Mariners Church Weekend Messages

Episode: December 24 - Two Miracles of Christmas
Speaker: Eric Geiger (Senior Pastor, Mariners Church)
Date: December 25, 2025

Episode Overview

In this Christmas message, Senior Pastor Eric Geiger explores the "Two Miracles of Christmas," centering on the true meaning behind the holiday and challenging listeners to move beyond surface-level evaluations. Using a single verse from Scripture (2 Corinthians 8:9), Geiger unpacks the incarnational miracle of Jesus' birth and the profound spiritual transformation that results for believers. With references to church history, personal anecdotes, and cultural observations, this sermon invites listeners to reconsider how they "review" Christmas and discover God's unshakable grace.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. How We 'Review' Christmas

Starts at 03:28

• Funny Product Reviews and Christmas Evaluation:
  Geiger opens with a humorous look at Amazon product reviews, likening the way people evaluate Christmas ("five stars, great vibes," "two stars, didn't get what I wanted") to product ratings.

  • “Oftentimes the answer that we give to the question, ‘How was your Christmas?’ sounds like a product review.” (03:52, Eric Geiger)

• Appeal to the Disheartened:
  He empathetically addresses those for whom Christmas is a painful or lonely season, affirming that “Christmas reminds you that he is Emmanuel, God with us. And you are not alone.” (06:13, Eric Geiger)

• Christmas Blessings vs. Christmas’s True Meaning:
  While the blessings—presents, family, meals—are good, the core message of Christmas runs far deeper.

  • “Those aren’t the real message and meaning of Christmas… If you misunderstand the real meaning and the real message of Christmas, then your review of Christmas can be wildly off. Actually… your life can be wildly off.” (07:22, Eric Geiger)

2. The Two Miracles of Christmas

Scripture focus begins at 09:08

• Key Scripture: 2 Corinthians 8:9
  “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” (09:42, Eric Geiger reads aloud)

Miracle 1: God the Son Became a Man

Explained from 11:18

• The Incarnation:
  • "Incarnation means the act of being made flesh. Jesus did not become created at Christmas; that Jesus is God the Son, who’s always existed." (11:54, Eric Geiger)
• What Jesus Left Behind:
  Jesus traded the beauty and worship of heaven for the limitations and pains of human life ("He traded being worshiped by angels for being spat on by soldiers. He traded a crown of glory for a crown of thorns…"). (17:28, Eric Geiger)
• Stunning Humility and Empathy:
  The miracle is not only God’s appearance but his full immersion in human suffering and temptation.
• For the Skeptical:
  Geiger addresses doubts about miracles, citing Glenn Scrivener:
  • “Christians believe in the virgin birth of Jesus. Atheists believe in the virgin birth of the universe. Choose your miracle.” (22:18, quoting Scrivener)

Miracle 2: God Makes Us His Children

Discussion starts 23:09

• Spiritual Poverty to Spiritual Riches:
  • “God the Son became a man to enable men and women to be adopted as his own…” (23:25, Eric Geiger)
• Adoption for All:
  Citing ancient Roman law:
  • “If you believe in Jesus, whether you are a man or you are a woman, you are adopted into his family and you are his heir, you are treated as His Son.” (24:15, Eric Geiger)
• True Riches Defined:
  Not material, but “rich in what money can’t buy. Rich in what experiences can’t provide for you. True riches.”
  • These riches are love, joy, peace, grace, and eternal life.
  • "He takes you to be with him forever… where there will be no more shame, no more sorrow, no more suffering, and no more disappointing Christmases…" (27:55, Eric Geiger)

3. Historical and Personal Illustrations

Begins around 30:00

• Church Teaching: C.S. Lewis & Athanasius

  • “The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.” – C.S. Lewis (12:56, referenced by Eric Geiger)
  • “He became what we are that He might make us what He is.” – Athanasius, highlighted to show the depth of Christ’s humility and transformative grace. (30:32, referenced by Eric Geiger)

• Personal Story: TSA PreCheck Analogy

  • Geiger draws a parallel between his daughter’s undeserved access to TSA PreCheck due to his status and believers’ gift of Christ’s righteousness:
    • “You get [his perfect record]? The TSA PreCheck you didn’t do anything to get this... you believe in Jesus. You get His perfect record.” (34:06, Eric Geiger)

4. God's 'Review' of Us

From 36:19

• How Does God See You?
  Many are afraid of how God might review them, but if you trust in Jesus, God sees you as perfect:
  • “When God the Father looks at you… he doesn’t see your sin, he sees the sacrifice of Jesus covering all of your sin… If you’ve believed in Jesus, God the Father looks at you and he sees you as absolutely perfect, though you haven’t lived perfectly.” (37:05, Eric Geiger)
• Transforming Your Review of Christmas:
  Beyond seasons of joy or hardship, the core of Christmas is that “God loved me so much that he came here, all the way here for me… He wants you.” (41:04, Eric Geiger)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you don’t understand the real meaning, the real message of Christmas, not only would just your review of this season be off, but the totality and the trajectory of your life could be off.” (07:19, Eric Geiger)

• “He traded being worshiped by angels for being spat on by soldiers. He traded a crown of glory for a crown of thorns...” (17:28, Eric Geiger)

• “Choose your miracle.” (22:24, referencing Glenn Scrivener)

• “He became what we are that He might make us what He is.” (30:32, Athanasius, cited)

• “You get His perfect record… you believe in Jesus. You get His perfect record.” (34:12, Eric Geiger on TSA PreCheck analogy)

• “When God the Father looks at you… he sees you as absolutely perfect, though you haven’t lived perfectly… Blameless, spotless, perfect. Mine, mine. My son, my daughter, my treasured possession, my own.” (38:38, Eric Geiger)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:28 – Reflections on evaluating Christmas, humor about product reviews
• 06:13 – Reassurance for the grieving or lonely
• 09:08 – Introduction of 2 Corinthians 8:9, the "review" of Christmas in Scripture
• 11:18 – Miracle 1 explained: The Incarnation
• 17:28 – The cost and humility of Christ’s entry into the world
• 22:24 – “Choose your miracle” (miracle of Christ or miracle of existence)
• 23:25 – Miracle 2 explained: Spiritual adoption and true riches
• 30:32 – Church history on the Incarnation (Athanasius)
• 34:06 – TSA PreCheck story as a metaphor for unearned grace
• 36:19 – God’s view (review) of believers: perfect in Christ
• 41:04 – Core meaning of Christmas: God wants you

Tone

Eric Geiger’s tone is personable, empathetic, humorous, and deeply pastoral. He weaves lighthearted moments with profound theological truths, ensuring the message is both accessible and moving.

Summary Takeaway

The true heart of Christmas is not found in gifts, meals, or fleeting feelings, but in the double miracle that God became man so that we could become God’s sons and daughters. Through this, all believers receive the riches of Christ’s grace, not by their merit but as a gift. God’s “review” of you—if you are in Christ—is perfect. And above all, God's greatest desire is simply to have you.