Every year, at Christmas, my heart cries, and every year it becomes harder to bear that so many people, so bluntly and shamelessly, seem to "forget" about the real Christian meaning of the feast, and superficially, surrogately and almost desperately try to give meaning to it with food, drinks, gifts, decorations, family & friends and highly decorated houses, gardens and Christmas trees. Many seem not to be interested at all anymore in the deeper understanding of it, but at the same time often blame God for all the bad things that happen in the world, while God, according to them, would be doing nothing. What those people blame on God is unjustified. It simply isn’t true that God doesn't or didn’t do anything. On the contrary. Rather the opposite! Christmas proves it already; God gave it all to save us all! He gave His only begotten Son to die in our place. That still stands and it still applies today! ‘The office is still open!’ He did everything He could do to prove to us He is God. He unmistakenly and clearly revealed Himself! What more could He have done? Christ, the Word, came into the world (John 1). He was God and He was in the beginning with God. He did all the miracles, including rising from the death. What more evidence do you need? Would that even convince you if what He already has proven didn't have the intended effect on you? What He did was enough. You only have to accept it. But you can't ignore what God did, in what Jesus did, and at the same time blame God for 'doing nothing'. That would really be bad, don't you think?
So, what a neglect would it be and what a total mistake, to celebrate Christmas without Christ and to ignore Him alltogether! However, the commercialization of Christmas has proven to be a very effective way to neutralize the message of Christmas, so that people still seem to be able to celebrate the feast abundantly, but ‘in His face’, so to speak, while, at the same time, ignoring Him or the work He did. That is in fact very painful and basically a total insult to what He did for us! With that, Christ is, figuratively speaking, being ‘cut off’ out of 'the land of the living' (,although in the original Bible verse, Isaiah 53:8 it was meant literally); here/now referring to our current present world of living people, today! He largely has been 'cut out' of the feast', which was all about Him in the very first place. People increasingly celebrate Christmas now withouth even giving it a 2nd thought about its real meaning and/or consequence for them personally. Parts of the message may still be vaguely used, like in commercial Christmas songs, still (ab-)using fragments of the original message in one way or another (like child/manger/born, etc), but in such a way that people have become totally immune or numb for its real and original Christian meaning as the Christian holiday to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ was intended. That annoys me and I can’t stand that the truth, the factuality and the actuality of the real meaning of Christmas is more and more neglected to an irreversible point of no return, or so it seems. You see and hear that on TV/Radio/Internet all the time, but, sadly enough, also in Christian church services, and with that Christmas has been effectively made powerless and robbed from its meaningful content and personal message. It has become a romantic fairy tale story, which may be still be inspiring or hopeful and everyone turns it into his/her own meaning, according to his/her liking. Many seem to have totally adopted to the worldy feast and fully celebrate it in such a manner, but not much more than that. With that, it more and more has become a 'hollow feast', compared to what it originally stands for and meant to people.
God, Jesus, seems to be forgotten and/or neglected. However, and luckily, — God is patient. He is loving and He’s kind. He is still waiting! It is still the time of mercy. We live in the final days; the end-time. He’s just waiting for you to convert and to become obedient to the Gospel. That’s the sole reason why He came to this earth, to give His live on the cross for you to be saved. And that’s the reason why He does not come again yet. He wants everyone to believe in Him and to be saved. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). But, you should realize that time is definitely running out and you must be saved! (Acts 4:12)
'Saved from what', you might ask? Saved from hell and from eternal punishment! People don’t want to hear that anymore, but it still is the truth and nothing but the truth (see: here). And so it must be mentioned. It can't be left out. Without Him, we are all totally lost! He (Jesus) realized that very well. And that's why He came to the earth! That's why He became man. You don’t feel bad, or rather quite the opposite? Most people tend to think good of themselves, in their own eyes. But, what matters is; we are sinful in His eyes! 'There is no-one who does good, not even one, there is no one who seeks God', the Bible says in Romans 3:10-12. But, 'rigteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.' (Romans 3:22)
At this time you might think: 'What does 'becoming saved' have to do with the celebration of Christmas?' Well, although in many churches one only focuses on the birth of the Christ-child, Christmas really means: 'From the cradle to the cross. From the cross to the grave. From the grave to being alive'. He came to die, conquer death and rise again; a new creation, and therefore a new life, in and through the resurrection of Jesus Christ is awaiting us. That is and was the goal; implicitly incorporated in the celebration of Christmas. New and everlasting life is instantly awaiting you by faith, which, founded on Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, restores the otherwise unbridgeable gap with God. That's the sole reason why He came. He came to die for us and carry away the sin of the world. Without that, Christmas is incomplete. And if you ‘cut’ Jesus out of Christmas, in what it means for us, it becomes a totally hollow and empty feast, which then basically is nothing more than a blasphemy on the sacrifice that He once made, the reason for which He came to the earth. So, if you happened to have celebrated Christmas without the full work of Christ until now, I would say to you: “Turn to Jesus, who came into the world and did all the miracles to prove He’s God, including conquering death and rising up from it. Give Him your live! He came for you to die for you! Bow at the cradle and bow at the cross!” Most people today think their health is everything. But, what then about your spiritual health? What about your soul? Where will you spend eternity? In heaven or in hell? There is only one way to go to heaven: Jesus. That is the only one way to be saved and to be reconciled with God. He was born, to be wounded for our transgressions, and to be bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). Christ came into the world with one purpose alone. To set us free from eternal death and to ‘heal’ us, to entirely cure you and me for good, forever. But, you must realize that you have inherited a deadly 'disease' within, which must be cured, or you'll die (= eternal/2nd death). Only then you'll take and accept the cure. You must realize you're doomed to death, because of your deadly disease within, called 'sin'. That is why repentance is necessary. You must be remorseful and come to the realization that within you there is no good and you need Christ's sacrifice. Only then, by God's grace, and by the work of the Holy Spirit on your heart, you'll see yourself in the light of God and suddenly realize the state you're in and then you desperately feel the urgent need of Jesus' sacrifice for you and you'll immediately take it, or even grasp it with both hands. That's what repentance does. It makes us aware of who we are, in God's eyes and before a Holy God. God cannot bear sin nor tolerate it in His presence. He can't overlook it and He can't condone it. And with that, we have a big problem.
For, as you probably know, since the Fall of Adam and Eve, we all have an inborn 'disease' called ‘sin’. With that we just can’t survive. We are sinners and we sin. This is the solution God provided: Only because Jesus came and was born for us on this earth and died for us on the cross; only therefore can we be saved, by faith in Him. He was born to take away the sin of the world; to take away your sin and your guilt! It was totally finished, there on that cross! It was enough and it was sufficient. There He died in our place, while we deserved the punishment and death! If you care about your health, care about your life, you definitely and seriously should care about this. Let Him take away your sin and your guilt! Give Him your heart and become born again, become healed and then really be able to celebrate upcoming Christmas in its full meaning. Become a new creation and instantly receive everlasting life. Do it now! There is no time to waste. 150.000 people die each day, on average. You don’t know when your time has come. You can only make it up with God, while yet being alive. After that, it’s too late! It is not true that if you don’t choose to be faithful it won’t effect you (as if it would only effect those who believe in it and no one else). No, it will, because ‘whoever does not believe is condemned already because he has have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.’ (John 3:18). Jesus came to the earth to solve our problem! Grasp His solution with both hands!
This is God's promise:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:16, 17)
I urgently implore you, on behalf of Jesus Christ, be reconciled to God! Repent and believe and you’ll be saved! Don't postpone. Do it now, while you still can!
So, from now on, no longer celebrate Christmas without Christ, who was born to die for you!