The most wonderful time of the year?

 

This is a busy time of the year. Sometimes you are afraid to venture on the streets, into the shopping malls, or even to go to your regular supermarket. Why?  It’s the silly season, as some would say, because of what goes on at Christmas time all in the name of Jesus Christ, who was never really in Christmas in the first place. We know, your pastors know, theologians accept this truth, scholars, too, and that is Jesus was not born on December 25. Most of the activities surrounding the celebration have roots in paganism.

The Christmas season is ‘the most wonderful time of the year’ we often hear.  Many activities are going on: excessive shopping, family get-togethers, dinners, parties, travelling, drinking, you name it.

The carols echo across malls, in homes, workplaces in some cases, the media, concerts, and just about everywhere. The Christmas message is ubiquitous – it’s everywhere!

Christmas transcends all races, nationalities, languages, and even religions. Christmas has become entrenched in many different cultures and seem more of a secular holiday than a religious one. Some religions, while may not be taking part in the religious aspect of the holiday, have their own way of celebrating it. At the same time, Christmas seems to be taking on a more secular tone than a religious one nowadays, hence the ongoing calls to put Christ back into Christmas.

On the other hand, the reality is Christ was never in Christmas from the beginning and the Holy Bible does not sanction it. Given the secular overtones and undertones of Christmas, the holiday is moving into a commercial direction that is unstoppable. Why? When the mighty dollar is involved, anything goes, and when just about anything goes, sinning becomes the norm.

However, such a move should never surprise anyone. The fact is Christmas has its origins in the pagan-Roman holidays, Saturnalia, Winter Solstice, Natalis Invicti ( December 25 birthday of the Unconquerable Sun) and the sun god Mithra, and these celebrations were known to be an orgy of sorts – from gift-giving and drunkenness to immoral sexual practices. What a day to pick for our Saviour’s birthday?

Here’s a question for observers of Christmas to ponder in the twenty-first century. How do the pagan-rooted holidays from which Christmas derives, differ from the celebrations of the pagan world back then? What do Christmas trees, Santa Claus, etc have to do with the birthday of Christ? If you’re truly a Bible-believing Christian, as many like to say, your conscience will tell you this holiday has nothing to do with Christ. He has never been in it from day one!

People continue to come up with all kinds of justification to keep Christmas. You hear touching sermons sometimes; goodwill gestures, love flowing everywhere (sins too) and so people conclude there is some good to this holiday. While the intent is sincere, the premise is wrong. Plain and simple – God says not to worship him that way. Ex. 32 is a plain example. When Israel became impatient for Moses to return from Sinai, Aaron collected jewelry from the people. Verse 4: And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf.Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!” ⁵ So when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.” (my emphasis).   What did YAHWEH say abiout this feast to Him.

⁷ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ ” ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and indeed it is a ^[b]stiff-necked people! ¹⁰ Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may ^[c]consume them.

God does not accept this kind of worship. If he wanted us to celebrate His birthday, He would have given us the date, and He would tell us, too, that we should celebrate it. How ironic that He did tell us to observe His death (Passover, not Easter, another pagan festival) and only a tiny minority of Christians observe the New Testament Passover?

Perhaps it’s a good thing that Christ was never in Christmas. Why? It’s the time of the year when most sins appear to be committed. When you examine all the activities, be it drunkenness, gluttony, envy, sexual immorality, greed, all manner of crimes, drug abuse, and the other excesses, which other time of the year garners such sinful practices. This is something that is worth thinking about this holiday season. If the things of God matter to you, then you have an obligation to even pause to reflect on what goes on during ‘the most wonderful time of the year.’ For more on this subject, download FREE our booklet, FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT CHRISTMAS.
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Horane Smith