We celebrate Christmas every year, hear and sing the same songs, and enjoy giving gifts to friends and family. It’s a time of festivity, Christmas movies, lots of food, and Christmas cheer. Then there’s all the shopping, special events, and connecting with people you don’t always see that often. It’s also part of our American tradition to go to church and reflect on the meaning of this special time of year.
Understanding the Meaning of Christmas
Sometimes when you sing the same song, again and again, it becomes especially easy to sing it without thinking. Every Christmas, we sing the same songs and read the same stories and hear sermons on much of the same topics. It easy to go on autopilot around Thanksgiving and not take the wheel back again until after New Years. This year, ask God to let the true meaning of Christmas come alive in your heart again. Get started with the following 3 insights:
1) The Word became flesh
While God had walked in the garden with Adam and Eve and showed up in various forms and moments in Israel’s history, this was different. This time, He didn’t take the form of an angel or just do some incredible, unexplainable feat. This time, He came as One of us. The Eternal God became a finite man. He entered history at a specific time and place as a member of His Creation. The angel Gabriel announced His coming to Mary and God also sent a message to Joseph. He caught the attention of the magi from the east who came looking for the Messiah King. Angels appeared to shepherds in the field praising God and announcing the birth of the Savior. God broke 400 years of silence with the cry of a baby. What a holy, truly awesome moment in time!
2) Divides history
No other birth in the history of mankind has carried greater significance. It literally split history in two. Think about it. There is no king, emperor, prophet, or spiritual leader ever who has influenced the course of history more than Jesus. Many have tried and some have made noticeable ripples in history, but none like this. Jesus was a carpenter’s son and itinerant preacher. He didn’t lead armies or write books or earn rewards and honors and accolades. He didn’t try to organize people (though they were drawn to Him) or even really spread His teaching (though it spread like wildfire). Yet, He changed history like no one ever has or ever will simply because of who He is.
3) Immanuel
What a name! What an earth-shattering reality. God with us. Our Creator God who formed the heavens and earth and all the universe with but a word was here as one of us. Not to mete out judgment and wrath, but first to reconcile to Himself all who would believe. He is God with Us who will never leave or forsake us. This is the significance of the birth of Christ. This is why the angels announced it to the shepherds and the star led the magi to Bethlehem. God, Himself was here, the silence was finally broken, and Salvation was coming!
Spread the Word
The birth of Jesus is the moment in history when God stepped into His Creation not as Creator, but as one of us. And not as a ruler, politician, or military figure. But as a baby, the son of a carpenter, born in a place for animals with a feeding trough as a bed. From that humble beginning, He turned the world as we know it upside down. God is with us. Salvation is here. Merry Christmas, dear friends! Have the best of times as you celebrate and don’t forget to spread the true meaning of Christmas.
Join us as we dig deeper into the significance of the birth of Christ this Christmas season. To learn more about what Christmas means for you or how to get connected, Contact Us.
