Christmas without Christ?
What is Christmas for you? Many people have different reasons to celebrate Christmas; including time for vacation, parties, travel, shopping and reunions. However, the main reason for the celebration is not normally remembered, it is now Christmas without Christ. This is very unfortunate and needs to be corrected in the minds and lives of Christians. This article encourages believers in Christ to focus more on Jesus during the Christmas season because He is the reason for the celebration.
Because we have been born a child, we have been given a son ... - Isaiah 9: 6 (NKJV).
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem ... and when they came into the house ... And when they opened their treasures, they gave gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh - Matthew 2: 1, 11 (NKJV).
Christmas has changed to celebrations other than the celebration of the birth of Jesus. What is Christmas without Christ? Unbelievers celebrate it without knowing the reason for the season. The children are more after "Santa", the Christmas gifts, lights and decorations. People prepare so much for this celebration, yet most people do not meet with Christ as part of the preparation.
Christmas is the accepted birthday for Jesus Christ, so the celebration must all be focused on Him. When you celebrate your birthday, the celebration is focused on you. People gather because of you, the preparations are for the people who come because of you, the prayers are said for you and the gifts are for you. Sometimes people even ask you what you want for your birthday and they are ready to do exactly what you want. But during Christ's birthday, the highest time spent on churches is to dramatize the birth of Jesus Christ and preach about his birth. This is good, but we have to do more than that.
What will you do this Christmas for and because of Jesus? Jesus was given by God the Father to save us because of his love for us. An important thing that you can do is thank God for giving Christ to us. Thank God also for Jesus and for everything He had done in your life. It should be a time of thanksgiving for God. The birth of the Lord has produced so many blessings from God, including the salvation of our souls.
Moreover, the celebration of the birth of Christ is a celebration of the love of God that goes with giving. You must ask the Lord what He wants you to do for him and do exactly that. That will be a wonderful gift from you, for which He would really appreciate and reward you. Jesus still accepts gifts. This gift could be cash or in kind for the spread of the gospel. It could be by sharing the love of Jesus with others by meeting their needs, both spiritual and physical, by emphasizing that Jesus loves them and that they are part of the reason why He was born. Christmas celebration must be focused on Christ.
What else can I say? The best Christmas is one at the feet of Jesus. Decide to spend time with Christ this season and you will be glad that you did, because you will never be the same again. There is no real Christmas without Christ!
