The true meaning of Christmas

By Kyle McFadden

 

What a beautiful and such glorious day it is, Christmas has finally dawned upon us.

Many will wake up, swivel out of bed into some slippers, throw on a fuzzy robe and get the morning started. After that, possibly stir a brew of black coffee or hot cocoa and throw a log on the fire, for ones that are fortunate enough to have a fireplace, while others that don’t, might flick to the televised channel that simulates a warm fire burning (if you know what I’m talking about, you get me).

Young ones will race down the stairs from their bedrooms to check what Santa left behind for them, finding crumbs of cookies that were eaten and boxes of gifts packaged in majestic wrapping paper lying under a decorated tree.

It’s those seemingly routine Christmas moments such as thoughtful cards in the mail being read, elegant lights in window sills and outside the house glowing, turkey dinners with family and friends carrying on traditions, snow in the yard (not this year at least) that gives a wintery feel, stockings stuffed with goodies hang in the living room and shouts of “Merry Christmas” to those who pass us in the streets.

But wait, is that actually the TRUE meaning of Christmas?

Have we as a society let cheesy necessities bundled up in fancy wrapping paper steal the day of the Prince of Peace?

Let’s hope not. You see, Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

All of that extra fluff is nice and all, but we’re talking about God sending His only Son, Jesus, into the world to be born.

His birth brought monumental joy to the world. Shepherds, wise men and angels all shared in the excitement of knowing about this great event.

They knew this was no ordinary baby. The star that stopped over Bethlehem shined so bright, it marked the way for those who were looking for this special child.

Some ask, why did He come? Why did God send His only son, Jesus Christ, to mortal Earth that is gashed with cruelty and weeping sorrow?

He sent Jesus so that one day, He would become a crucial part of history. His story is one of everlasting hope, love and truth. It brought salvation to all of us, including you. Without Jesus, we would all drown in our sins.

“Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not parish, for His mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! I say: The Lord is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in him.” Lamenations 3:22-24

Jesus was born so one day the dues could be paid for the things we have done that are unrightful.

The Bible says that all have sinned. If you say you haven’t sinned, well that’s a sin in itself.

We are all born with a sin nature and the only thing that we really need is to have that removed. And the only way is through Jesus.

Jesus came on the day we call Christmas so He could die on the cross for ALL of our sins.

If we believe that Jesus died for our sins, we can ask Him to come into our hearts and forgive us. Then, we are pure and made whole. We can rightfully know that heaven is a place where we can go to when this life on mortal Earth is over.

However, Christmas can be a gloomy time for many people, which is very well understandable. Whether it’s scraping two pennies together and still not having enough to buy presents for relatives/friends or grieving over a lost loved one, know that God’s love is everlasting and He can heal you with renewed strength.

So rather than looking at Christmas as just a season for tasteful egg nog and festive acts, remember that, Jesus is the Reason for the Season.

Let us rejoice in His name, Merry Christmas.

“A child is born to us, a son is given to us, and authority will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” – Isaiah 9:6