No other day on the world calendar catches the imagination of the young and old alike as does Christmas. The day is holy, sacred, and very special. Christmas is a day and the auspicious season the whole world celebrates the “WORD” that conceived Himself, gave birth to Himself, and named Himself in the small town of Bethlehem over 2000 years ago (Jhn.1:1-4).
Indeed, the Almighty just flung open the door of this world and enters as a helpless baby, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child. “Nothing in fiction,” according to J.I. Packer, “is so fantastic as this truth of the incarnation.”
Jesus came so humbly and ordinarily. He left all the glories (John 17:5) with which He existed with the Father behind and came so quietly without glitz, glam, and radiance. Indeed, fresh hay was the bed where He was laid; and for the first time in the history of the world, a stable had something in it that was bigger than the world (Lk.2:7).
Frankly speaking, Christmas season is a season of joy; it is a season that must been celebrated in glee and fanfare because that was the time that Jesus Christ came to save us from sin and eternal destruction. The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Also in Romans 5:12, the Bible says: “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.” Clearly from here, we know all humanities have sinned and they have inherited sin and death from one man, which is the first man called Adam. Adam and Eve went against the Will of God and they fell out of the Grace of God and the world also suffered!!!
Consequently, humanity needed somebody to come and deliver them from the guilt of sin and eternal destruction that came upon them as a result of sin. That was why God had to send His only Son – Jesus Christ to come to the world as it is written in John.3:16 that: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
This is why Jesus had to leave all the luxuries, comforts, glamour, and the glory He existed with His Father in the beginning and came down to live amid earth’s filth and depravity.
Therefore, Christmas represents the time the Savior came to the world. It represents the time Jesus came to save the world and human race from sin and destruction. It is the season of spiritual joy and an auspicious season for personal assessment, rethinking, and renewal of our faith and commitment to Jesus, our Savior and the Savior of the world. Christmas is no doubt the time the whole humanity should surrender all they are and all they have, including their souls to the One that came from Heaven to save them. Significantly, the season is the time for deep reflections, total obedience and absolute submission to Christ, the Saviour.
Unfortunately, many celebrate the season today in a bizarre and unscriptural manner. The season have regrettably been made purely secular. Instead of the people to avail of the opportunity of the time to do personal reflections, reassessment, and rededication of their lives to the Lord that came to save them, they see the season as the time for rollicking, wining, eating, clubbing, fornicating, and indulging in unnecessary socialization and malfeasances!!! Many evil ones even use the occasion for robbery, kidnapping, bombing, life-maiming, and blood-shedding.
This is not why the “Savior” came; and this is not the reason behind Christmas!!! Christmas is the season of restitution and the time used to commemorate the advent of the Savior. It is the time the whole world became redeemed from the power of sin (Mtt.1:21; Acts 4:12; 5:31; Col.1:13-14) and the actual time that God, the Father adopted us as His son through Jesus Christ (Jhn.1:12 & Eph.1:3-6). Anything short of this is not the Christmas of the Bible!!!
The Lord Jesus actually came to save us and not to destroy us. He came to reconcile humanities with His Father and that was why the Book of 1Timothy 2: 5 called Him the Mediator. Essentially, the Messiah came to rout Satan in battle and destroy all evil works and the works of darkness through the gospel of truth that teaches us the way back to Heaven (1Jhn.3:8 & Jhn.14:6). No doubt, the Savior came as the Bread of life, the sure link and the only Bridge by which humanities can ply back to their Creator after this earthly walk (Jhn.14:6). This is the Christmas I know and this is the Christmas of the Bible. Anything short of this is unscriptural!!!
Certainly, the Christmas celebrated with prostitutes in brothel; the Christmas celebrated in drunkenness, adultery, thuggery, and different kinds of illicit behaviors in shebeens and club-houses is not the Christmas of the Bible!!!
Thus, as we cut through the glitz and the glam of this season, we should be reminded of the beauty of the One who is Christmas. We should realize why we celebrate Christmas and appreciate the redemption and the salvation that Jesus has brought to the world. In that regard, we should not leave Him in the manger and begin to celebrate His birth in filthy places. Instead, we should know that this is the season to learn how to walk and fare better with Him and the season to re-dedicate our life to Him and His services as we are already drowned in the sea of sin that leads to destruction!!!
Christmas is truly about receiving and giving; but during this auspicious and austere season, give the gift of the true Christmas story: “The story that God gave His only Son so that mankind can be saved.”
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year in Advance!!!!… Prophet Akintunde Akinniyi
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