Well, it's that time of year again.
Time for people to plaster lights all over their property, inflate giant Santa Clause dolls in their front yards, and spend countless hours and dollars getting into the "spirit" of the holiday. In spite of hearing "Merry Christmas" three hundred times a day, suicide rates go up, and self control goes out the window.
What has happened to the spirit of Christmas?
Better yet, what in the heck is the spirit of Christmas?
I have been mulling this over for a long time now, and I have come to the conclusion that because John said, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God" (1John 4:1), it is time to test the "Spirit of Christmas". If you are still celebrating this holiday as a Christian, there are a few things you should be looking into.
The first thing you will notice, is that virtually nothing concerning Christmas in "from God". That is, it is not in His Word, and it is not commanded by Him. Sure, He was born; even born in Bethlehem, but from the manger scene to the tree, none of it is scriptural, or scripturally accurate.
It may sound like small details, but we are to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:24). The magi visited Mary, Joseph and Yeshua at a house - nearly two years after He was born (hence Herod's order to kill the boys 2 and under). Go back and re-read Matthew Ch. 2.
Aside from all of the distorted accounts according to scripture, there is the problem with the Pagan roots of the symbols; the tree, the wreeths, the gifts, the mistletoe, the fat bearded guy, the "yule log", and on goes the list.
Christians know these things, but tend to think that they are doing it for the right reasons; "This may be the only knowledge of Jesus the non-Christians will get" is the reasoning. "We know it has Pagan origins, but it is an opportunity to tell people of the birth of the Savior". Is this reasoning taught by our Messiah in His Word? Nope, He taught the opposite. We are to be a peculiar people to this world - we are to obey His teachings at all cost.
"...but we don't worship the tree."
One of His teachings says not to worship Him as the Pagans do (Deut 12:32).
Remember when Yeshua was talking about trumping God's Commandments for man's tradition? (read Matt 15)
Please, please look up the origins of this holiday for yourself. Pagans laugh at Christians because of contradictions like this. A Wiccan that I work with actually told me that Christmas was a big "selling point" when spreading the Pagan message. They say something like this: "Why would you believe what Christians say, when they don't even know what their own bible says? They say they serve the one true god, but then they steel our practices to worship him - which he tells them not to do!"
God tells us, "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles". Don't even learn it, let alone practice it and incorporate it into the worship of Him!
Read Jeremiah 10 before you start decorating, and remember that we are to flee from even the appearance of evil.
...and what is more evil than something that claims to be from God, and is not?
Lets be like the he Bereans, who "received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:10-11)
Happy Chanukah!
Time for people to plaster lights all over their property, inflate giant Santa Clause dolls in their front yards, and spend countless hours and dollars getting into the "spirit" of the holiday. In spite of hearing "Merry Christmas" three hundred times a day, suicide rates go up, and self control goes out the window.
What has happened to the spirit of Christmas?
Better yet, what in the heck is the spirit of Christmas?
I have been mulling this over for a long time now, and I have come to the conclusion that because John said, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God" (1John 4:1), it is time to test the "Spirit of Christmas". If you are still celebrating this holiday as a Christian, there are a few things you should be looking into.
The first thing you will notice, is that virtually nothing concerning Christmas in "from God". That is, it is not in His Word, and it is not commanded by Him. Sure, He was born; even born in Bethlehem, but from the manger scene to the tree, none of it is scriptural, or scripturally accurate.
It may sound like small details, but we are to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:24). The magi visited Mary, Joseph and Yeshua at a house - nearly two years after He was born (hence Herod's order to kill the boys 2 and under). Go back and re-read Matthew Ch. 2.
Aside from all of the distorted accounts according to scripture, there is the problem with the Pagan roots of the symbols; the tree, the wreeths, the gifts, the mistletoe, the fat bearded guy, the "yule log", and on goes the list.
Christians know these things, but tend to think that they are doing it for the right reasons; "This may be the only knowledge of Jesus the non-Christians will get" is the reasoning. "We know it has Pagan origins, but it is an opportunity to tell people of the birth of the Savior". Is this reasoning taught by our Messiah in His Word? Nope, He taught the opposite. We are to be a peculiar people to this world - we are to obey His teachings at all cost.
"...but we don't worship the tree."
One of His teachings says not to worship Him as the Pagans do (Deut 12:32).
Remember when Yeshua was talking about trumping God's Commandments for man's tradition? (read Matt 15)
Please, please look up the origins of this holiday for yourself. Pagans laugh at Christians because of contradictions like this. A Wiccan that I work with actually told me that Christmas was a big "selling point" when spreading the Pagan message. They say something like this: "Why would you believe what Christians say, when they don't even know what their own bible says? They say they serve the one true god, but then they steel our practices to worship him - which he tells them not to do!"
God tells us, "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles". Don't even learn it, let alone practice it and incorporate it into the worship of Him!
Read Jeremiah 10 before you start decorating, and remember that we are to flee from even the appearance of evil.
...and what is more evil than something that claims to be from God, and is not?
Lets be like the he Bereans, who "received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:10-11)
Happy Chanukah!
