Ho Ho Ho Merry “Day of the infant god of light”? Yup, December 25th was once celebrated as a pagan holiday. Many customs, cultures and festivities were observed in honor of the birth of their god and we all have “that” Christian friend who is all to eager to point this out. They may even try and use scripture to point out how wrong we are for celebrating Christmas. Here's one you might here them say. "I can't believe any real christian celebrates christmas. It's a pagan holiday. It says in Jeremiah 10:3-4 'For the practices of the peoples are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter.' Christmas trees are pagan!" Usually they'll leave out Jeremiah 10:5 which says "Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, their idols cannot speak;" The context here is not a modern day Christmas tree. The context is worship of idols. By their blithe indifference to the essence of the scripture they do it a great disservice.
So then here’s the question. Should Christians celebrate Christmas knowing it was a originally a pagan holiday? The early church saw people pagans celebrate December 25th in honor of their god and decided to celebrate the birth of Jesus as a rival to the pagan rituals.(I think we know which won out in the long run) I think it’s a wonderful idea to keep that tradition. There have been many pagan temples as well as pagans themselves that have been converted and sanctified to Christian service. A date set aside for celebration of the savior’s birth should be no different.
If you think about it though it honestly doesn’t matter if we celebrate on December 25th or not. For some people it's no big deal but to others it's necessary to their faith that they don't celebrate. Here's an argument Paul made that's similar about food sacrificed to idols.
“ So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols; We know that ‘An idol is nothing at all in the world’ and that ‘There is no God but one.’ For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. But not everyone posses this knowledge. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat sacrificial food they think of it as having been sacrificed to a god, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled. But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do eat, and no better if we do.”
1 Corinthians 8:4-8
Again, I know the context is food sacrificed to idols but I think the same logic applies to days sacrificed to idols. But, just incase you're not convinced here's another one to think about.
"One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.
Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." Romans 14:5-8
Paul finishes up this point in Romans beautifully by saying "You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat." and "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another."(Romans 14:10,13)
Now there's the real point. Let's stop judging one another and have unity that whether its December 25th or not the point is that Jesus is lord and the gift of salvation is worth more than gold. We should be spending time giving grace, mercy and love because that's what the Christmas gift is really about. I also believe it's time we actually are one as jesus wanted us to be one.
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one" John 17:20-22
By the way MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!
Now there's the real point. Let's stop judging one another and have unity that whether its December 25th or not the point is that Jesus is lord and the gift of salvation is worth more than gold. We should be spending time giving grace, mercy and love because that's what the Christmas gift is really about. I also believe it's time we actually are one as jesus wanted us to be one.
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one" John 17:20-22
By the way MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!
