As Christians many look forward to celebrating Christmas, many say, we have only one festival, so we must celebrate it well. When I was small, we would long to have Christmas as we went for carols during the whole month of Dec, the feast we had from many houses and the goodies we get during carols singing late at night, memorable days of my life.
But when you go to the western world Christmas season means giving Gifts to friends and family, it all starts with Thanksgiving, mad rush to buy things in a deal at low prices for gifting. The whole month of December is looked at with a sense to buy as you can get great deals. From greetings “Happy Christmas” now people greet as “Happy Holidays”
For many non-Christians, the start of Christmas means a good 1-week time off from all the work you do at office, many organizations give paid time off, some offices plan for all pending work that they can do when no one is around, use the down time to clean and get better. Some people use this time to go on vacation, visit relatives / do some long pending work before new year.
For some of us it means going to visit your family, calling friends / family, having good food (Biriyani and all good non-veg delicacies), Visiting church, wearing the nice coat, nice pant / shirt or good dress we bought. For ladies it’s the sarees they got or to wear all the jewels that they have in their lockers as Christmas is the day to show to everyone the locker collections of jewels they have, for youth it’s the cool trending dress they bought and there is many more for each of us
If you look at the history of Christmas - The first recorded incidence of Christmas being celebrated actually dates all the way back to the Roman Empire in 336 AD, during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine – so technically the Romans invented it, although there's no specific person who is credited with having done so.
There is nothing wrong in all that we do, but the real purpose of Christmas is “Jesus”. In the world we live we tend to go far away from “Jesus” and make this a reason to celebrate and use many reasons to get away from the real meaning of Christmas. We use this day to make it more of ritual / tradition / business to each of our needs / priority.
So, I would challenge each of us to get back to the Real purpose of Christmas.
To start , let’s start with Jesus as he is the real center of Christmas.
'And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, And they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. ' Matthew 1:21-23
The meaning of the name JESUS and “Emmanuel”
JESUS – “for he shall save his people from their sins”
JESUS aka “Emmanuel” – “God with us”
Don’t know if any of us think to get rid of our Sins in Christmas, we think only of celebration
We read in Bible, God the Father was so much fed-up of the Sins that we had with from the Adams generation and he wanted to end this so he choose his only Son Jesus to come to this world to “Save his people from their Sins”, In this path he did few things
HUMBLE
When we read about Quality of Jesus, he is the Alpha and Omega, he is the beginning and the end. Which means there is no start or no end to him, he is a eternal God.
'I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. ' Revelation 1:8
Having such power why did he come to this world, the only reason was to fulfil this as written in 1 John 2:2 “he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. '
'My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. ' 1 John 2:1-2
The path he took is remarkable, he choose to be born in a lowest path he was born in a “Shepherds Manger”, he could have chosen a better place as he is the king of kings and Lord of Lords. He is the King of Galaxies, everything will bow before him. But he choose to lower himself to be born on a Manger, signifies the humbleness he showed us to follow.
Second the Good news of his birth was also told to Shepherds gracing the sheep’s in night, the angels did not announce his birth to the to the Kings.
The message for us this Christmas is to humble like how Jesus humbled himself to us.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 1 Peter 5:6 NIV
DEPEND
After Jesus was born in the world, he lived a life that was Sinless and pleasing to his father, we read theologians write as he lived 33 1/2 yrs. a life that was sinless and always dependent on his Father to guide him what to do.
You read the gospel Matthew / Mark / Luke, every chapter of these gospel tells the record of how he lived, he would go to a town only if his father God instructed him to go.
He cured the lame / healed the sick based on what his father asked who to be healed. His dependency on father was established with him praying with God every day
The message for us this Christmas is to depend on him. The promise is true every day “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”, he asks us to lay our challenges of life on him every day and trust in him so that he will give us the rest and peace.
' “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
REPENT
Jesus died in the cross to take away our sins. We read in Romans that we humans live / drenched in in the sinful behaviours that we inherited from Adam’s generation, but we are spared by the Grace of Jesus.
'for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ' Romans 3:23-24
If we all have to be punished for the Sins we commit, all of the human race has to go to hell, but we have Grace of Jesus “grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” by which we are given more time to come back to him.
What does this Grace mean ? does it mean we continue to Sin even when God is merciful not to punish us for the Sins we deserve / as he is slow to anger, or does it mean I ask for repentance and do the same Sin again and again. No this is not why Jesus has given grace to us.
Grace is given to us so that we repent and come to him, so that we are washed by his blood and we become more pure day by day, and live a life that’s pleasing to him and at the day of judgement he can take us and make us live to eternity.
So this Christmas look for repentance of your Sins. Sins that’s there in secret life and any terrible sins you may have committed. With our Sins we will perish unless we ask for true repentance from Jesus.
'I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ' Luke 13:3
But if we continue to live a sinful life, the birth of Jesus and his dying on Cross will become meaningless to us. The purpose of Jesus coming to this world will be defeated, remember what the name Jesus means
JESUS – “for he shall save his people from their sins”
So this Christmas focus on Jesus as the season to HUMBLE / DEPEND and REPENT to him.