Who really doesn’t love their birthday? For a full twenty-four hours, you are celebrated. Gifts, cards, cake: it’s all a celebration just for you. In addition, who doesn’t love your best friend’s birthday? That one day of the year where you shower your friend with even more love than before. You remind them how much they mean to you and how much you truly care about them.
The Christmas season is about celebrating Christ’s coming to the Earth. For years upon years, the world had waited for the child that was prophesied in Isaiah.
“For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” - Isaiah 9:6
Now if I was around during that time period, and heard of someone who was to be born and called “Wonderful Counselor and Mighty God,” I would be pretty eager for this man’s coming. This is not an ordinary man who is to be born, but the Son of God. That alone is a birthday worth celebrating.
But it does not stop with him being born the Son of God. This Son did not waste his time on Earth. He brings healing to the weary and guidance to the lost. Even more, he literally takes our punishment for our sin, our mistakes, and sacrifices his perfect, sinless self for us. John 15:13 says “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” This Son who was born performed the greatest act of love for us. A man who loves us with that great of love deserves to be celebrated on a whole new level than we celebrate our close friends.
A man who had angels from heaven singing praises because of his coming deserves the upmost celebration from us, yet we seem to only recognize that for a small amount of time. We shower our friends with gifts, social media posts, love, cake, and so much more on their birthday, but we cover our Savior’s birthday with worldly presents (that one day will not be enough since we ask for more the next year), Christmas movies, Santa Claus, and tacky parties. In the midst of those things, we fail to simply be grateful, joyful, and generous.
The Christmas season is a celebration of Christ’s coming. A man who is worth celebrating every day, every hour, and every second. Is it too much to ask to take one time out of the year to thank God for sending his son to this Earth because of our faithlessness? Is it too much to take one time out of the year to speak thankfulness to the Lord? Is it too much to take one time out of the year to shout praises along with the angels for the coming of our King?
Jesus is worth celebrating as much and more than our friends and family. Make his celebration known.
