The Way of Hope: Love Came Down At Christmas

Devotional

Day 1: Christmas is all about love

God stepped toward a world in need with a gift we could never earn. He sent His one and only Son so that we might truly live, now and forever. This love is the heartbeat of the season: received, opened, and shared. Let your heart rest today in the truth that God loves you—deeply, personally, and consistently. Receive His gift again, and ask Him to help you carry it to someone who is hungry for hope. This is the way of hope, and it begins with His love for you [31:05].

1 John 4:9-12: God made His love visible by sending His unique Son into our world so that we could find life through Him. Real love is not that we began by loving God, but that He began by loving us and sent His Son to deal with our sin. Since God has loved us like this, we are responsible to love one another. Though no one has seen God, when we love each other, His presence is at home in us and His love reaches its full expression among us.

Reflection: Who is one person in your week that you can intentionally bless with a tangible expression of Jesus’ love, and what specific action will you take?

Day 2: Loving God with all you are

Love responds to Love. God desires a real relationship—heart, soul, mind, and strength—where your first instinct each morning is to seek His presence. Like a joyful companion who can’t wait to be with you, let your soul leap toward God with eager affection and trust. Don’t settle for a one-way relationship; speak with Him, listen to Him, and shape your day around Him. Ask the Holy Spirit to stir fresh affection and wholehearted devotion in you. Wake up tomorrow ready to love Him back [37:33].

Matthew 22:37-38: Jesus said that the greatest command is this: Love the Lord your God with every affection, every breath, and every thought. This is the first priority and the foundation for everything else.

Reflection: What simple change to your morning or evening routine would help you seek God first and love Him with focused attention this week?

Day 3: Love your neighbor as yourself

Love that begins with God naturally moves outward. To love your neighbor as yourself is to care for their well-being with the same energy you use for your own—to feed, clothe, encourage, and forgive. It is patient in traffic, kind at the register, generous at the table, and gentle when wronged. Love looks for small, daily chances to lift burdens and mend relationships. It refuses to let bitterness write the last sentence. Ask God to show you one practical way to love the person right in front of you today [41:41].

Matthew 22:39-40: The second command is like the first: Love your neighbor with the same care you show yourself. All that God has spoken about life and faith hangs on these two commands.

Reflection: Whose name comes to mind when you think about offering forgiveness or practical care, and what is one concrete step you can take in the next 48 hours?

Day 4: Selfless generosity: serving the least

Jesus identifies Himself with “the least of these,” so love moves us to give quietly, cheerfully, and sacrificially. Selfless generosity says, “I will carry part of your load,” often without anyone noticing but God. This is the legacy that outlives us: not comfort kept, but compassion given. Look for hidden ways to meet a need—food on a table, a bill covered, a burden shared, a prayer offered. In doing so, you are honoring Jesus Himself. Love cannot help but give [47:52].

Matthew 25:40: The King will say, “Whatever you did for the one who seemed overlooked and unimportant, you actually did for Me.”

Reflection: What specific, costly act of generosity—possibly anonymous—can you offer this week to someone who may never be able to repay you?

Day 5: Be the way of hope

Those who receive the gift of God’s love are sent to carry it into everyday places—homes, workplaces, schools, restaurants, and highways. Hope becomes visible through kind words, patient presence, faithful prayers, and courageous generosity. Consider others above yourself, and let your life point beyond you to Jesus. Ask God to open one door this week to share why His love matters to you, then step through it with humility and grace. You are not alone; the Holy Spirit fills you with love and peace for the sake of the world. Go and share the gift you’ve received [53:02].

1 John 4:19-21: We are able to love because He loved us first. If someone claims to love God but refuses to love a brother or sister, that claim collapses. The command we’ve received is simple and searching: if you love God, love your brother and sister too.

Reflection: Where do you sense an opening to share a brief story of God’s love this week, and what gentle words could you offer in that moment?

Sermon Summary

We walked through Advent with one simple focus: love. Not sentimentality, but the fierce, initiating love of God that arrives in Jesus Christ. 1 John 4 tells us that love doesn’t start with our affection for God; it starts with God’s outstretched heart toward us—sending the Son so we might live through Him. That is why Christmas is love: God giving Himself, at great cost, so sinners can be reconciled and live in Him. This gift is not for display; it is for reception, transformation, and sharing. Our Advent practices and our “Christmas Is Not Your Birthday” generosity are all ways we line our lives up with that love for the sake of our neighbors near and far.

Because love begins with God, our response is to love Him back—with heart, soul, mind, and strength. I shared how my walk shifted from a one-way relationship to a living, mutual friendship when the Holy Spirit made God’s nearness real. A silly, spunky puppy became a parable: eager presence, delighted attention, simple devotion. That’s the posture that keeps love from remaining a concept and turns it into communion—seeking God earnestly, obeying His Word, and walking with Him in ordinary moments.

Then we turned outward. The second great command is like the first: love your neighbor as yourself. If we feed, clothe, house, entertain, and forgive ourselves, we are called to mirror that care to others. Love isn’t vague goodwill; it is embodied neighborliness—prayer, meals, forgiveness, advocacy, generosity. I challenged us to choose one tangible act before Christmas: bless the overworked server with kindness and a doubled tip, pray for the driver who cuts you off, speak peace at the checkout, or offer an olive branch to the relative you’ve avoided. Love grows through practices that train our desires.

Finally, we learned from St. Nicholas: wealth turned into quiet mercy, gold dropped in secret to rescue the vulnerable. His legacy is not nostalgia but a pattern—self-forgetful love that sees Christ in “the least of these.” We’re waiting to place baby Jesus in the manger on Christmas Eve, not because He is absent, but to train our hunger for the Gift who is God’s love in flesh. Receive Him. Love Him back. Then go love your neighbor until hope has a face in your street.

Key Takeaways

1. Christmas begins with God’s self-giving love This season is not our climb to God but God’s descent to us. In Jesus, love takes on flesh, bears sin, and opens real life to undeserving people. When love starts with God, we stop trying to earn it and start learning to trust it. [33:03]
2. Love God with undivided affection God doesn’t just want acknowledgment; He wants our attention, our desire, our day. Devotion grows in simple, repeated choices—seeking Him, obeying Him, enjoying His presence. Let your first impulse in the morning be toward Him, like a delighted puppy racing to the door. [37:33]
3. Let love become embodied neighborliness To love as ourselves is to translate compassion into groceries, rides, forgiveness, and presence. Love’s credibility is measured not by warmth of feeling but by willingness to bear another’s burden. When we practice inconvenient mercy, we become living signs of the kingdom. [41:05]
4. Choose one concrete act this week Abstraction is where love goes to die; specificity is where it comes alive. Pick a person and a practice—generosity at the table, patience on the road, reconciliation at home. Small, faithful acts train the heart more than occasional grand gestures. [43:24]
5. Practice selfless generosity like Nicholas St. Nicholas turned privilege into protection, quietly meeting needs without expecting applause. Secret giving is spiritual warfare against ego and scarcity, and it dignifies those we serve. In the faces of the vulnerable, we meet Christ Himself. [48:34]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:35] - Mission offering and outreach
[01:45] - Sharing faith: January course
[02:30] - The way of hope is love
[03:05] - Scripture: 1 John 4:7-12
[04:05] - Opening prayer
[05:15] - Christmas distractions vs. love
[06:35] - God’s initiating love at Christmas
[08:40] - Loving God with all we are
[11:30] - Puppy parable of devotion
[13:45] - Loving our neighbor in practice
[17:20] - St. Nicholas and selfless generosity
[20:40] - Sending and closing prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
- 1 John 4:7-12

Observation questions

In 1 John 4:9-10, what specific actions show God’s initiating love, and what outcome does God want for us “through Him”?
According to 1 John 4:12, what condition must be present for God’s love to be “made complete in us,” and what does that imply about the community?
What everyday image was used to picture wholehearted devotion to God, and what details made that image stick? [36:19]
Name the concrete neighbor-love actions that were suggested for this week (be as specific as you can). [43:56]

Interpretation questions

If love starts with God and not with our love for Him (1 John 4:10), how does that reshape the way a person seeks God daily—more like earning approval or enjoying a given relationship?
“No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us” (1 John 4:12). What might it mean for people on your street to “see” the unseen God through burden-bearing love?
“Love your neighbor as yourself” sets a standard for care. How does “as yourself” expand or limit what counts as real love for others? [41:05]
Why might quiet, hidden generosity be spiritually powerful? What inner battles does it fight, and how does it honor those who receive? [48:06]

Application questions

Tomorrow morning, what is one small change you can make in your first 10 minutes to turn toward God with eager, simple affection—like that spunky puppy running to the door? Name the exact step (alarm label, brief prayer, Scripture, song). [37:33]
Choose one person and one practice before Christmas. Who is the person, and what will you do—double a tip, write a note, deliver a meal, offer forgiveness, make a call? Name the day and time you’ll do it. [43:24]
The next time you’re cut off in traffic or stuck in a long line, how will you bless instead of react—what exact words will you pray or speak? Plan your one-sentence blessing now. [44:11]
Identify someone with a quiet need (a single parent, a neighbor between jobs, a student far from home). What could you give secretly that preserves dignity—an anonymous gift card, paid bill, groceries on a doorstep? Decide the amount, the method, and the deadline. [48:34]
Think of one way you routinely care for yourself (food, transportation, clothing, recreation). What is a parallel, practical way you can mirror that care for a neighbor this month? Set a date and first step. [41:28]
Where do you still try to earn God’s favor—overworking, spiritual performance, perfectionism? What practice this week will help you receive love you didn’t start—confession, thanksgiving, or simply sitting with 1 John 4:10? [27:25]
Consider intentional generosity. What amount or percentage could you set aside this week for “Christmas Is Not Your Birthday” or a local need, and what recurring rhythm (weekly, monthly) will you choose going forward? [26:26]

Sermon Clips

It's a gift from God. It's the gift of Christmas. And it's what this season is all about. To prepare for the gift. To receive the gift. To open the gift. To share that gift with the world. Until he comes back in final victory. And all the faithful are brought in communion with him in his kingdom. So important for us to understand it's about love. God's love for you and me and God's love for the world. [00:32:25] (38 seconds) #GiftOfChristmas

``The incarnation of God so important. Embodying his love. Dying for us on a cross. Bearing our sin. Friends, the scripture is clear in the Old and New Testament. Going back to the beginning. We are sinners in need of saving. We are sinners in need of a solution. And God provided that at Christmas. Friends, when we hear the word Christmas, we should think about love. God loves you. God loves me. God loves this world. [00:33:32] (36 seconds) #IncarnationOfLove

It was only after I encountered the Holy Spirit at a conference that I got it. But I received a sense that, hey, this is a relationship. And it means I need to love him back. I need to do everything in my power to love him with all my heart, my strength, and my soul. Friends, Christmas is about love. Of not only receiving the greatest gift the world has ever received, but it's also loving him back. [00:35:42] (34 seconds) #LoveGodWholehearted

If you love yourself, you're called to love your neighbor just as well. You're called to help them have a roof over their head, to help them have food on the table, to take care of their needs. If they're having surgery, to pray for them, to maybe take them a meal, to say a kind word to a stranger, to try to forgive someone who's done something to you. [00:41:41] (26 seconds) #PracticalNeighborLove

Maybe this Christmas is a time for you to extend the olive branch, right? Maybe this Christmas is a time for you to go up and say, hey, I've missed you. Or, hey, I want you to know I love you. Or, hey, I want you to know I'm praying for you, right? And maybe it's time for you to extend the olive branch. [00:45:00] (26 seconds) #ExtendTheOliveBranch

Whatever it is, think about one thing and try to make that happen this Christmas. Try to show the way of hope. Try to display the great gift of Christmas. What this season is all about. All that stuff we mentioned before, lights, decorations, Christmas trees, yummies and goodies, family time, giving gifts and presents. All of that's good stuff. But remember the reason for this season. It's love. [00:45:33] (31 seconds) #ShowWayOfHope

All of that's good stuff. But remember the reason for this season. It's love. God's love for you. God's desire to be in a personal, ongoing relationship for all eternity with you. And then for you to take that and God's desire for you to love, to share his love with the world. I love the story of St. Nicholas. [00:45:57] (26 seconds) #SeasonOfDivineLove

One story in particular goes like this. There was a destitute family in the community. And they had three daughters. And those daughters faced a grim future because they had no dowry. And back in that day, you had to have a dowry in order to get married. And if not, then you had to work, enslaved to someone oftentimes, prostituted at other times. And so, for those three daughters, in one particular night, the story goes that he took three bags of gold. And under the cover of night, he went to their bedroom windows and he threw in the bag of gold. [00:48:06] (44 seconds) #SecretGenerosity

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