What is Christmas to You?

The holiday is rapidly coming. Rushing to buy christmas presents, picking up Christmas tree, decorating the house. Christmas parties, family gatherings, feasts, carols, exchanging gifts, it's one of the biggest holiday of the year.

I always love Christmas.  Growing up, we would spend Christmas eve with my cousins.  Everyone from my father's side would go to my Great uncle's house.  We have our own tradition of exchanging gifts and the uncles and aunties would be handing out money to the younger generation as gift money.  Then we would go home by midnight, open up gifts under our christmas tree and finally have all the kids have a photo taken with the tree as a reminder of the holiday of that year.

But what is Christmas?

Historically, Christmas was adapted by the Roman Catholic Church from Pagan holidays to entice people to convert to Christianity.  A very deceitful tack I do admit.  There's no evidence that Christ was born on December 25.

Now Christmas celebration can be from religious, to secular or even being an overly commercialized holiday.  In majority of christian sects, we celebrate and remember Jesus Christ's birth.  We proclaim that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was born of a virgin, and was sent to the cross to die for our sins.

What is Christmas to me?

A jewish christian friend and I had a discussion last night about Christmas and why we celebrate it and why he does not.  He believes that Christ was not born on the 25th.  And it is the solstice for the pagan beliefs.  My argument is that even though I know that it is possible Christ was not born on that day, but what I believe is that we celebrate it to remember.

We celebrate Christmas because we remember what God has done for us.  In fact to be honest we should even celebrate it every day.  I was reading Crazy Love awhile ago (given to me by Pastor Rob and his wife Jane) that we are so insignificant as to compare the whole galaxy.  God created us for Him.  We are to live for Him.  He is the great and magnificent God and by comparison, we are just probably another speck of dust.  What speck of dust would you send your one and only beloved Son down to earth to be tortured, mocked, scorned, rejected, nailed, crucified like a criminal just to save a speck of dust?  Every time I think of it, I am in awe.

John must have felt the same and wrote it on the bible that became the most beloved verse of all. "For God so LOVED the world (that is the speck of dust in the huge galaxy I created) that He gave His only Son.  For who so ever believes in him, should not perish (my Son did that already for you) and have everlasting life (so that you can be with Me forever)" John 3:16. First He created us, then we rebelled against Him.  Then He sent His Son to save us, then we killed him.  He raised Him up from the death, so he can give us everlasting life rather than throw us to the burning in the lake of fire for all eternity as we so righteously deserve.  What an amazing, awesome, loving God is He?

So what is Christmas to you?

Christmas will come and go. It is the time of the year where we celebrate with family, we celebrate love, we celebrate the season of giving.  We remember the joy we feel with what we have received.  But in every day, we should always remember of His birth, the reason why He sent His Son.  It doesn't matter to me whether it is Christmas, or New Year or Easter.  Because long ago, before we even started celebrating Christmas, we have already received the greatest gift of all.  That is Christ.  We may only be reminded of it during more during Christmas time, but let us always remember the sacrifice He did so that we may live.