He was so poor and yet so rich – It is not by His riches we become rich, but by His poverty. He alone of all mankind possessed the privilege of choosing His ancestors, and He deliberately chose a peasant family. He elected to associate Himself not with the "haves" but with the "have-nots". He became poor to ransom our souls. "For your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich." (2 Corinthians 8:9 NIV)

He was so small and yet so great – The God of thirty trillion galaxies became the size of a pinhead that He might enter the human race, yet "in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." (Colossians 2:9 NKJV) In the incarnation, the infinite became the infinitesimal. Someone once said, "I know not whether He is greater in the cradle or among the stars."

He was so mute and yet so vocal – The scene in the stable was incredible — the Word was unable to say a word. The One who framed the organs of speech was powerless even to pronounce a single syllable. The One who named the myriads of stars was incapable of saying even "mama", yet "No one ever spoke the way this man does." (John 7:46 NIV)

He was so earthly and yet so heavenly – A little child is a bundle of intense and immense physical needs — yet nothing is more heavenly than a baby. The Babe of Bethlehem was earthy, a normal human infant, but He was the Lord from heaven.

Prayer: Marvellous Father and gracious God, thank You for these five paradoxes of Jesus' incarnation. May our hearts be filled with joy this Christmas as we meditate upon them. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Where or when does Jesus come in our holiday festivities? We invest a lot of creative energy in getting the right presents for the individuals we buy or make gifts for, and that is good. If we stop to think about this for a moment we will realize that there is a scriptural precedent for such planning — the "wise men"!

We know they were wise to follow the guidance of a lonely star to find the long looked-for Messiah. But they were also wise because they gave great care to the gifts that accompanied their acts of worship, gifts appropriate for the occasion.

Gold – a gift for a king. Jesus would one day reign, not by force, but by love; not from a throne, but from a cross.

Frankincense – a gift for a priest. Jesus was to become our perfect priest who would open our way to God. He became the bridge whereby we could cross and find our way to our Heavenly Father.

Myrrh – a gift for the dead. Did the wise men know from the scriptures that Jesus was to be God's Lamb, led to the slaughter, bearing our iniquities?

God can also teach us how to bring the right gift to the Saviour. It is not so much a material offering that is required, but a sacrifice of the heart and spirit. Let us kneel at the manger with the very best present that we ourselves can bring to offer our Saviour.

Prayer: Lord God, open our hearts afresh today to the truth of your word and the gift you desire most from us: ourselves. In Christ's name. Amen.