You can watch the video of this
sermon here at 8PM AEST on YouTube
Introduction
Today I want
us to again think intentionally about Christmas. I want to preface this message
this morning with a disclaimer that the start of this message may seem to be
anti-Christmas. But this is not my aim, I am a big fan of Christmas, and the
more I have meditated on the Christ-centric message of Christmas, the more I
enjoy it as I get older. The coming of Jesus as a small child upturned the
Spiritual realm and signalled to the devil that his defeat was near. Also, getting
together with family, and friends, celebrating, blessing each other with gifts,
are also all wonderful things. So, my aim is not to bash Christmas, but to
remind you again what the real purpose of Christmas is, or at least was
originally. So, here’s what I am going to do in this message. I am going to
give you a brief history of winter celebrations from well before Christianity,
then I am going to talk about how Christmas came about and why it came about,
and then I am going to show how this applies to us today, and how we should
think come Christmas time.
One of the
tendencies of Christians is that we can become too insular, too inward
thinking, and forget our true purpose in this world is to make disciples. Jesus
designed his church to light the way to him, to show people the way of
salvation, and what this looks like. God leaves us here because he wants us to
bring glimpses of his kingdom justice into this world, to be his witnesses, and
to work through us in creative ways to bring people to salvation. Christmas is
part of this glorious tradition of mission. So, let’s look at the origins of
Christmas and then we shall see how we can apply this knowledge this year, to
be more missionally minded.
But first,
let’s read our guiding passage this morning: Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23,
“19 For
though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might
win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To
those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself
under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the
law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under
the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I
became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people,
that by all means I might save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel,
that I may share with them in its blessings.”
Just keep
this passage in mind as we begin with a brief look at the history of Christmas.
A Brief History of Christmas
We often
like to say that the first Christmas was when the magi found Jesus and
worshipped him. I think this is legitimate, because they did gather to worship
the Lord and celebrate his birth (though he was likely around two by this time).
This is what Christmas means: gathering to worship Jesus. But Christmas didn’t
become an official Christian celebration or holiday until about the fourth
century AD. It was celebrated before this, but not officially. In fact, the gospel
of Mark, often considered the first gospel written, does not even mention the
birth of Christ, though the other three do. Can you guess the major festival
Christians did celebrate? (Easter).
This isn’t
surprising as Jesus’ death and resurrection are at the centre of our faith. Indeed,
the Easter celebration for Christians replaced the Passover, and the early
Christians referred to the celebration as Pascha, which means Passover in Greek,
because Jesus is the true Passover lamb.
Every Sunday
was considered resurrection Sunday. This is why Christians began to gather
(mass) on Sunday rather than the Sabbath.
So where
does Christmas originate?
Winter Solstice
For as long
as we know into pre-history and history the various pagan peoples of Europe celebrated
the winter solstice. This is the shortest day of the year. ‘Solstice’ means
‘the sun stands still’.
The reason
people were so keen to party at this time of year is, 1) They were celebrating
the fact that the ‘sun was returning to full strength’. The days would get
longer, and it would get warmer. 2) In Northern Europe this time of year is
very bleak, crops don’t grow, you’ve slaughtered your meat for winter, so
drinking, feasting, and partying was a way to slog through the shortest,
darkest days of the year (if you have been to Europe in Winter you will know
what I mean).
In
Scandinavia one tradition at this time of year was to take a massive log,
usually a cut down tree, and from the Winter Solstice (Around December 21st)
they would burn it, they would feast and party until it was fully burnt. It
usually took 12 days to completely burn up. Hence the idea of the 12 days of
Christmas and the yule log.
People would
decorate their homes, and even bring inside trees and plants to make them look
nicer in the bleak winter. In Germany, people honoured the pagan God Odin (the
father of Thor), who was said to fly about the sky at night during the Winter
Solstice and observe his people’s behaviour. He had white hair, and a long
white beard. He knew when you were sleeping, he knew when you were awake. He
knew if you’d been good or bad…He was even said to put toys into children’s
stockings, left by the chimneys.
Yule, or
Yuletide, or the Winter Solstice stretches back in history as far as we know
these Northern European peoples existed.
Saturnalia
Further
south, where it is warmer and the sun more prominent in winter, the Romans
celebrated Saturnalia, which was the celebration of the Birth of the
unconquerable Sun God Mithra. It finished on the 25th of December. This
festival included drinking, singing door to door merry songs, sometimes naked, eating
human-shaped biscuits, and the servants would become masters for the period of
the festival, among other things.
Mithra was
barely known in the Roman world until the second century. It is likely
Mithraism was pushed to compete with Christianity. And the Mithraism that
Romans practiced was very different to the ancient Persian version.
So where
does Christmas come in?
Christmas begins
Our first
known mention of a Christmas feast is in 360 AD in the city of Rome. It became an
official Christian holiday later in the fourth century. It was instituted by
Pope Julius 1, who established the date of the 25th of December,
which is the most ancient date associated with Jesus’ birth. So why did they
start celebrating Christmas at the same time of year as this pagan holiday?
Well, for one, this was the most ancient date associated with the birth of
Jesus. But also because the church wanted to engage in discipleship.
Remember
Jesus said that we are to make disciples of all nations, Matthew 28:19-20, “19 Go therefore
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have
commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” This
is what the fourth century Church was seeking to do, it was seeking to make
disciples of all the peoples in the Roman Empire. In fact, they were seeking to
teach two groups about Jesus thought Christmas:
Firstly, at
about this time there were many heretics in the church who did not believe
Jesus was really a flesh and blood human being, as well as God. What better way
to teach these errant Christians that Jesus was fully human and divine, than
celebrating his miraculous birth?
Many
passages make this twin nature of Jesus very clear. Here is a good one, “16 I,
Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the
churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star”
(Rev. 22:16). How can Jesus be both the root, or the source of David and his
descendant? Because he is God and man.
Martin
Luther says on the divine and human nature of Christ,
“You may now perceive why it is imperative to believe and
confess the divinity of Christ. To overcome the sin of a whole world, and
death, and the wrath of God was no work for any creature. The power of sin and
death could be broken only by a greater power. God alone could abolish sin,
destroy death, and take away the curse of the Law. God alone could bring
righteousness, life, and mercy to light. In attributing these achievements to
Christ the Scriptures pronounce Christ to be God forever. The article of justification
is indeed fundamental. If we remain sound in this one article, we remain sound
in all the other articles of the Christian faith. When we teach justification
by faith in Christ we confess at the same time that Christ is God.”[1]
So, one of the
purposes of Christmas was to teach Christians proper belief about Jesus. Now
very few, if any Christians, don’t know Jesus was God and man, and Christmas helped
establish this truth in peoples lives. Every year we celebrate God becoming a man,
born of a virgin, in a small human village.
But Christmas
also aided in bringing ancient pagans into the church. As we know the ancient
Romans liked to party, they loved their holidays, and instead of asking them to
give up everything they loved, the early church took their holidays and
rebranded them.
Instead of
celebrating the Sun God, they were taught to worship the true Son of God. Instead
of singing pagan songs, they taught the pagans to sing Christian ones. It
actually took some time for the behaviour of the pagans to change, but
eventually the Christmas celebrations became all about Jesus, and what he
commanded. By medieval times Paganism was virtually gone from much of Europe,
though some of it was incorporated into the practices of what would become the
Roman Catholic Church.
As
Christianity spread out over Europe, and encountered the various Germanic
peoples, which includes all the peoples we think of as English, French, German,
Dutch, Austrian, Scandinavian, Norwegian, etc, they encountered their Winter
celebrations, and again brought them into the church, and gave them new meaning
and significance.
The Germanic
peoples loved to decorate their homes with foliage in winter, hence the origins
of the Christmas tree and Christmas wreaths. We now decorate it with Christian symbols.
Their Germanic ideas of Odin were replaced with Saint Nicholas of Myra, the
generous, kind-hearted Christian bishop, who defended the weak, and according
to legend wasn’t afraid to punch heretics. This began the seeds of the modern
Santa Claus.
It needs to
be stressed that Santa is not an anagram for Satan, like some Christians claim.
It simply means Saint in various European languages. In English Santa Claus is
simply Saint Nicholas, or Old Saint Nick.
It must also
be stressed that Saint Nicholas was a person who honoured God in word and deed.
He looked after the poor and oppressed, and he was a staunch defender of
Orthodox Christianity. He was also highly respected among the church. He
represented orthodox Christian belief, which Christmas does as well.
Old Saint
Nick would be horrified to find out that he had replaced Jesus as the central
figure of Christmas. In fact, there is an ancient legend that he slapped the
heretic, Arius, once at the council of Nicaea because he did not believe the
man was giving Jesus his rightful respect and honour. It is said they threw him
in jail over that. Whether the legend is true or not, St Nick would not be
happy to know that for many people he has replaced Jesus.
So kids,
remember this, the real Santa Claus worshipped Jesus.
These
ancient Christians kept the feasting, the drinking, the gift giving, and all
the other celebratory functions, but taught the pagans about Jesus, the saviour
who was born of a virgin, who came to achieve their salvation from their false
gods, to believe in the true God.
In other
words, the early church was seeking to obey Jesus in making disciples of the
nations, and they were following Paul’s example of being all things to all
people in order that we may save some. 1 Corinthians 9:19-23,
“19 For
though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might
win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To
those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself
under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the
law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under
the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I
became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people,
that by all means I might save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel,
that I may share with them in its blessings.”
Christmas is
an example of the early church seeking to be all things to all people in order
to save some. It is an example of the church thinking creatively about how to
make disciples, thinking about how it could bring more people into the church,
and therefore more people to faith in Jesus.
The true
purpose of Christmas was to make disciples, and it was very effective in doing
this.
World’s Culture vs Jesus Christ’s
Culture
But sadly, Christmas
today has become again more of a pagan holiday for many people, than a
Christian one. Over the last 80 years or so the progressive de-Christification
of Christmas has been happening at a consistent rate.
Starting with
heaps of Christmas carols which turned the focus away from Jesus towards the
rituals and outwards shells of Christmas (white snow, silverbells, reindeer,
Rudolph and Santa, presents and more). Followed by movie, after movie, that has
de-emphasized the Christian elements of Christmas more and more. Combined with
marketing that hammers on about Santa Claus and buying expensive gifts. It’s
very obvious what is happening.
We are
living in a time where paganism is seeking to reclaim Christmas again for
itself. Babylon is reasserting itself. Now why is this important?
Because as
Christians we know for certain that at the centre of paganism is this important
fact: it can only offer people bondage. Paganism is designed to turn us away
from the creator towards created things.
Romans 1:21-23 says this,
“21 For although they knew God,
they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in
their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise,
they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images
resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”
In other word’s
Paul says societal decline happens, because people became focused on “things”
instead of the creator of those things. It’s not a coincidence that as Christ
is removed more from Christmas, that it becomes more about things, and more
about spending, spending, spending, which traps people in a materialistic cycle
of debt.
By
subversive Christmas carols, and Christmas movies that direct people to things
rather than Jesus Christ, Christmas has become one of the main drivers of
pushing people to something Jesus wanted to save them from: the love of things.
It is an inversion, and a sad irony.
Please don’t
misunderstand me, I am not saying we can’t like these secular carols, or watch
those movies. Some of them are genuinely beautiful songs, and some of the
movies are wonderful family fun. I am simply saying don’t make them the main thing
at Christmas. Make sure you don’t fall under their spell and forget what
Christmas is really about, and don’t be afraid to reassert the true meaning of
“Christ’s mass.”
The message
of modern secular Christmas is indebt yourself to impress with gifts. The
message of the real Christmas is that Jesus offers us a “free gift” (Rom. 6:23)
that pays off our debts, the debts we owed God. Could you get a more wicked
inversion than the one in which we now live? Gifts, songs, carolling, parties,
drinking and all of this are wonderful things, but let us never forget that all
good gifts come from God above, let us make sure we submit everything we do at
this time of the year under that perspective.
I think we make
a difference in this regard by being like the wise men who came to worship
Jesus. No one told them they had to gather to worship Jesus. No one told them
they had to bring gifts and bring offerings to Jesus. They just did this out of
the overflow of their heart, that wanted to celebrate the coming of the king of
kings. I want to be like those guys, and when we are like that we can transform
this world for those around us.
The corrupt
religion system of our world is very clever at getting us to not only
participate in it, but celebrate it, and perpetuate it. The more pagan our
culture becomes, the more in bondage people are going to get. The less things
like Christmas will be a celebration and the more they will become a burden on
people, and the more people will begin to start looking for true hope, a hope
beyond possessions.
If we are
intentional about making Christmas about Jesus first and foremost, rather than
the message of the world, the more we remove ourselves from Babylon’s ways, the
more we will stand out from our culture and be an attractive light to those who
want freedom from the world’s ways.
This was one
of the reasons why Christmas was so powerful in the first place, because it was
centred around the message of the free gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. There’s
nothing wrong with giving and getting gifts and singing about reindeer and snow
at Christmas (as silly as that is for us Aussies, but ‘Let it Snow’ is one of
my favourite secular carols for one reason: it’s the song at the beginning and
end of Diehard) but the fact that this has become the main thing for
many people is what is wrong.
Also
consider the absolute irony and tragedy of going into debt for Christmas
presents when Christmas is supposed to be about celebrating the free gift of
salvation Jesus offers us. Talk about wicked irony there, right?
Think Missionally This Year
My
encouragement to you this Christmas, is to think first, not about gifts, nor
about feasts, though all these things are good things. Think first this
Christmas about how you can teach people about Jesus, whether your family, your
friends, your neighbours, or your work colleagues. Think Missionally this year
about how you can teach people about Jesus through what you say and what you
do, in word and in deed. Invite them church over Christmas, to Christmas Eve
service, and let’s show them a bunch of people who have a hope better than any material
gift could ever give us.
Invite
people to a Christmas carol event at your church. If they don’t want to come to
church, maybe at the family lunch read from the story of Jesus’ birth in
Matthew or Luke. Be creative in bringing back Christian tradition into your
celebrations. Maybe you can buy people a gift that points them to Jesus.
Also seek to
show that Christmas is not about things for you, but about hope in Christ. So
many people focus on what they do, or do not get at Christmas. Be that
different person who cares more about presence, than presents.
Look out for
those in your life who are lonely and include them in your family events. If
you are lonely find someone else who you can celebrate with.
Look for
creative ways to engage people this year, to teach them about Jesus, and model to
them the freedom that Jesus offers us, freedom from the world’s way of doing
things.
The true
purpose of Christmas is gospel mission, let’s do that this year. If we want to
truly celebrate Christmas as it was intended we must seek to worship Jesus for
who he is and what he has done, and also teach others about him, especially the
unsaved. Jesus came to die, and rise again, and in doing so achieved our
salvation. Peace and goodwill to all men, comes through trusting in him. Tell
people about Jesus this year. Let’s pray.
[1] Luther,
Martin. Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians (p. 83). Kindle Edition.
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