"He is the reason for the season". We have heard this phrase be thrown around so many times. We see it every year all over Christmas cards, store widows, wreaths, and social media news feeds from the end of November all the way until Christmas has passed. Obviously, we know that what all of these are referring to; they are referring to remembering that the reason we celebrate Christmas is because we are celebrating Christ's birth into the human world. Where this is true, too often than not we fail to recognize that it is not solely the birth of Jesus that we are celebrating, it is his birth, death, resurrection, and the new life that was given to us through Him and though the grace of God that we should be celebrating.
Without the death and resurrection of Jesus, His birth story, is just that; a nice story. It does not hold real meaning until we consider that He was born specifically to die, and that His death would not be the end, but the beginning of real life for us through His sacrifice. Now, do not get me wrong, the birth narrative was put into scripture for a purpose; to fulfill the prophecies of Jesus' birth from the Old Testament, and to emphasize the humanity of Christ. However, what we should be considering this Christmas, is not just recognizing His birth, but giving thanks for the life that we are able to live, free from fear, free from shame, as a result of Jesus' birth, death, and resurrection. The veil has been torn! We can now have a personal relationship with God because "God so loved the world that He sent his only son so that all who believe in him shall not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
Eternal, and fearless life we are given because of the sacrifice Jesus had made for us on the cross. A sacrifice that we are not worthy of, the blood shed should have been ours. Even though Jesus had lived a perfect, sinless life, we chose to kill him; and yet he said while dying an innocent, unjust death, "forgive them Father, for they know not what they do"(Luke 23:34). By the grace of God we were still given a second chance at life. Every day we act in ways that make us unworthy of Gods' love, but we are no longer held down by our sins! We serve a God of Love and a God of life. We can now love and be loved, we do not have to live in fear or despair because we have the Holy Spirit in us and with us. This is something worth celebrating! Had Jesus not been born, we would not be living the life we do today. This is what we need to be recognizing during the Christmas season. Christmas is more than just a birthday party, it is a time to give thanks for the real life that we have been given through the birth, death, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas.
Biblical References:
Old Testament Prophecies-Micah 5;2, Isaiah 7:14,
Regarding the Veil Being Torn- Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:38, Luke 23;45
