Why Celebrate Christmas?

Why Celebrate Christmas?

I have seen in some papers and tracts that many believers are advocating that we stop celebrating Christmas. They regard the Christmas tree as sinful idolatry. If they were to keep this to themselves, that would be one thing, but now they judge all the other believers who don’t do what they do. This is against the Word of God, which frees everyone from being judged regarding feast days. Col. 2:16. No one should subject themselves to regulations such as, “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle.” Col. 2:21. If someone regards Christmas and the Christmas tree as idolatry, it is certainly right for them to be saved from these idols; but for those of us who have understood that an idol is nothing in this world, it would be sheer folly to let idolaters tell us what to do. If idolatry were as innocent a matter as Christmas and a decorated spruce tree, we would be well on the way to perfection. Unfortunately, the roots of idolatry go much deeper into the heart. Idolatry in the heart expresses itself in many ways; for example, envy, vanity, quarreling, evil lust and desire. This is what idolatry is, and it flourishes long after a person quits celebrating Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. Idolatry can even flourish in people who long ago did away with the hated Christmas tree.

What is Christmas without the birth of Christ? What is Easter without the sufferings and death of Christ? What is Pentecost without the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? If people are so eager to get rid of Christmas, why not get rid of Easter and Pentecost as well?

In the darkness of Russia, a political movement is emerging, whose followers totally reject Christianity. This year they celebrated their first secular Christmas with folk festivals, dancing, theatrical performances and speeches against Christians and their Christmas. If these are the people with whom certain Christians in our country want to join forces, we would have to say that Judas is uncomfortably close. Don’t be one of those who are preparing the way for the Antichrist by seeking to remove everything that reminds people about our precious Savior. There are many yet to be saved. For these people, it is very good to celebrate special holidays to remind them that there is a Savior of the world—a Jesus Christ—whose blood cleanses us from all sin. Let us not allow Christmas to be displaced by midwinter festivals, with masquerades and other ungodly festivities.

Some would say, “You observe days and months and seasons and years. I am afraid for you,” etc. Gal. 4:10-11. No, do not fear for us, but rather fear lest you distort the Scriptures. If someone legalistically observes days and seasons, thinking that will please God and bring him salvation, as the Galatians did, he has reason to fear. But if people are not able to recognize those adversaries who today want to reject Christ and everything that reminds us of Him, we have double reason to fear that such great darkness can reign among Christians.

We are living in the time when the fullness of the Gentiles is almost complete—a time when even the Gentiles have heard more than enough talking and preaching about Jesus Christ. It is my belief that we should therefore cling, tooth and nail, to everything that reminds people of our precious Master.

Some people may be put off by all the baking, the slaughtering and all the other preparations for the holidays, and that is why they want to do away with the Christmas season. If all these highly esteemed citizens were to abstain from food and drink to such an extent that they continually lived in prayer and fasting, perhaps there might be a grain of truth in their assertions. Unfortunately, the fact is that those who reject Christmas are usually the first to gorge themselves on all the Christmas fare. So this cannot be their real reason for wanting to abolish Christmas. The truth is that in the world you can get a lot of honor by coming up with a new invention; this is also very impressive within certain Christian circles. Think to be the one who invented the abolition of Christmas! What an honor! What satisfaction for the flesh! And for this pleasure they would gladly forego the Christmas fare!

Therefore, do not let anyone judge you with their rules and regulations concerning keeping or not keeping a holiday. No doubt there can be an appearance of wisdom when they use their human abilities to promote their cause, but it is utterly worthless. Because people are lacking the essential truths, they dabble in the unessential to cover up their lack of understanding about those things in life that have real value. If a person chooses to esteem one day above another, let him do so, and if another chooses to esteem all days as equally holy, so be it. People can certainly observe these things in their heart before their God and still observe the traditional holidays. God gave Moses many laws concerning holy days, and it is good that we have these times too, because they give us the opportunity to visit one another and have conferences.

The seriousness and the holy joy of Christmas has a uniting and stabilizing effect for all of society. There’s a certain reverence associated with the Christmas holidays; it would be tragic to remove that restraint.

Let us seek God for wisdom in all things, because if people get the impression that Christians are indifferent to Christmas, the secular authorities will soon take the initiative and do away with it. Next they will be wanting to abolish Easter and Pentecost. So think over what you preach and write about, because you will be held responsible for your words and deeds. If you absolutely must be an “inventor,” stick to things that are more practical and down to earth. The descendants of Cain are said to be especially gifted at inventing things.

Don’t allow the fact that ungodly people misuse Christmas to delude you into rejecting it, because the ungodly force their way into and misuse everything. Judas misused the Lord’s Supper, and so do many religious-looking, ungodly people today. The false prophets prophesied lies; the shepherds ate the fat and clothed themselves with the wool. The same story repeats itself every day. For the pure, the holidays will be pure. But if people observe holidays in a legalistic way to exalt themselves and assert their own righteousness, they reject Christ to the same degree. However, the knowledge of God teaches us not to celebrate Christmas in such a way or for such reasons. Instead, we want to observe it as an occasion to remember Him who gave His life for us while we were yet sinners. Let us restrain, until we are taken out of the way. Let us use our power until the power of the saints is utterly crushed—not just for our own sake, but also for the sake of those who are yet to be saved.