Welcome to the Paul Tripp podcast, where pastor and bestselling author Dr. Paul David Tripp

connects the transforming power of Jesus Christ to everyday life.

What is Christmas all about?

Is it about opening presents, decorating your house, or baking cookies?

In today's episode, Paul Tripp shares four stories to help re-center our thoughts on Christ

this Advent season.

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Now here's Paul with today's first Advent story.

I love Christmas.

I love everything about Christmas.

I love sitting up our ridiculously big Christmas tree, 12 feet high.

It's nuts. I love decorating it. I love all of those traditions. And I'm very aware that Christmas is all about a tree, but it's not the tree

that you decorate. There's another tree that Christmas is all about.

In fact, I've thought many times that even before the foundations of the earth,

there was a tree in Jesus' future.

And from the first breath that Jesus took,

every step he took was marching toward this tree.

This is not a tree of happiness.

This is not a tree of joy. This is not a tree of joy. This is not a tree that you would

celebrate. Nobody would ever want to be any part of this tree but Jesus. In fact, the Bible says that Jesus approached this tree with joy.

That tree is not an evergreen.

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