12.11.16~The Priority of Christmas!
In two weeks we will celebrate the birth of God’s Son, Jesus, who came to save all who will believe in Him.
There are 196 countries in the world today and about 160 of them celebrate Christmas in some way or another, while the other 36 do not in anyway observe Christmas.
Most of the world, until very recent, used a dating system focused on the birth of Jesus Christ; either looking forward to His coming, i.e., B.C., “before Christ,” or looking back to the point where He entered our world, i.e., A.D., anno Domini, “in the year of our Lord.”
There is an exerted effort today to delete BC and AD, to replace them with BCE (Before Common Era) and CE (Common Era), an attempt to remove Christ and Christianity from our calendars; which really is foolish, I mean what is the pivotal date for BCE and CE? The very same as BC and AD - the birth of Christ.
This is yet another feeble attempt by a godless world to try and remove Christ from Christmas, along with renaming it: Merry xmas, Happy Holiday, Seasons Greetings, Winter Celebration, Winter Holiday. Christmas is a compound word made up of two words: Christ [the anointed One], and Mass [an assembly or gathering for religious festivals or observances].
Easter celebrates and honors the sacrificial death and sovereign resurrection of God’s One and Only Son, God’s payment for sin and provision of eternal life to everyone who believes in Him.
Christmas celebrates and honors the coming of God’s One and Only Son, God’s ultimate Christmas gift to us.
But, was Jesus born on December 25? Most likely not, in fact it is not very probable that he was even born in December.
What do the scriptures reveal about this?
In Luke 1:39-41, we are told that, at the time of Mary’s conception through the Holy Spirit, she went to visit her aunt Elizabeth, and upon greeting her, Elizabeth’s baby “leaped in her womb,” for Elizabeth, was six months pregnant with John.
Luke 1:56 tells us that Mary stayed with them for three months. According to the Jewish religious calendar concerning the division of the priests, Mary's visit with Elizabeth would have been late in the month of Kislev (Nov-Dec), at which time Mary was pregnant.
Kislev is the time of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, which begins on the 25th day of Kislev, close to December 25 when we celebrate Jesus’ birth (Jesus is (John 8:12), “the Light of the world”).
John the baptizer, Jesus’ cousin, was born near or during Passover in the month of Nisan (Mar/April); he was six months older than Jesus, therefore, Jesus would have been born in the month of Tishri (Sept-Oct), at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Our celebration of December 25 doesn't really line up with the actual birth of Jesus, but it is very probable that it was the time of His conception, when the true life of Jesus began in the womb of Mary.
Luke 2:8 tells us, “there were shepherds living out in the fields watching over their flocks at night” when Jesus was born. A little research on past and present weather patterns in Palestine clearly suggests that there are not any shepherds out in the fields, around Bethlehem, at the end of December, for it is cold and can be very rainy.
Ezra 10:9, 13, “all the men of Judah and Benjamin had gathered in Jerusalem. And on the twentieth day of the ninth month (Kislev), all the people were sitting in the square before the house of God, greatly distressed... because of the rain.” Jeremiah 36:22 tells us, in the the ninth month (Kislev) “the king was sitting in [his] winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him,” because of the cold.
The climate of Palestine in December, in Bible times, especially Jerusalem and Bethlehem which are at 2600 ft elevation, could be very cold (dropping to well below freezing at night) and humid, i.e., “it was not the practice of the shepherds of Judea to be out with their flocks in the open fields later than about the end of October; it was the custom then (as it is now) to withdraw the flocks from the open fields and house them for the winter."
Here is something else to think about, Luke 2:1 says there was a decree issued at the time of Jesus’ birth, that a census would be taken, and everyone would have to return to the town of their ancestors.
It wouldn’t be sensible to hold a census in December, more likely, a census would be taken after the harvest season, September or October, when the weather was more moderate and dry, allowing safe and easy travel.
So, why was December 25 chosen to be set apart as the celebration day of the birth of Christ?
The Romans celebrated the Festival of Saturnalia in December, from about the 17th-25th they worshipped the birth of the s-u-n god. Very common customs during that festival were the exchanging of gifts and decorating homes with evergreen boughs and lighted candles.
The decision to celebrate the birth of God’s Son on December 25th, came about during the middle of the fourth century, through the promotion of the Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great, after his conversion to Christianity.
The celebration of Christ's birth during the winter solstice, seems to have been an attempt to Christianize the popular pagan celebrations and festivities already in place; what we see today is a bizarre mixture of both pagan and Christian elements.
But regardless of the historic or pagan background of December’s traditions, whether or not Jesus was born on December 25th, our purpose is to turn the eyes of all men toward Jesus Christ, the Savior who has come.
The light of the world has indeed come, and the Christmas season, with all its celebrations and customs, presents the church with a wonderful opportunity to proclaim and live out the good news; peace with God has come, forgiveness and eternal life has been granted, by God, to everyone who trusts and believes in His Son, Jesus Christ.
See John 1:1-4, 14, 18... Christmas is about the Incarnation of God, God the Son putting on flesh and living among us, showing us the Father (cf John 14:6, 9), “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.”
Jesus went to the cross to pay the penalty for our sins in full (Luke 23:34), “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,” (John 19:30), “‘It is finished,’ then He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”
This same Jesus, fully man yet fully God, was taken down from the cross, placed in a tomb, and three days later He came out of the grave alive. Christmas is about the fulfillment of the promised Messiah, sent by God to save us from eternal condemnation in hell.
Christmas is a time when many people are more open to the gospel message, therefore, we should make the most of this opportunity to be witnesses of the marvelous message of God’s gracious gift, Jesus Christ.
Christmas is a time to honor the Savior’s birth by sharing God’s greatest gift: Jesus the Christ, Immanuel.
The majority of the world today either rejects Jesus Christ outright, is totally confused about Him, or is just indifferent toward Him and has, instead, turned to man-centered traditions and religious rituals that are promoted and supported by network television, public education, secular religion, and the commercial marketplace.
If you are a Christian, the greatest gift you can offer to an unbeliever is the Good News about the Special Child whose birthday we celebrate at Christmas: Jesus [God’s Salvation], Immanuel [God with us], born to a virgin in Bethlehem, put to death on a cross at Calvary, buried in a borrowed tomb, only to come out alive on the third day - and everyone who calls upon Him for the forgiveness of sins will be saved to eternal life - that is the priority message of Christmas!
Pastor Mike <‘(((><