A couple of hours and its Christmas! I didn't intend to do
another blog for the remainder of the year however; I received a very
interesting/disturbing mail about Christmas from a friend so I felt I needed to
say a few things.
In summary her mail reads “our pastor told the Church that Christmas is idolatry and it’s a
sin to celebrate it so now I’m confused as to whether to go with my pastor’s
view or with what I know in my heart is true.”
Well, there are a lot of different religious views on
Christmas which didn't start today and obviously won’t stop this year. That
been said, I want to expressly say I’m not a theologian so whatever I say here
is what I know in my heart is truth. Truth
for me may not necessarily be truth for another.
Is it sin to celebrate Christmas from a Christian's point
of view? My straight answer for this question is NO… Christmas is not mentioned
in the Bible. There
is NO single verse or book commanding Christians to celebrate Jesus' birthday, or to observe ANY
holiday for a fact however,
celebration of Christmas or any other religious holiday is a matter of an
individual’s personal choice.
It breaks my heart when I
see the church divided over petty issues such as celebration of Christmas. That to a great degree misleads new believers.
The central theme of the Bible is Jesus so if I decide to celebrate Jesus’
birth, what’s the fuss in that?
It is said that Christmas was once a pagan holiday from the
Roman Empire which was celebrated in December 25th in honor of Mithras-the
god of light. Around AD 200 Christians started to talk about Jesus’ birthday. December 25th had become the accepted
date but how the church arrived at December 25th is not clear.
Emperor Constantine, after having the vision of a cross in
the sky around 312AD, decided to officially recognize 25th as the
celebration of Jesus’ birth and that helped Christmas gain prominence as an official holiday. I
urge you to do a further study on December 25th.
That said, Jesus was not born on December 25th
so for those who don’t know please note that no one honestly knows when Jesus was born. But this lack of knowledge does not diminish the value of
celebrating His birth. We may not be sure about
the date of Jesus’ birth but we are sure about his love for us.
There are many things that originated from pagans and pagan
worships. A simple example is the days of the week.
The First Day: Sunday was
named after the Sun god.
The second Day: Monday was named after the moon goddess.
The Third Day: Tuesday was named after the god Tyr.
The Fourth Day: Wednesday was named after the god Odin.
The Fifth Day: Thursday was named after the god Thor.
The Sixth Day: Friday was named after the goddess Frigga.
The Seventh Day: Saturday was named after the god Saturn.
The second Day: Monday was named after the moon goddess.
The Third Day: Tuesday was named after the god Tyr.
The Fourth Day: Wednesday was named after the god Odin.
The Fifth Day: Thursday was named after the god Thor.
The Sixth Day: Friday was named after the goddess Frigga.
The Seventh Day: Saturday was named after the god Saturn.
Unless we are to conclude that celebrating
Christ's arrival as God in the flesh is a bad thing, its celebration on what
was once a pagan holiday is irrelevant.
Christians who celebrate Christmas are not pagans. They honor Jesus Christ as
Lord and Savior.
According
to Hebrews 4:12-13, God judges us by
the motives of our heart because that is where sin begins. He knows whether
we’re focused on expressing our gratitude for the gift of His Son or indulging
in pagan festivities. So as long as our hearts are right we’re not sinning if
we celebrate Christmas.
Christmas
like every other holiday can be celebrated in two ways… in honor to God or in
the way of the world. A true Christian
observance of Christmas does not include drunkenness, fornication, carousing or
any other conduct unworthy of saints.
Christ entrance into the world was a cause of
great rejoicing and celebration,
because it made possible human reconciliation to God. At his birth people who
loved God rejoiced in praise, and even the angels sang for joy (Luke
1:46-2:38).
It is appropriate to
celebrate the Lord's birthday for those who choose to do so. I personally
celebrate Christmas because it is a very significant event in my salvation. If Christ wasn't born, lived and died, He wouldn't have reconciled us back to God.
Whether
you choose to celebrate or choose not to celebrate Christmas, that’s fine. Just
make sure in all you do, you’re seeking to honor Jesus Christ (Romans 14:5-6).
In
conclusion,
"Who
can add to Christmas?
The
perfect motive is that God so loved the world.
The perfect gift is that He gave His only Son.
The perfect gift is that He gave His only Son.
The
only requirement is to believe in Him.
The reward of faith is that you shall have everlasting life."- Corrie Ten Boom
The reward of faith is that you shall have everlasting life."- Corrie Ten Boom
It is a
wonderful thing to celebrate the birth of the Savior, God's gift to
mankind.
Just Sharing My Thought
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Grace and Peace ♥
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