Why I Don't Do Christmas

Tuesday, December 04, 2012, 8:09 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with this song:

Blessed Are You / An Original Work / August 29, 2012
Based off Luke 6:20-49 NIV 1984

“Blessed are you;
Blessed are you who are poor
For God’s kingdom is yours.
Blessed are you;
Blessed are you who are hungry,
You’ll be satisfied.
Blessed are you;
Blessed are you who weep now,
For you will laugh with joy.
Blessed are you;
Blessed are you when men hate
And reject you because of Christ…”


http://originalworks.info/blessed-are-you/

The subject of the celebration of Christmas came up this morning before I read my passage of scripture for the day. I am reading in the Psalms, and today’s passage was Psalm 12. So, as I went into my time of reading this morning, I asked the Lord what my response should be to people who ask about the celebration of Christmas. I prayed, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” Then I read Psalm 12. When I got to verse 8, this is what stood out to me:

The wicked freely strut about
when what is vile is honored among men.

The word “vile” stood out to me, and then the Lord immediately put this phrase in my mind, “pagan revelry.” I believe God sees, and has always seen in the history of mankind, “pagan revelry” as “vile.”

Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.” ~ 1 Co. 10:7​

I wanted to understand what this all meant, and how it related to my inquiry about what my response should be to the subject of the celebration of Christmas, so I looked up some of these terms in the dictionary (www.thefreedictionary.com) . Vile means “loathsome, disgusting, objectionable, offensive, wicked, shameful or evil.” A pagan is a supporter (sticking or holding to) polytheistic (more than one god) religion, “especially when viewed in contrast to an adherent (supporter) of a monotheistic (only one god) religion.” And, revelry is “boisterous, noisy or unrestrained merrymaking; pleasure and good times, with connotations of carousing and self-indulgence.”

The Christmas Connection

So, what does this all have to do with the celebration of Christmas? Well, let’s look at what all the celebration of Christmas entails. For those of you who celebrate Christmas, what do you spend most of your time, thoughts and energies on in this celebration? What is Christmas to you? What is the main focus of Christmas in our society? And, what does the word of God have to say about celebrating Christ’s birth?

Christmas, in our society, is primarily about Santa Claus, Christmas trees, lights, decorations, Santa’s stockings, greed, commercialism, and presents, etc. So, who is Santa? He is an aberration. He is made up. Yet, he sees all, knows all and he can be all over the world at everyone’s homes all in one night. Who does this sound like? Yes, you are right: God Almighty. He is the only one who is all knowing, all powerful, and has the ability to be everywhere at all times. So, who is the great imitator of God who wanted to be God? Satan. He parades himself as an “angel of light” to deceive minds and hearts. Ever notice the similarity between the names “Santa” and “Satan”? Santa is of Satan and Satan’s goal is to be God in the hearts and minds of all people, but especially in the hearts and minds of professing followers of Jesus Christ. He wants nothing more than to steal the hearts and minds of naïve people, especially young children, away from God and to another god.

Is He the Reason?

Christmas is often marketed as the celebration of Christ’s birth, i.e. that “He is the reason for the season.” Is he really? Let’s look at that. How do we celebrate Jesus’ birth? Some people will tell you it is with the giving of presents to one another, just like the wise men gave gifts to Jesus or just like God gave us the gift of his Son, Jesus Christ. Well, for one, the wise men did not visit Jesus when he was born. He was probably a child of two years old when they visited him, and they were not coming to celebrate his birthday, per se, but to give honor to the King of kings and Lord of lords, the promised Messiah of the people of God. They were giving honor to the Savior of mankind, and they honored him with these costly gifts. Also, the giving of God’s Son is the giving of salvation to mankind (Jn. 3:16).

So, when we give each other gifts, is this truly giving honor to God/Jesus as the King of kings and Lord of lords and as the Savior of mankind? If it is, in your thinking, then how do you believe this is accomplished? Do you think God is truly pleased with this gift giving of ours on this holiday? And, how is this similar in nature to what God did for us in giving us Jesus? If we want to respond in like manner, then instead of giving each other gifts, most of which we don’t really need, then we should be sharing the gospel of Jesus with the unsaved. That is why Jesus came! And, that is why he died on the cross. The greatest gift we can give, then, is the gift of God’s Son to those who have not yet believed in Jesus as Savior.

Should we celebrate Christ’s birth?

How did Jesus say we should remember him and honor him? He said we should honor him and remember him through the remembrance of his death, not his birth. And, the way in which we remember his death is through the taking of communion, not just the taking of it in the sense of taking a sacrament in a ritualistic sense, but as Paul described in 1 Co. 11:

Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.

There is a sense, thus, in which this participation in the Lord’s Supper is not merely the sharing in the drinking of the vine and the eating of the bread, but it is a participation in the meaning of these symbols in reality in how we live our lives. For Jesus, the juice of the vine and the bread represented his blood and body which were given for us on the cross of Christ for our sins, so that we could be set free from the penalty of sin (eternal damnation), and so we could be set free from slavery to sin (day-to-day).

So, when we come to the Lord’s Table in remembrance of him, we are not merely recalling his death, but we are choosing to partake (drink and eat) with him in his death, which communion symbolizes, and in his resurrection, in death to our sins and in resurrection to new lives in Christ. This is why it is critical that we examine our hearts, not just in communion services, but all the time, to make sure that we have forsaken our lives of sin, and we are walking in obedience to Christ in all ways all the time. This is the kind of worship and honor of Jesus that he desires:

Jesus said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” ~ Luke 9:23-26​

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. ~ Romans 12:1-2​

Who gets Top Billing?

This (the above scriptures) is the kind of “gift giving” that God approves. It is not that he is against us giving each other gifts, I don’t believe, but I don’t believe the way we do gifts and the way we celebrate Christmas in our culture is what he desires, and in fact, I believe he sees it as “vile” and as “pagan revelry,” because it is a blend of the worship of Santa, greed, and a pagan holiday with the celebration of Jesus, only Jesus does not get top billing in this celebration. Think with me about that for a moment.

Look at your decorations for Christmas. Do you have a tree beautifully decorated with all kinds of trimmings? Are there lots of gifts underneath the tree? Who are these gifts for? What do they represent? Do you have Santa stockings hanging by your fireplace? Do you have images of Santa and his reindeer displayed in your house? And, where is Jesus in all of this? Do you buy a bunch of gifts you can’t afford for people who don’t really need them because tradition dictates that we should do this in celebration of Jesus? How does any of this give honor and praise to God/Jesus?

And, do you also have a manger scene displayed in your house along with Santa? Then, this is a celebration of a false god and the true God side-by-side, which is what God chided his children about all throughout history. And, how is Jesus pictured? He is pictured as a helpless baby in a lowly manger. Whose birthdays do we celebrate with images of what we looked like as babies? - Only Jesus’. I believe this is purposeful. Why?

Children, in particular, will see Jesus as a helpless baby who does what for them? And, they will see Santa as all powerful, all knowing, and can be all places at all times, and who brings them presents. What is wrong with this picture? Do you see the deception here? And, the two are celebrated together side-by-side. Even if you don’t do the Santa thing, you, perhaps, are still celebrating the birth of Jesus in a manner which has pagan roots, and which has nothing to do with Jesus Christ at all, and that minimizes who he truly is while on the same day an “all powerful, all knowing and omnipresent Santa” steals the hearts and minds of young children, because he brings them presents. How can you top that?

And, then we lie to our children and we tell them that Santa is real, even though they can’t really see him, so is that of God? And, we use terminology like “I believe in Santa.” And, then we tell our children to believe in Jesus, whom they also cannot see. Oh, what trickery Satan has concocted to get us to believe we are truly celebrating the life of Jesus when all we are doing is falling prey to a lie of Satan.

The Challenge

You don’t have to believe this, obviously, because I said it, but I pray that each person reading this today would prayerfully and honestly before God examine what has been shared here today in light of God’s word, and that you would inquire of God as to how he views our celebrations of Christmas. God gave us the gift of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ shed on a cross for our sins. The best way we can celebrate the life of Jesus is to honor him with our lives, and to share the truth of his gospel with a world in need of the Savior. Will you pray and ask God if he is pleased with your celebration of him?

Sing Praises / An Original Work / November 30, 2012
Based off Psalms 6-9

Sing praises to the Lord!
Tell of His wond’rous works.
Afflicted, they cry out;
The Lord will not forget;
The needy, not desert.


The Lord’s our refuge now;
A stronghold when we fear.
The Lord will ne’er forsake
The ones, who Him pursue!


Sing praises to the Lord!
With all my heart I sing.
I will rejoice in Him;
Sing praises to His name;
Tell of His wond’rous works.


My shield is God Most High.
He saves those who believe
In Jesus Christ, God’s Son.
His grace has pardoned you!


The Lord accepts my prayer!
The Lord has heard my cries.
He is so merciful.
He heals my anguished soul.
The Lord has made me whole.


Give thanks unto the Lord.
Give praise unto His name.
Our Lord is righteousness.
Sing praises to the Lord!


Sing praises to the Lord!

Sing Praises: http://originalworks.info/sing-praises-2/

Blessed Are You: http://originalworks.info/blessed-are-you/

Note: All scripture references are taken from the NIV 1984.
 
Titus 1:15 (KJV)
Unto the pure all things [are] pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving [is] nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
 
I hope to celebrate Christmas this year. I even have a turkey crown in mind, one of the rare occasions in the year where I eat meat. I will give and receive presents. I may be aware of pagan associations but have no problem in accepting this day as the one where we try to celebrate the birth of Christ.

What troubles me more is that through all my own indulgences, will I pause to remember that while my plate is full, others are starving? Will I consider that while I am cosy by the fire with family, others are homeless and lonely?

The celebration is fine to me but can I do better for the other 364 days of the year? It's not that easy in my position having to live with parents at the age of 54 and some personal problems you look around and see (or imagine) what others have but can I make this the year when I consider less about self? Compared to some others, I am quite wealthy - I have a roof over my head and don't worry where the next meal is coming from.

I think where I'm going is to say I don't think Jesus minds the celebration but He is for every day of the year. Will I do better for Him next year?
 
Titus 1:15 (KJV)
Unto the pure all things [are] pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving [is] nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.

Explain how you are applying that scripture to this subject please. I don't understand your application. Thanks. Also, please give an interpretation of that scripture in context, as that would also be most helpful. I would appreciate that.
 
I hope to celebrate Christmas this year. I even have a turkey crown in mind, one of the rare occasions in the year where I eat meat. I will give and receive presents. I may be aware of pagan associations but have no problem in accepting this day as the one where we try to celebrate the birth of Christ.

What troubles me more is that through all my own indulgences, will I pause to remember that while my plate is full, others are starving? Will I consider that while I am cosy by the fire with family, others are homeless and lonely?

The celebration is fine to me but can I do better for the other 364 days of the year? It's not that easy in my position having to live with parents at the age of 54 and some personal problems you look around and see (or imagine) what others have but can I make this the year when I consider less about self? Compared to some others, I am quite wealthy - I have a roof over my head and don't worry where the next meal is coming from.

I think where I'm going is to say I don't think Jesus minds the celebration but He is for every day of the year. Will I do better for Him next year?

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject.
 
Explain how you are applying that scripture to this subject please. I don't understand your application. Thanks. Also, please give an interpretation of that scripture in context, as that would also be most helpful. I would appreciate that.
To one that is pure of heart, everything is pure. A God-centered person is not going to be derailed over Christmas or eating meat or abstaining from Christmas or meat. I know where all the "things" of Christmas came from - the Yule Log is parts of Nimrod - the 25th of Dec as the pagan holiday of the feast of Sol and Victus. I don't care. To me, Christmas is about CHRIST. He's even in the NAME of the holiday! (y) It's very fitting that the Lord would put "icing on the cake" having Jesus conceived during the Festival of Lights - Chanukah (25 Kislev-2 Tevet)!! Jesus is the light of men (John 1:4) and John was the witness of the Light (John 1:7). How very appropriate for Mary to go and be with John's mother Elisabeth in the sixth month and she herself being overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, conceived during the Festival of Lights! To further this wonder, this feast is also called the Feast of Dedication, where even Jesus participated by going to the temple as recorded in John 10:22. Since Jesus is the Word of God, this is when God "Dedicated" His Son to us like authors do in books where they dedicate their work to the reader! A Son is given, Isa 9:6, the Word of God dedicated to us! That's how I celebrate Christmas, lights, trees, gifts and all. It's a celebration of Jesus Christ! If the devil can take good and make it evil, God can take evil and make it good to those that are pure of heart. That's what that verse means. I don't condemn you for abstaining, do whatever you do in faith. If I felt Christmas was a sin and celebrated it, then it would be sin to ME. If I don't feel Christmas is a sin, centering it on God instead of buying junk, then it won't be sin to ME. That's all. Nothing in life is cut and dried, black and white. Only truth, which you presented. I celebrate Christmas as pointing to Jesus, to spend time with my family, since it's also a national holiday, to warm my heart with beautiful scenes of glowing love and joy, singing songs of His mighty work. That's what I do with Christmas, for whatever is not of faith is sin, Rom 14:23.
 
To one that is pure of heart, everything is pure. A God-centered person is not going to be derailed over Christmas or eating meat or abstaining from Christmas or meat. I know where all the "things" of Christmas came from - the Yule Log is parts of Nimrod - the 25th of Dec as the pagan holiday of the feast of Sol and Victus. I don't care. To me, Christmas is about CHRIST. He's even in the NAME of the holiday! (y) It's very fitting that the Lord would put "icing on the cake" having Jesus conceived during the Festival of Lights - Chanukah (25 Kislev-2 Tevet)!! Jesus is the light of men (John 1:4) and John was the witness of the Light (John 1:7). How very appropriate for Mary to go and be with John's mother Elisabeth in the sixth month and she herself being overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, conceived during the Festival of Lights! To further this wonder, this feast is also called the Feast of Dedication, where even Jesus participated by going to the temple as recorded in John 10:22. Since Jesus is the Word of God, this is when God "Dedicated" His Son to us like authors do in books where they dedicate their work to the reader! A Son is given, Isa 9:6, the Word of God dedicated to us! That's how I celebrate Christmas, lights, trees, gifts and all. It's a celebration of Jesus Christ! If the devil can take good and make it evil, God can take evil and make it good to those that are pure of heart. That's what that verse means. I don't condemn you for abstaining, do whatever you do in faith. If I felt Christmas was a sin and celebrated it, then it would be sin to ME. If I don't feel Christmas is a sin, centering it on God instead of buying junk, then it won't be sin to ME. That's all. Nothing in life is cut and dried, black and white. Only truth, which you presented. I celebrate Christmas as pointing to Jesus, to spend time with my family, since it's also a national holiday, to warm my heart with beautiful scenes of glowing love and joy, singing songs of His mighty work. That's what I do with Christmas, for whatever is not of faith is sin, Rom 14:23.

Thank you for answering my question and for sharing your thoughts on this subject, which I asked for.
 
I love Christmas and I agree with Abdicate's post. I try to celebrate Jesus' birth to mankind every day. Without His coming, we would all be damned. I have no problem that the world celebrates Christ, if only in lip service. There are certain sects that do not celebrate Christmas - as a one time child abuse and neglect investigator, I saw their children as some of the saddest children I have ever seen. Hope is all about celebrating the coming of Christ. No greater gift was ever given.
 
I love Christmas and I agree with Abdicate's post. I try to celebrate Jesus' birth to mankind every day. Without His coming, we would all be damned. I have no problem that the world celebrates Christ, if only in lip service. There are certain sects that do not celebrate Christmas - as a one time child abuse and neglect investigator, I saw their children as some of the saddest children I have ever seen. Hope is all about celebrating the coming of Christ. No greater gift was ever given.

Silk, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject. Yes, we should celebrate Jesus - his eternal existence as with God and as God, his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension to heaven, the sending of his Holy Spirit to indwell us, his life within us as we live and walk with him on the face of this earth, his great salvation, his love, mercy, forgiveness, compassion and the hope of his return and our being together with him for eternity - every day.

Yet, the children I see who celebrate Christmas are not excited about Jesus Christ and the hope we have in him, but they are excited about presents and Santa Claus and food and trees and decorations. To so many at Christmas time Jesus is just a figurine in a manger scene or a helpless baby lying in a manger while Santa is portrayed as almighty and the giver of gifts. I have not met a child yet who gets excited over Jesus Christ and the hope we have in him while celebrating Christmas. Their excitement is over all the fun stuff and that is why they are happy. Perhaps your experience is different from mine.
 
Silk, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject. Yes, we should celebrate Jesus - his eternal existence as with God and as God, his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension to heaven, the sending of his Holy Spirit to indwell us, his life within us as we live and walk with him on the face of this earth, his great salvation, his love, mercy, forgiveness, compassion and the hope of his return and our being together with him for eternity - every day.

Yet, the children I see who celebrate Christmas are not excited about Jesus Christ and the hope we have in him, but they are excited about presents and Santa Claus and food and trees and decorations. To so many at Christmas time Jesus is just a figurine in a manger scene or a helpless baby lying in a manger while Santa is portrayed as almighty and the giver of gifts. I have not met a child yet who gets excited over Jesus Christ and the hope we have in him while celebrating Christmas. Their excitement is over all the fun stuff and that is why they are happy. Perhaps your experience is different from mine.

One more thought the Lord just brought to mind. In conjunction with the celebration of Christmas he brought to mind Isaiah 58: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+58&version=ESV, which is about how God's people had a day where they fasted and expected God to be pleased with them while they ignored him and didn't do what he said day in and day out. He let them know that on the day of their fasting that they did what they pleased, i.e. they sought their own pleasure and they fought with people. Then he says, "Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? ... Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?"

I believe he is saying the same thing about Christmas. Did God ask us to celebrate him in this way? Is this what he has chosen? Is he pleased? How many celebrate the birth of Christ their way without even asking God what he wants? How many make a big deal about the celebration of Christmas but the day they have chosen to honor Christ becomes more about their own pleasures? Or they fight with each other over plans, gifts, etc.? How many celebrate Christmas but ignore God the rest of the year, including on Christmas Day, because they are not truly seeking the Lord and what pleases him but they are seeking after their own pleasures? God has not asked for this celebration and he is not pleased if we celebrate him along with a false god - Santa - and if we spend the day on our own pleasures and if we celebrate him one day and yet we do not obey him and follow his will for our lives the rest of the year.
 
I don't disagree that Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter (as with all holidays) are celebrated by and large for people's own worldly ways. That is people and the world. Thanksgiving may be the only time some people say grace. Some people only enjoy turkey and football. But inherent in these holidays is the love the family shows each other and neighbors at these times in the year. I choose the reminder that these celebrations are about God. Can it be bad if the world is reminded too? How would you feel/think if they cancelled the 3 holidays I mentioned?
 
I don't disagree that Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter (as with all holidays) are celebrated by and large for people's own worldly ways. That is people and the world. Thanksgiving may be the only time some people say grace. Some people only enjoy turkey and football. But inherent in these holidays is the love the family shows each other and neighbors at these times in the year. I choose the reminder that these celebrations are about God. Can it be bad if the world is reminded too? How would you feel/think if they cancelled the 3 holidays I mentioned?

Silk, I believe much of the time the way a lot of Christians celebrate them is no different from how the world celebrates them and that they can actually do more harm than good in presenting the love of God and the gospel of our salvation to people. We don't do Easter, either, for much of the same reasons we don't do Christmas. We do continue with a meal on Thanksgiving, but there is really not much anything different we do on that day than any other time our kids and grandkids come for a meal. We all have the day off so it makes for a good occasion to get the family together. We have 4+4 adult children and 12 grandchildren, but 6 of them are on the west coast now and we live in SC, so we do miss having them here, too. We have lots of family meals together.

So, to answer your question, it would not upset me at all if these 3 holidays were cancelled. I don't think we have to have a holiday to love people or to show kindness to people. This is something we should do all the time. We still give gifts to people, only when not expected, usually. I love giving gifts. I love to get together and sing and eat and visit together. I don't have to have a special day to do that, though. I can do that all year through.
 
If you look at my first post, I agree that I try to implement daily what I see as the meaning of these holidays. I can't speak for other Christians and I don't disagree with your point of view that most go worldly. Ask yourself why in the OT, God commanded that certain things were celebrated such as Passover, as a nation. They are reminders and the stories are retold so we do not forget God's love. Does the world corrupt? I think so - are you letting it corrupt a celebration of God for you?
 
If you look at my first post, I agree that I try to implement daily what I see as the meaning of these holidays. I can't speak for other Christians and I don't disagree with your point of view that most go worldly. Ask yourself why in the OT, God commanded that certain things were celebrated such as Passover, as a nation. They are reminders and the stories are retold so we do not forget God's love. Does the world corrupt? I think so - are you letting it corrupt a celebration of God for you?

Not at all! I celebrate my Lord every day throughout the day.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate your heart. God bless!
 
I only meant that none of us should let the world take away our joy in God. And many media are pointing out that businesses are dropping the word christmas for "happy holidays" and have been doing so for some time. When they leave Christ out of christmas, the stories are not retold and it becomes just another secular party.
 
I only meant that none of us should let the world take away our joy in God. And many media are pointing out that businesses are dropping the word christmas for "happy holidays" and have been doing so for some time. When they leave Christ out of christmas, the stories are not retold and it becomes just another secular party.

Silk, You know I love you in the Lord. We have had many times of sweet fellowship in the Lord together on this forum, and we have agreed together on many topics, so I hope you will not let our differences of belief on this subject divide us in any way. I do empathize with your feelings. I think I probably felt the same way over 10 years ago, so I do understand. With regard, though, to what you just shared here, it brought to mind a much older writing that I wrote to the Editor of our local newspaper, and it was published almost in its entirety. I know I prayed over this writing, so I believe God gave me guidance in writing this. I am not going to edit it in any way. It does express my beliefs at the time I wrote this, which are probably pretty consistent with what I believe now. At the time this was written, though, I believe we were still celebrating Christmas, so some things have changed since this was written:

Who’s taking Christ out of Christmas?
December 9, 2005

There is much ado right now about people taking Christ out of Christmas - including some of the CEO’s of some major department stores who have made the decision to replace “Merry Christmas” with “Happy Holidays,” and even some of the leaders of the Mega churches who have decided not to have church services on Christmas day. Prayer is being removed from public meetings and there is discussion about taking “In God We Trust” off of our coins. The York County Council also voted to do away with the Blue Laws, allowing stores to be open for business earlier in the day on Sundays. It appears that God – Father, Son and the Holy Spirit and the Church are being targeted these days for extinction, but who is really to blame? And, what can we do about it?

I think we need to look to the scriptures to see what the Bible has to say about this subject. But, first, let’s discuss what we really mean when we say people are taking “Christ” out of Christmas. I think what we mean is that people are no longer saying “Christmas” and businesses are opening their doors earlier on Sunday morning and some churches are not going to hold services on Christmas day, etc. But, is that really removing “Christ” from “Christmas”?

To answer that question, we have to ask ourselves “Who is Jesus Christ?” What did he do during his life on earth? What did he stand for? How did he live his life? If we read the gospels, I think we will see that Jesus in human form was a man of compassion, but also a man of conviction; he was a man of love, but that included “tough love.” He was truly God and truly man, so he had a divine nature but he was tempted in all ways as we are tempted, yet without sin. He hated hypocrisy, but he loved the sinner. He hated legalism – he said, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” He was more concerned about whether or not we were showing love to people than whether or not we followed all the religious rituals. When asked about where the right place of worship was, he said that a day was coming (and has come) when we will worship God neither on this mountain or that mountain, but we will worship God “in spirit and in truth.” He was not concerned so much about how things looked on the outside as he was what was on the inside of the person.

James, Jesus’ brother, said: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (James 1:27 NIV).​

The Apostle Paul said: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2 NIV).

And, Jesus said: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments”(Matthew 22:37-40 NIV).

So, what can we conclude from this? Worship of God is not confined to a particular day in the week nor a particular place. Now we can worship God “in spirit and in truth” anywhere at anytime. Going through a set of rituals does not guarantee that a person is truly worshiping God nor can we assume that if a person does not go through that same set of rituals that he is not worshiping God. But, if we sit in judgment over those who choose to worship God on a different day or in a fashion varied from ours, then we are not being true worshipers of Christ. And, if we sit in judgment over someone who says the word “holiday” instead of “Christmas,” then we are not being true worshipers of God. If we condemn and criticize people because they do not do things like we do them (man’s rules, not God’s), and yet we do not even live like we profess, then are we not hypocritical? Are we not like the Pharisees who Jesus regularly chided for their hypocrisy?

Recently a waitress told me that it is the Christians who come into the restaurants for lunch after church and it is their ungodly behaviors that keep her from going to church. Yes, Christians are the guilty ones, not the merchants who have opened their doors earlier on Sunday or that have removed the word “Christmas” from their holiday greeting, nor is it the church leaders who have decided that it would be better to have worship services on other days other than Christmas day so that their members could spend that day with their families. No, my friends, it is the common every day Christians who are taking Christ out of Christmas by their judgmentalism, their hypocrisy, their legalism, their misunderstanding of what it means to truly worship God, their misinterpretation of “church,” their prejudice towards anyone who does not think and act as they think and act (again, man’s rules, not God’s), and by their spiritual pride that looks down on those who do not follow the same “religious” rituals as they adhere to.

In many cases, it is those same Christians who will yell at another driver for cutting them off in traffic or for not going fast enough for their tastes because they love to go over the speed limit, and it is those same Christians, perhaps, who are more wrapped up in their own lives and their church meetings than they are in reaching out a helping hand to a neighbor or someone in need, and it is those same Christians who will get frustrated if they have to stand in a line too long or will yell and scream at their spouses and kids because they get on their nerves, and who will replace family time with the TV, and it is those same Christians who seem to never have time to spend even 5 minutes a day with the Lord in His word because they are too “busy,” and they are just as much in the rat race in the whole commercialism of Christmas as the non-Christians and they teach their kids that there is a Santa Clause who remarkably has all the same attributes as the God to whom they are to have no other gods before HIM. Many of them talk, walk and behave just like those who do not claim to be Christians and yet they are the first to “fuss” when someone dares to say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.”

So, my question remains, “Who is taking Christ out of Christmas?” I contend that it may well be the very ones who are complaining that Christ is being removed. They just don’t see that they are the ones who have removed him, and they did it a long time ago.

Who am I? I am a Christian. I have included myself in that group of Christians, because every time I behave in an ungodly manner around those I am trying to reach for Christ, I am taking Christ out of Christmas. I ask God to examine my heart every day to show me the sin that is there in my heart, and I ask him again this morning to show me my own hypocrisies so that I may repent of them and turn to God in faith and obedience. We all need to examine our hearts daily to see if we have fallen into the trap of taking Christ out of Christmas by how we celebrate Christmas, and just by our very lives. I believe with all my heart that if the Christians in this world of ours would stop pointing their fingers at others and would begin to take the "logs" out of their own eyes, Christ would be back in Christmas BIG TIME, because we would be experiencing a revival in our nation unlike anything we have ever known. When Christians get on their knees and begin to call on God in repentance, then Christ will return to Christmas!
 
I agree with your post#18. And I have already said that we should be celebrating each day, the birth and resurrection of Christ. I agree with your statement about "christians" taking Christ out of Christmas, as well. But then we have allowed the world to take our joy. We have allowed the world to convince us that we can all celebrate, whatever, without God. And to me - that is taking my joy. And only each person can allow or disallow this. This year, as most recent years, I will spend Christmas with God. No gift giving - no tree or decoration but mainly because I can't be bothered. I remember the trees and gifts and love of family through the years and I remember the love of God. To go in the total opposite direction is to let the world win. As I said, in the OT, feasts/celebration of a nation (Israel) was asked for. And I will celebrate Christ on Christmas even if I am the only one in my nation to do so. I will not take Christ out of Christmas.
 
Every day of the year is dedicated to paganism.
What to do?
I know, we should all go live on Mars.
No that won't do because Mars is a pagan god of war.
Maybe when we discover a new planet we should name it Grace.
But we must not launch ourselves using a Titan rocket lest we take paganism with us.
A thought......If we were to rename Mars..... 'Grace', would 'Grace' still be the pagan Mars or would it by Grace henceforth be 'Grace'?
 
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