" For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. " ( John 3:16 )
The real meaning of Christmas can be summed up in one word,- GRACE. This is a word which few of the billion or more people who celebrate Christmas are equipped to understand. To understand the meaning of the word " grace ", one must have a thorough understanding of the Holy Bible. Those people, who allow themselves to be deceived into believing the lies of the evolutionists, cannot possibly understand the meaning of the word, grace. The people who have been educated in the spiritual vacuum of public education cannot possibly understand the meaning of the word, grace. The typical dictionary definition ( the undeserved mercy of God ) only begins to explain the meaning of the word.
" So the Lord said,' I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them. ' But, Noah found GRACE in the eyes of the Lord. " ( Genesis 6:7-8 )
Now, perhaps you can see what I am talking about. They ( and we ) deserve destruction,- for our rebellion, for our idolatry, for our lies, for our disobedience, for our sexual immorality, for our abortions, for our thefts, and for our covetousness. How would you feel if you allowed your son to die, to rescue some people, and the people, whom he rescued, instead gave the credit to a mythical idol called Santa Claus? Yes, we deserve destruction, but instead, God offers us grace.
Christmas used to be a time when grateful people celebrated the day when God sent His Son into the world. Whether or not Christ was born on December 25 of a particular year is irrelevant. The so-called educated people of today,- products of our government educational system, haven't got a clue as to what Christmas is all about. Educated people used to understand that Christmas was much more than a story. They used to understand that Christmas was much more than a time of giving and getting. They used to worship God through the singing of Christmas Carols, through spoken praise, and through worship. When is the last time you heard someone say," I love you, God, or I worship you God, or I love you Jesus, or I worship you Jesus? Maybe you've never been in the right places. Maybe you've never heard the truth about Christmas!
So that we won't offend the non christians around us, it has become fashionable to say " Happy Holidays " instead of " Merry Christmas ". If you had had a real education, you would have learned that America was founded as a christian country, a constitutional republic. There's nothing wrong with saying " Merry Christmas " to each other, or Happy Hannukah to our Jewish friends. We need to say to non christian immigrants, "You are welcome in our country, but this is a christian country. If that offends you, maybe this is not the country, where you would like to live! "
We find in John 10:22-23 that Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Hannukah celebration. ( Feast of Dedication ) I see no reason why christians shouldn't rejoice with their Jewish friends, that God miraculously allowed a tiny flask of oil to keep the temple lights burning for eight days, as new, undefiled oil was being prepared. This is part of our heritage too.
The real meaning of Christmas is God's gift of salvation. As God miraculously created the world, saved Noah and his family from the flood, called Abraham to become the father of many nations, He also performed many other miracles, that we don't celebrate. God took on human form, and became the one that we worship as Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Why? The Bible says that Jesus came to save His people from their sins. His name literally means " Savior ". The prideful, sometimes highly educated, sinners don't want any of this. They insist on their " right " to be idolaters, sexually immoral, murderers, etc. So, they change the names of these sins into other names,- to try to hide their sin.
The real meaning of Christmas is this: God has provided the answer for your sin. You need to stop hiding behind phony words and confess your sin. Ask God to give you a new heart,- one that will want to obey Him and honor His Son. God allowed His Son to die for you, to make this possible. Let this Christmas be the most important one in your life!
We welcome the opportunity to minister to you. If your church, cell group, or Bible study, in the Mexico Beach area, needs a Wed. eve. speaker, let us know. Send us an e-mail.