Celebrating Christmas

Christmas is a time of celebration! We celebrate Christ coming to be with us and what He's done on our behalf. We celebrate with joy and gladness for who He is and because of the love He has for us. We celebrate that we will be with Him again - in victory, in glory. 

      As you read the account of Christ’s birth in the Bible, we want to challenge you to look at the Christmas story through the eyes of Elizabeth. Luke 1 shows us the celebration of Elizabeth over Jesus (while He was still in Mary's womb). However, the celebration over Jesus was not restricted only to His birth. We see all throughout Scripture, many others celebrating:

• Mary celebrated as she sang "The Magnificat" (a hymn of praise) (Luke 1:46-55).

• Elizabeth's husband, Zechariah was no doubt celebrating the answer to his prayers, the news of his baby boy to come.

• The shepherds celebrated (Luke 2:20).

• The wise men celebrated and responded by giving gifts to the Messiah that was born in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:2,10-11).

• We also see celebration over Jesus at Passover as the people lined the streets, like a parade (Mark 11:7-11).

  As believers, we don't celebrate because our lives are perfect and problem-free. We celebrate because God is with us throughout our lives, including the trials. We celebrate because of the hope we have in Christ and because we know the glorious future that is to come!
  
       The book of Psalms is a great book that captures the praise and celebration of God's people and it helps us understand why we celebrate, who we celebrate, when we celebrate, how we celebrate, what we celebrate, and where we celebrate.

Why do we celebrate?

We celebrate because Christ has redeemed us.
 

Psalm 71:23, "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to You; and my soul, which You have redeemed."
 

We celebrate because He has given us salvation.
 

Psalm 95:1, "Come, let’s sing for joy to the Lord, let’s shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation."
 

     Jesus made salvation personal by coming to earth and living among people and loving them. He chose to interact with us when He could have stayed in Heaven, away from us, proving just how much He loves us. 

Who do we celebrate?

     We celebrate Jesus - our risen Savior! God with us! Unbelievers don't celebrate this season the way believers do. They have no one to thank or praise or celebrate, other than themselves. We celebrate Someone much higher!
 

John 1:29, "The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

Galatians 2:20, " I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." 

When do we celebrate?

     We celebrate Jesus not only at Christmas, but every day of our lives until He returns.
 

Romans 12:1-2, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."
 

     Celebrate Christ with your life. Your words should point others to Him, your actions should reflect that His Holy Spirit controls you, and your thoughts should be set on Him and His Word. 

How do we celebrate?

     We celebrate Christ through singing, praising, worshiping, serving, and giving. We rejoice greatly (Zechariah 9:9). We celebrate, filled with joy and peace (Romans 15:13). We celebrate from an overflow of the rejoicing that comes within our hearts. We celebrate with our voices as we make much of our God. We celebrate with our hearts as they are stirred toward Him. We celebrate with one another, as the family of God, as we remember God's goodness and that He is faithful and keeps His promises. 

What do we celebrate?

     We celebrate Christ born, crucified, risen and reigning now at the right hand of the Father. We celebrate Jesus coming to earth to save us so we can be with Him forever.
 

Luke 19:10, "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
 

     We celebrate that He made possible the forgiveness of sins by dying on the cross. Without His sacrificial death, resulting in the forgiveness of sins, we would be eternally separated from Him.
 

Matthew 26:28, "for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

Where do we celebrate?

     We celebrate in our hearts and with our lives, as our love for Christ overflows to those around us. We celebrate in our homes with our families as we pray together and read and discuss God's Word. We celebrate at our workplace where we have the opportunity to share the Good News of the Gospel with others. We celebrate in the marketplace where we witness to the lost about our Savior who came and died for them so that they may be with Him in eternity. We celebrate at school as we display actions and behaviors consistent with God's Word that reflect our changed hearts and lives. We even celebrate on social media as we use the platform we have available to shine the light of Christ to a lost world. 

     You know, Zechariah couldn't celebrate the news very well or very easily (like Elizabeth and Mary could), Luke 1:20 says, because of his unbelief. Unbelief closes your mouth and you have nothing to say. I don't know how Zechariah felt when he heard, as a consequence,  that he would not immediately be able to share and shout his great news to the world. I would hope he would have been upset. Sadly, many believers today would not be upset if they were unable to share the Good News. Those who have received the gift of God's glory should share it and not hold on to it. His glory is a mighty thing. It is such a magnificent gift that we cannot help but tell others about it! We should be excited and anticipate the sharing of God's Good News with those who need hope, love, peace, restoration, and forgiveness, so that they may also experience the joy that comes with knowing the glory of God!

     After all, it's not what we do, but what He's done. We are imperfect and could never earn heaven no matter how hard we try. But Jesus is perfect and He has offered us heaven because He loves us! We need to be as willing as Mary (Luke 1:38,46-55) to trust the Lord and be excited about His will for our lives.

     Charles Spurgeon said, "We are ordained to be the minstrels of the skies, so let us rehearse our everlasting anthem before we sing it in the halls of New Jerusalem." That's what we do here and now, on earth. We practice; we prepare. Start singing that song now. Join with those around the world who are singing it now. Tell what He has done for your soul. Tell how He has rescued you, and let's join together now and for all eternity in singing the song of the redeemed.

     The gift of Christ is available to all people, no matter how much they have to give back to Him. The wise men had much, and gave riches, but the shepherds had nothing and gave their praise. Jesus offers Himself to everyone, no matter how much or little we have because with Him, we have everything we need! We hope these Advent message have helped you to understand what Jesus Christ has done to save us and what our response must be. If you are not sure that you are right with God, you can be sure–right now. Remember, we must admit that we are sinners. We must turn away from our sins and to Christ. We must trust Him as our Savior and follow Him as our Lord. God promises that when we do this, He will save us and make us His children, and we will live with Him forever. Will you turn to Christ now?