One Christmas season as a child, Sister Joy D. Jones’s husband, Rob, found two of his older sisters secretly unwrapping two of their Christmas presents.
After peeking inside, his sisters rewrapped their gifts. “If you don’t tell Mom, we’ll show you how to do it,” they told young Rob.
He gave in to the temptation and secretly carried a basketball-sized package up to his room. But it felt oddly light. When he carefully opened the gift, it was empty, except for a note. The note read, “I know what you’re doing. Don’t spoil your Christmas. Love, Mom.”
“He learned his lesson, and that was the end of the great Christmas-gift-peeking caper,” said Sister Jones, Primary General President, during the First Presidency Christmas devotional on Sunday, December 8.
“Consider your memories, the beautiful sights, the angelic sounds, and the unforgettable smells that come to mind when you think of Christmas. Even more tender are the memories many of us carry in our hearts from childhood of the holiness of Christmas—the celebration of our Savior’s birth. Those sacred feelings never leave us.”
Sister Jones illustrated this point with another story. One day while Christmas shopping, a nine-year-old girl noticed a large banner hanging over a display case and showed it to her mother. The banner proclaimed, “The gift that never stops giving.”
“Mom, I know what the gift is that never stops giving,” she said. “It’s Jesus!”
Her mother erroneously responded, “No, sweetheart. It’s diamonds.”
Sister Jones continued, “Using one internet search engine, I found thousands and thousands of items advertised with the phrase ‘the gift that never stops giving.’ Yet, try as we may, no material gift that we give will last forever.”
She recalled a Christmas as a child when her mother was sick in bed after many late nights of sewing. She wondered how Christmas could go on without her. She prayed that her mother would be healed.
“As we opened our gifts, I was surprised to find that my special present was an assortment of handmade doll clothing that my mother had been sewing for me during those many late nights of December. I couldn’t wait to run to her and throw my arms around her neck. Oh, how she had sacrificed for me.”
As her father did all he could to make Christmas feel “normal” that year without her mother, Sister Jones realized her parents were a gift to her that never stopped giving.
To qualify as “a gift that never stops giving,” or a “perfect gift,” a gift would do three things, Sister Jones said. First, it would reveal something about the giver; second, it would reveal something about the needs of the receiver; and third, it would hold its value forever.
“Doesn’t our beloved Savior, even the Savior of the world, meet these three requirements?” she asked.
The gift of Jesus Christ’s birth, ministry, and atoning sacrifice reveals Heavenly Father’s love for His children. The gift of Jesus Christ demonstrates that Heavenly Father knew a Savior and Redeemer would be needed. And the Atonement of Jesus Christ is infinite and eternal in value.
“Remember the jewelry department banner? That young girl knew intuitively what the true gift is. In this darkened world, we look beyond jewels to the Light of the World,” Sister Jones said. “I testify that Jesus Christ is the perfect gift—the gift that never stops giving.”
A photo of young Joy D. Jones with her parents and family, which was shown during the First Presidency Christmas devotional in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on December 8, 2019.
President Russell M. Nelson and his counselors in the First Presidency arrive at the 2019 First Presidency Christmas devotional in the Conference Center on Sunday, December 8, 2019.
Their gifts had special symbolic meanings as well: gold signified Jesus' status as "King of the Jews;" frankincense represented the infant's divinity and identity as the Son of God; and myrrh touched upon Jesus' mortality. (Learn what archaeology is telling us about the real Jesus.)
His gift of life never ends: it's the gift that keeps on giving. Not only did Jesus cleanse us from all sin, but He became the Lord over our lives so that we can come to Him for literally anything and everything in life.
What did the shepherds bear as gifts in the nativity scene? Instead of physical gifts, the shepherds brought the gift of love and devotion. Their gifts were spiritual blessings of faith, love, devotion, and gratitude. The Three Wise Men (Magi) brought physical gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Biblical Magi. The Gospel of Matthew (2:1–12) speaks of Magi, or wise men, who followed a star from the East to Bethlehem in search of a newborn king. There they found Mary and the baby Jesus and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
In Christianity, the Biblical Magi (/ˈmeɪdʒaɪ/ or /ˈmædʒaɪ/; singular: magus), also known as the Three Wise Men, Three Kings, and Three Magi, are distinguished foreigners who visit Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh in homage to his birth.
The gift that God gave was His Son who came to be the Savior of the World. But He came to give His life. Jesus was given as the gift of death in our place, and by that substitution, we live. If we look closely at each Gospel the salvation God gave in Christ is beautifully described through the arrival of Christ.
Each of the five ministry gifts (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher) are common social/cultural topics. The first ministry gift listed, apostle, has significant meaning for the first-century church.
In short, People give gifts as a way of showing thoughtfulness, love and affection. When we give gifts, it brings joy or pleasure to the receiver. In addition, giving gifts is something which usually makes us feels good.
There were shepherds taking care of their flocks at night. An angel appeared to them and told them not to be afraid as he brought good news, “This very day in David's town your saviour was born – Christ the Lord!” They would find the baby wrapped in cloth, lying in a manger.
The first, referred to in the carol 'We Three Kings', interprets the gifts as symbolising three aspects of Christ's future life: gold representing kingship, frankincense (worship) and myrrh (death and mourning).
Commonly used to embalm bodies, the gift of myrrh foreshadows Jesus' death. We see in John 19:38-40 that Nicodemus brought myrrh at the time of Jesus' burial: After this, Joseph of Arimathea, secretly a disciple of Jesus for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus.
Others categorize them into "gifts of knowledge" (word of wisdom, word of knowledge, distinguishing between spirits), "gifts of speech" (tongues, interpretation, prophecy), and "gifts of power" (faith, healing, miracles).
The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. While some Christans accept these as a definitive list of specific attributes, others understand them merely as examples of the Holy Spirit's work through the faithful.
The story teaches us the valuable lesson of loving and caring for others. In the story, both Jim and Della sold their most loved possessions in order to buy something beautiful for each other. The story is a great way to teach kids to be loving and kind to their families.
The narrator concludes that Jim and Della are far wiser than the Magi because their gifts are gifts of love, and those who give out of love and self-sacrifice are truly wise because they know the value of self-giving love.
The cry of God to each of His children is daily – “My child, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.” And to give our hearts to God daily is the greatest gift we may give Him.
So, instead of abandoning us or retaliating against us, he offered us a gift, the best gift that has ever been given: his Son. Though we did not honor God as we should, in his unbounded generosity, he gave his very best and most valuable, the only thing he had only one of – his Son.
And as the First Epistle of John says, “This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven” (4:10, Good News Translation). We might say that the greatest gift that has ever been given to humanity is God's gift of Christ Jesus.
Frankincense was used for worship in the Temple; it is symbolic of Christ the High Priest. Gold is symbolic of Christ the King. Myrrh a perfume, was used to anoint dead bodies, it is symbolic of His death for the sake of truth, and therefore of Christ the Prophet.
We often give gifts to re-confirm or establish our connection with others, which means that they're a reflection of both the giver and the receiver, as well as their unique relationship. Giving a gift to someone we care about allows us to communicate our feelings and appreciation for them.
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit are sealed and strengthened within us at Confirmation. These seven gifts help us to respond to the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, to make good choices, and to serve God and others. Wisdom is the gift of knowing the right choices to make to live a holy life.
It enables one to see more deeply into the mysteries of the faith and judge with certainty all created things. This understanding is not so much the fruit of study, but the loving desire to understand all the Father has revealed.
Introduction: My name is Dr. Pierre Goyette, I am a enchanting, powerful, jolly, rich, graceful, colorful, zany person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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