These Are My JOTtings, Part #2

The One Who Came at Christmas

He came to Earth at Christmas time,
the gentle baby so sublime
to live the perfect life for me
to save my soul eternally.

All Christmas lights bespeak the One,
who is all brighter than the sun.
The red and yellow, orange, blue
are wrapped in His white core all through.

What Christmas music makes the heart
is blest, encouraged from the start!
What hopeful tunes to point the way
to Jesus' Home in Heaven's Day!

What things He borrowed when at first
He lived this life and died in thirst!
The borrowed manger for His bed.
The borrowed cross where He once bled.
The borrowed tomb to lie in state.
The borrowed rock at the borrowed gate.

But when He rose, let's shout it loud,
"He stepped from out the nearest crowd!"
For when He left the tomb's repose
no borrowed thing He needs of those.

The truly new is His great life.
This God-Man, Who awaits His wife.
The first-fruits from the ones now dead
is Christ, Who through new life has led.

No man compares to God's Own Son,
Creator, Savior, Holy One.
He made the wood on which he died.
He made the ones, who whips applied.
He made the water for which He rasped.
He drank His Father's Cup when passed.

Christ came at Christmas time 'tis true,
but wrapped His Gift in a way quite new.
This present was not 'neath the tree,
but on the tree to eyes, that see.

He came unto a tomb of hay.
His first sounds were the low and bray.
His first breaths filled with stench, all kinds
as afterbirth and horse and swine.

Upon the cross this Baby laid,
'mid eaten hay, saliva sprayed.
He left His stable Home on High
unto the stable, there to lie.

He walked the perfect life on Earth
to be the Lamb, Who bought new birth.
Good deeds He did. Good words He spoke,
but on the cross Death's yoke He broke.

He was the Christmas Present wrapped
to free His loved ones longtime trapped.
The wrapping paper swaddled, bound,
until so neatly laid and found.

Two times 'tween Heaven and Earth was raised
this Savior, Who deserves our praise.
Two times the tomb, He was carried in
to live for man, remove his sin.
This bookend life of roughhewn caves
lived Jesus Christ, the Lord, Who saves.

For Easter could not ever be
without the Christmas birth, you see,
but without Easter, Christmas gifts
would have no flavor, hearts to lift.

We celebrate at Christmas time,
the One, Who trudged up Calvary's climb.
The Christmas Gift He gave to us
is Hope, that lives, and faith to trust.

The swaddled Baby Christmas laid
became the corpse of sin-debt lade.
The maiden was the first to wrap
The Gift once lying on her lap,
but when He laid the wrappings by,
He walked out free no more to die.

Best gift of our blest Christmas Day
was opened near the month of May
for Christ was wrapped and wrapped, again,
but unwrapped Victor over sin.

by Jay O'Toole
on November 5th, 2019