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It should not surprise any of us that Christmas is one of the most stressful times of the year for many people. The gift-giving, the expectations, the spending of money we do not have to buy things that people do not want, the preparation of extravagant meals, and the traveling can cause our lives to go into a tailspin. In fact, I heard a doctor’s report recently that the days in between Thanksgiving and Christmas are the most dangerous for Americans; more people in the U.S. suffer injury and disease during that time frame due to seasonally related stress.
However, as followers of Jesus Christ, the stress related to the remembrance of His coming should at least cause a pause to how we go about celebrating Christmas. The worship of a Savior who is described in Scripture as God’s “indescribable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15) should not produce anxiety. The famed American author Upton Beall Sinclair described the paradox of the celebration of Christmas creating such stress in the following quote.
Consider Christmas—could Satan in his most malignant mood have devised a worse combination of graft plus bunkum than the system whereby several hundred million people get a billion or so gifts for which they have no use, and some thousands of shop clerks die of exhaustion while selling them, and every other child in the Western world is made ill from overeating—all in the name of the lowly Jesus?
I recently read a quote regarding life which I believe could aptly apply to Christmas as well.
God has made life deep and simple; man has made life shallow and complicated.
In much the same manner, our worship of Christ’s coming requires deep contemplation upon a very simple, yet powerful truth. While all of Scripture declares the coming of Jesus Christ, one verse in the New Testament summarizes it well: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
How can our meditation upon this verse simplify the celebration of Christ’s coming, especially in light of all the entrapments and anxieties that seems to so easily replace our joy in Christ?
1. Focus upon the generosity of God.—“For our sake…”
The Apostle Paul makes it very clear that it is for us that Christ came into the world. God did not have to send His Son; Jesus was not forced to give up the glories of heaven for the stench of a manger. He did this simply because God saw our great need and was moved with a heart of compassion for us. In the Old Testament, when Moses was shown the revelation of God’s glory to a degree that had never yet been revealed to man, God’s character was described in this way: “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Exodus 34:6). Since Jesus is the exact representation of God (Hebrews 1:3), His first coming exemplifies the great love of God for us.
2. Rest in the mercy of God.—“…he made him who knew no sin to be sin…”
Paul describes the great extent of the gift that God has given to us. Jesus did not come into existence when born unto Mary in that stable; He is God eternal. Rather, in that moment He became a man. And though He was perfectly sinless in every way (1 Peter 2:22), he took on our sin upon the cross. Too many of us know a thing or two about the concept of charging things to the credit card, especially at Christmas. God literally charged our sins, and the punishment of God’s wrath that they incurred, to the account of Jesus. Simply put, the message of Christmas is that a perfect, Holy God took your sin upon Himself. Is this fair? Absolutely not. But it is merciful!
3. Delight in the grace of God.—“…so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Paul does not end this thought by relaying God’s mercy to us. Mercy is that act by which the punishment that is deserved is withheld. This verse explains that God also gives to us His own righteousness through Christ. In the same manner that our sin is charged to His account, God’s righteousness and perfection are charged to our account. In Christ, God does not see my sin, but His own righteousness. I am accepted in Him and am able to experience all of His blessing.
These simple, yet profound truths of celebrating Christ would cause one writer to pen this description of Christmas.
Songs, good feelings, beautiful liturgies, nice presents, big dinners, and sweet words do not make Christmas. Christmas is saying yes to something beyond all emotions and feelings. Christmas is saying yes to a hope based on God's initiative, which has nothing to do with what I think or feel. Christmas is believing that the salvation of the world is God's work and not mine.
Wishing You the Joy of Christ,
Jason