Post by Rob W. Case on Dec 21, 2009 0:46:19 GMT -6
Full Title: Understanding the True Spirit of Christmas
Editor's Note: This article was a part of my 2009 Christmas radio program. If you would like to read it in its current transcribed form, then I welcome you to do so. If you would like to listen, or watch the segment on YouTube, then please click on....
www.youtube.com/watch?v=za7iVx_YTW0&feature=channel
and
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ESvK4SdmCQ&feature=channel
If I came up to you and asked you how what the spirit of Christmas means to you, how would you respond? Let’s see if your answers would match the answers I would expect if I did ask. I think that if I asked that question some would answer saying that the Spirit of Christmas is about being with your friends or relatives for the Holidays. Yet the reality for too many people is that spending Christmas with their loved ones, if they go so far as to actually call them “loved” ones often becomes a chore, as many people try to get through the Holidays tolerating the behaviors of some of these so called “loved ones”, or putting up with the annoying quirks and/or their polarizing, controversial opinions. I would also expect people to answer that the true spirit of Christmas is about giving. Yes, this is true, though up to a point. But the giving they are hinting at is of a different nature. The giving that is most identified in this world resides in the purchases and exchanges of many materialistic goods. Tis the season to stimulate the economy and take advantage of some of the impressive sales out there. This is the season where it is essential for businesses to convince you to buy their product. And there’s nothing wrong with that. After all, everybody needs to make some money. But that shouldn’t be all the holiday is about. While Christmas day virtually becomes a deadline to have your presents bought, wrapped, and ready for presentation, advertisers are desperate to take the fullest advantage of the “crunch time” before the day those presents are presented. But is this really the spirit of Christmas? The world seems to subscribe to this form of thinking. But I’ll tell you, it is not by far the true spirit of Christmas.
So then what is the true spirit of Christmas, and what differentiates the view relating to the way the world celebrates it, and the way it ought to be celebrated? Let’s spend some time and really examine this.
Every person has a body, and within that body resides a soul. When each and every person is born, that person is born into a system, a system that shapes their opinions, establishes their sense of morality and whether or not it actually works in society, and that person has a certain outlook on life that works for them. And yet, among all of this, they encounter awareness of a certain being, a being that says he created them, a being that says he loves them, and a being that says he wants to establish a kingdom with them. And yet, due to our disregard for him, our disobedience to him, and our own choice to do what we want to do, there arises a problem. This problem is that there is something in the way that prevents you from gaining access to this being, and that something is called sin.
In the light of God’s perfect righteousness, we are sinners. Sin is a direct violation against a direct order or designed purpose. We choose to violate this being’s laws and go against his pre-destined designs because we have been enticed by another being that is adversarial to the first one, to engage in some of the physical, mental, or psychological gratifications that are connected with violating them. Satan, whose name means “the adversary” in the English language not only introduces to people, but promotes to people the pleasures connected with violating God’s laws and predestined purposes.
That is why there are so many addictions in this world. When man does these things, he lies condemned in the presence of a perfect being we call God, and while condemned, continuing to do the very things that this God inquires against, man shortens his life and brings himself closer and closer to reaching that point of condemnation. But God did something that was radically strange. In grace, he sacrificed the life of his son, so that we who violate his laws and predestined purpose can have a chance to get out of our pre-destined condemnation. You see, Satan’s condemnation is recorded in the scriptures, as well as his pre-destined punishment. Satan pulled us under his power by enticing us to do the very same things he did when he rebelled against God and violated God’s laws and perfect order himself. Satan tried to get us to repeat those violations to purposely pull us away from God’s presence and cause us to descend to his level and punishment.
We, like the adversary, are immersed in chaos as a result. We are mired in dysfunction, and we don’t always have it all together. But God did something not only out of love, but of grace (undeserved favor). He sends his son to die for us. With the most radical, unmatched form of love, God offers us a way out by sacrificing his son, a perfect and powerful member of His Kingdom, His family, who did no wrong, nor deserved anything but the very best, to die thee most agonizing, painful, and brutal form of torture in the world so that we may be offered a choice to escape the ultimate punishment for our adversarial nature.
The Ultimate Gift Exchange:
What do we have to offer God? Absolutely nothing. What does he have to offer us? Everything, including eternal life in his presence. Why does he offer us everything while we offer nothing? Because he loves us with a love so immeasurable and so great, that the human intellect can grasp only fragments, and human hands can only write about in small doses, but the measure of his love is so large, that a person’s choice to connect with God causes celebrations in his Kingdom. That’s how important you are to him. In love, God simply offered a way to exchange our sins for his son’s righteousness. How do you explain it the way this world would understand? Ah, here’s a way. Let’s say you owned an unpresentable vehicle and you were expected at an elegant, fancy place with an extravagant presentation. You have a really beaten up vehicle that gets you around, but is badly damaged and needs work. Then somebody comes up to you and says that he will trade you your vehicle for a brand new one, and one that will last forever.
2 Corinthians 5:21
God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God’s approval through him. (God’s Word Translation)
All you have to do to receive God’s gift of eternal life is believe that Christ died, was buried, and rose again, and through direct prayer to him, acknowledge to him that you are a sinner and that you regret having committed those sins. Then, after you have done those things, ask him personally to come into your heart to help change your life for the better and to fit his approval. God sees the sincerity in your heart in asking such a thing, and replaces your sins for Christ’s righteousness. That means that when you die, not only are you not condemned anymore for your violations against God, you become a member of the Kingdom of God.
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
--Lyrics from the classic Christmas song “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlmen”
Here is the essence of the spirit of Christmas. Love for those who do not deserve it, which is immeasurably demonstrated through Sacrifice. When you give somebody a gift, that gift is a symbol of the sacrifice you made for them, because it took something away from you that you can never get back (money, time, energy invested in effort). Think about the sacrifice God made for you. It was a sacrifice of such incredible magnitude, that it not only made the history books, but the man who was sent became the sole centerpiece of human history altogether. The Spirit also offers Joy, for there is always hope in hopeless situations and when all hope seems lost. Peace, in the sense that with a changed heart, and with the help and assistance of the Holy Spirit, many of the cares and concerns of this fallen world become more meaningless and pointless to dwell on as one grows in his faith.
If everyone possessed these traits and were genuine in their possessions of them, every form of greed, envy, war, slander, and every other trait that brings out the worst in people would essentially be obsolete because in this world two forces are constantly in battle with each other. The spirit of selfishness comprised of personal gratification, a lust for power, money, and control of others, and a spirit of selflessness comprised of not only a yearn to have God’s approval, but also the yearning to possess the wisdom, patience, and endurance to prevail against the lure of the other spirit who controls this world’s system and through it, so desperately yearns to hold us in its grasp. God’s gift is for everybody who is willing to accept it.
Editor's Note: This article was a part of my 2009 Christmas radio program. If you would like to read it in its current transcribed form, then I welcome you to do so. If you would like to listen, or watch the segment on YouTube, then please click on....
www.youtube.com/watch?v=za7iVx_YTW0&feature=channel
and
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ESvK4SdmCQ&feature=channel
If I came up to you and asked you how what the spirit of Christmas means to you, how would you respond? Let’s see if your answers would match the answers I would expect if I did ask. I think that if I asked that question some would answer saying that the Spirit of Christmas is about being with your friends or relatives for the Holidays. Yet the reality for too many people is that spending Christmas with their loved ones, if they go so far as to actually call them “loved” ones often becomes a chore, as many people try to get through the Holidays tolerating the behaviors of some of these so called “loved ones”, or putting up with the annoying quirks and/or their polarizing, controversial opinions. I would also expect people to answer that the true spirit of Christmas is about giving. Yes, this is true, though up to a point. But the giving they are hinting at is of a different nature. The giving that is most identified in this world resides in the purchases and exchanges of many materialistic goods. Tis the season to stimulate the economy and take advantage of some of the impressive sales out there. This is the season where it is essential for businesses to convince you to buy their product. And there’s nothing wrong with that. After all, everybody needs to make some money. But that shouldn’t be all the holiday is about. While Christmas day virtually becomes a deadline to have your presents bought, wrapped, and ready for presentation, advertisers are desperate to take the fullest advantage of the “crunch time” before the day those presents are presented. But is this really the spirit of Christmas? The world seems to subscribe to this form of thinking. But I’ll tell you, it is not by far the true spirit of Christmas.
So then what is the true spirit of Christmas, and what differentiates the view relating to the way the world celebrates it, and the way it ought to be celebrated? Let’s spend some time and really examine this.
Every person has a body, and within that body resides a soul. When each and every person is born, that person is born into a system, a system that shapes their opinions, establishes their sense of morality and whether or not it actually works in society, and that person has a certain outlook on life that works for them. And yet, among all of this, they encounter awareness of a certain being, a being that says he created them, a being that says he loves them, and a being that says he wants to establish a kingdom with them. And yet, due to our disregard for him, our disobedience to him, and our own choice to do what we want to do, there arises a problem. This problem is that there is something in the way that prevents you from gaining access to this being, and that something is called sin.
In the light of God’s perfect righteousness, we are sinners. Sin is a direct violation against a direct order or designed purpose. We choose to violate this being’s laws and go against his pre-destined designs because we have been enticed by another being that is adversarial to the first one, to engage in some of the physical, mental, or psychological gratifications that are connected with violating them. Satan, whose name means “the adversary” in the English language not only introduces to people, but promotes to people the pleasures connected with violating God’s laws and predestined purposes.
That is why there are so many addictions in this world. When man does these things, he lies condemned in the presence of a perfect being we call God, and while condemned, continuing to do the very things that this God inquires against, man shortens his life and brings himself closer and closer to reaching that point of condemnation. But God did something that was radically strange. In grace, he sacrificed the life of his son, so that we who violate his laws and predestined purpose can have a chance to get out of our pre-destined condemnation. You see, Satan’s condemnation is recorded in the scriptures, as well as his pre-destined punishment. Satan pulled us under his power by enticing us to do the very same things he did when he rebelled against God and violated God’s laws and perfect order himself. Satan tried to get us to repeat those violations to purposely pull us away from God’s presence and cause us to descend to his level and punishment.
We, like the adversary, are immersed in chaos as a result. We are mired in dysfunction, and we don’t always have it all together. But God did something not only out of love, but of grace (undeserved favor). He sends his son to die for us. With the most radical, unmatched form of love, God offers us a way out by sacrificing his son, a perfect and powerful member of His Kingdom, His family, who did no wrong, nor deserved anything but the very best, to die thee most agonizing, painful, and brutal form of torture in the world so that we may be offered a choice to escape the ultimate punishment for our adversarial nature.
The Ultimate Gift Exchange:
What do we have to offer God? Absolutely nothing. What does he have to offer us? Everything, including eternal life in his presence. Why does he offer us everything while we offer nothing? Because he loves us with a love so immeasurable and so great, that the human intellect can grasp only fragments, and human hands can only write about in small doses, but the measure of his love is so large, that a person’s choice to connect with God causes celebrations in his Kingdom. That’s how important you are to him. In love, God simply offered a way to exchange our sins for his son’s righteousness. How do you explain it the way this world would understand? Ah, here’s a way. Let’s say you owned an unpresentable vehicle and you were expected at an elegant, fancy place with an extravagant presentation. You have a really beaten up vehicle that gets you around, but is badly damaged and needs work. Then somebody comes up to you and says that he will trade you your vehicle for a brand new one, and one that will last forever.
2 Corinthians 5:21
God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God’s approval through him. (God’s Word Translation)
All you have to do to receive God’s gift of eternal life is believe that Christ died, was buried, and rose again, and through direct prayer to him, acknowledge to him that you are a sinner and that you regret having committed those sins. Then, after you have done those things, ask him personally to come into your heart to help change your life for the better and to fit his approval. God sees the sincerity in your heart in asking such a thing, and replaces your sins for Christ’s righteousness. That means that when you die, not only are you not condemned anymore for your violations against God, you become a member of the Kingdom of God.
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
--Lyrics from the classic Christmas song “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlmen”
Here is the essence of the spirit of Christmas. Love for those who do not deserve it, which is immeasurably demonstrated through Sacrifice. When you give somebody a gift, that gift is a symbol of the sacrifice you made for them, because it took something away from you that you can never get back (money, time, energy invested in effort). Think about the sacrifice God made for you. It was a sacrifice of such incredible magnitude, that it not only made the history books, but the man who was sent became the sole centerpiece of human history altogether. The Spirit also offers Joy, for there is always hope in hopeless situations and when all hope seems lost. Peace, in the sense that with a changed heart, and with the help and assistance of the Holy Spirit, many of the cares and concerns of this fallen world become more meaningless and pointless to dwell on as one grows in his faith.
If everyone possessed these traits and were genuine in their possessions of them, every form of greed, envy, war, slander, and every other trait that brings out the worst in people would essentially be obsolete because in this world two forces are constantly in battle with each other. The spirit of selfishness comprised of personal gratification, a lust for power, money, and control of others, and a spirit of selflessness comprised of not only a yearn to have God’s approval, but also the yearning to possess the wisdom, patience, and endurance to prevail against the lure of the other spirit who controls this world’s system and through it, so desperately yearns to hold us in its grasp. God’s gift is for everybody who is willing to accept it.