation Research. God gave himself. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3.16. It is singularly appropriate that we look at this great verse on Christmas Day, for it records the greatest of all gifts.

The theme of giving is very prominent in the Bible, with such words as give, gift, gave, etc. occurring more than 2,100 times. The first is Genesis 1, 16-17, when God created the sun, moon, and stars to give light upon the earth. The last is Revelation 22, 12, when Christ will return with his rewards to give every man according as his work shall be. He gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, as well as life and breath and all things.

But the greatest gift, clearly, was when God gave Himself for a lost and undeserving world. It was the greatest gift because it met the greatest need, revealed the greatest love, and had the greatest scope and purpose of any gift that could ever be conceived in the heart of an omniscient Creator. That was not the end of his giving, of course. He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Trust in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.

This great gift of God is abundantly sufficient to provide salvation and everlasting life for the whole world. But a gift only becomes a gift when it is accepted. And the greatest of all tragedies is that this greatest of all gifts. has been spurned. Even ridiculed, or worst of all, simply ignored by multitudes who need it so much.

When they brazenly refuse God's free gift of everlasting life, they can only perish in everlasting death. God did all he could do when he gave his son, for when he gave his son, he gave himself. If you've enjoyed today's devotional, be sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. And please rate and review so more listeners can find us. To support ICR's ministry, visit icr.org/slash donate.

Your gift of any amount helps us to reach others with biblical truth and encouragement. Thanks for listening. We hope you'll start each day with days of praise.