The Spiritual Battle Over Christmas
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The Spiritual Battle Over Christmas
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Do you see Satan’s fingerprints all over American Christmas celebrations? Commercialism, consumerism, stress, lies, and a vague “Christmas spirit” all sound good but detract from the real reason for the season. Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), even at Christmas!
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According to the Encyclopedia Brittanica, Christmas is a relatively recent term that literally means “Christ’s Mass.” The precise origin of the name and why Dec. 25 was chosen for its celebration are somewhat unclear. The Christian historian Sextus Julianus Africanus first identified the date of Jesus’ birth as Dec. 25 in the year 221 A.D. According to some historians, this date gained widespread acceptance because the Roman Catholic Church sought to Christianize the popular Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (the birth of the unconquered sun, associated with the god Mithra). That day celebrated the winter solstice with the resurgence of the sun as the hours of daylight would slowly begin to outnumber the hours of darkness. Dec. 25 was also precisely nine months after March 25, which the Church had designed as the celebration of Mary’s conception of Christ; setting the celebration of His birth then was the Church’s first attempt at countering Mithraism and adapting the gospel to culture and folklore to make it more understandable to its hearers. It also placed Christmas on the emerging liturgical Church Calendar as an annually recurring celebration held on the same day.
But this also opened the door to confusion about how to celebrate Christmas. According to History.com, Christianity had replaced paganism throughout Europe by the Middle Ages, but pagan practices persisted. People would first go to church and then celebrate afterward in a raucous, drunken revelry that resembles today’s Mardi Gras. Every year, people would crown a beggar or student as the “lord of misrule,” and celebrants would play the role of his subjects. The poor would visit the houses of the wealthy and demand their best food and drink. In that way, Christmas became the time of year when the upper classes could repay their real or imagined “debt” to society by entertaining less-fortunate citizens.
When Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans took over Great Britain in 1645, they promptly outlawed Christmas as a pagan celebration, in an effort to rid the country of decadence — only to see it restored by King Charles II after Cromwell’s death, in 1658. When the Puritans arrived in the American colonies in 1620, they outlawed Christmas in most of their communities. After the American Revolution, however, when British customs and practices fell out of favor, the celebration came back.
During the 1800s, Americans began to embrace Christmas more widely. But along with the birth of Christ, other elements crept in. For instance, with its message of goodwill toward all people, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol struck a chord. Families saw it as a perfect opportunity to lavish attention and gifts upon their children without creating the impression that they were spoiling them. Thus, the celebration of Christ’s birth began to be diluted and was eventually overshadowed by gift-giving and the promotion of goodwill.
The late 1800s saw the arrival of another element to Christmas: Santa Claus. Dutch families that had immigrated to New York and other parts of America brought with them the celebration of the birthday of St. Nicholas, a monk who lived in Myra (in today’s Turkey) during the early fourth century. He gave away his possessions to care for the poor and was regarded as a protector of children. His birthday was and is, to this day, celebrated in the Netherlands on Dec. 5. He is portrayed as a Roman Catholic bishop with white hair and a long white beard who rides over the rooftops on a white horse, dropping presents down the chimney for nice children and pieces of coal for naughty ones. In the Dutch language, the name St. Nicholas was abbreviated to “Sinterklaas,” which formed the basis for the name Santa Claus. The celebration of Sinterklaas all but disappeared in the U.S., but Santa Claus became more of a central figure in American Christmas celebrations. He took on his own identity, thanks largely to Clement Clarke Moore’s poem, “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” which depicted Santa Claus as a jolly man flying from home to home on a sled pulled by reindeer to deliver toys. Political cartoonist Thomas Nast immortalized this description in 1881 into the image we still know and use today.
Why is this significant, and why has a spiritual battle swirled over Christmas as the celebration of Christ’s birth? And more important, why should we pray about that?
The birth of Christ was an event that came under heavy attack from the Enemy.
We commemorate mostly the serene scene of the baby in the manger, the adoring shepherds, the choirs of angels, and the visiting magi. And we wrangled a little drummer boy in there somewhere. But as soon as King Herod discovered that the Messiah was born, he commanded all male children under 2 years of age in Bethlehem and the surrounding areas (see Matthew 2:16–18) to be killed. Jesus’ parents had to flee to Egypt to escape the bloodbath. The spiritual significance of that cannot be underestimated. Herod was angry because he knew from Isaiah 9 that the government would be on the shoulders of this newborn king, which meant that he was about to lose his kingdom. The battle against Christ, however, is not merely about flesh and blood. Satan used Herod’s rage to try and prevent the Messiah’s birth because he knew that Christ had come to reveal the kingdom of God and to disarm Satan and his evil forces through His death on the cross.
Ever since his decisive defeat and the birth of the Church, Satan has actively tried to counterfeit the gospel and to sow confusion about its true meaning. Jesus talks about that in the parable of the weeds, in Matthew 13. It is, therefore, consistent with the devil’s tactics that he should try to obscure the commemoration of Christ’s birth and its significance by means of counterfeit practices and celebrations.
For Christians, though, isn’t Christmas a prime opportunity to be countercultural? We can establish the birth of Christ at the center of our celebrations and prayerfully consider whether other practices should be pushed to the background or discarded altogether.
Even more, we must be conscious of this season’s excellent opportunity for sharing the gospel of Jesus. Amid the worldwide celebration of “Christ’s mass,” it is not surprising that the devil tries hard to drown out the message with counterfeit stuff that appeals to people’s physical senses more than their spirits. Today, more than ever, we must not be like the world, but we should rather proclaim Christ clearly and loudly.
I believe there has been and still is a spiritual battle over Christmas and its message. I have been praying into that heavily during the weeks leading up to Christmas 2022. Will you join me?
Father in heaven, we thank You for the miracle of Christ’s birth that we celebrate at Christmas. God became a human being in Him, born in the humblest of circumstances, so that You could reveal Your kingdom in a way we could understand, and so that He could represent us on the cross, to deal Satan his defeat. I pray that this message would ring loud and clear this Christmas. May the world see the real reason for Christmas in how we celebrate. May human hearts be open to the gospel of Jesus. And may we proclaim this clearly and fervently, as we should. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
Are you taking opportunities to declare Christ at Christmas? Share below!
Remco Brommet is a pastor, spiritual-growth teacher, and prayer leader with over 40 years of experience in Europe, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the U.S. He was born and raised in the Netherlands and pastored his first church in Amsterdam. He moved to the U.S. in 1986. He and his wife, Jennifer, live north of Atlanta. When not writing books, he blogs at www.deeperlifeblog.com and assists his wife as a content developer and prayer coordinator for True Identity Ministries. Jennifer and Remco are passionate about bringing people into a deeper relationship with Christ.
Photo by Gavin Tyte on Unsplash.
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We should throw off this manmade tradition of Christmas and adopt what Yahweh told us to celebrate…HIS appointed times “perpetually from generation to generation “
So many Christians have confirmed to the worldly view of Christmas. We are told in Romans 12:1&2 not to be conformed to this world. But sadly most Christians don’t even read or know their Bible
And still, more want to hold onto this Christmas Holiday kicking and screaming
Sad…
Lord God, your the reason for the Season! Your birth is all about the direction of mankind Without you and your sacrifice, there would be no eternity in Heaven with God your father. Please help people in this country understand this celebration is all about Him instead of Santa 🧑🎄 financial debt, stress, anxiety, depression,etc.
JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON, AMEN.
The current mainstream Christmas actually has nothing to do with Christ. It is a celebration of the consumer economy – with money being the Prime Directive (as in Star Trek), and is more like the ancient Roman Saturnalia than like a Christ – centered Christmas. The consumer Christmas actually does not bear a lot of resemblance to the Pagan Solstice observances, which are also a religious – a pagan religious – celebration. To me, the center of Christmas is Christ and attending mass for Christmas. I prefer to do giving as donations to the poor. Why can’t we have the fuzzy and maddening family and gifts celebrations at another time, and have Christmas be for those who wish to truly celebrate it as a Christian celebration, as other religions have celebration time for their own observances, without a massive consumption orgy?
WISE MEN STILL FOLLOW!”
by Eva
They say that wise men still follow
That Day Star that leads them home
To that Holy City, Jerusalem,
Where YAHUAH rules from His Heavenly throne.
In every generation,
Wise men still point to Him,
To that tiny Babe in the manger
Born to die to redeem us from sin.
[St. JOHN 3:16-17]
“MERRY CHRISTMAS!”
Father God we praise You for Who You are! and Praise You gor Your astounding love for us…it is amazing You sent Jesus to buy us back after the devil stole The Title Deed to the earth. Tha nk You for Your creative way…the best and only way by sending us Jesus as a baby…to grow and live like us humans to literally have our perspective! Lord sendThe Holy Spirit to go before to reconcile Whosoever will…open their eyes, minds and hearts to Who You are and what Christmas is all about!! in Jesus Name Amen
Thank you for this article. Being with my grandchildren shopping today, one mentioned how they are “changing the songs of Christmas!”
The happy holiday, instead of Merry Christmas! Yet in my heart Christ is the center of all! I pray with you that this Christmas there will be a great awakening to the message of God becoming man, dwelling with us! That Isaiah 9:6 will be the reality of our world! The truth that the government does rest on His shoulders!
All the major events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection occurred on Jewish Feast days (though the Feast days preceded those events, they foretold them). Why wasn’t His birth one of them? So I asked myself, if Jesus was born on a Feast day, which one would it be? and after prayer and research, posted the following article on my blog: Feast of Tabernacles: Happy Birthday, Jesus! https://hiddeninjesus.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/feast-of-sukkot-happy-birthday-jesus/
I had not heard the plausible case for His birth being in the spring, with the birth of the other perfect lambs intended for sacrifice, but it seems to me whenever it occurred, His birth is a day worth celebrating. If we can separate it from the crass and the false and focus on its true significance, it may not matter which day we celebrate. At least the Christmas season is a month during which the gospel is proclaimed from pulpits, presented in myriads of forms–advent candles, hymns, Happy Birthday Jesus parties–and people’s hearts seem more receptive than at any other time of the year. If we stay focused on Jesus as the Reason for the Season we can use these increased opportunities for sharing the gospel and I think will bring joy to our Lord even if it is on Christmas.
Pray God will prevail our nation be in right direction starting 2023.
“I Need a Baby Jesus!”
While riding the afternoon bus, Jill the bus driver asked me, “Do you know the real story about Christmas?” This question opened up a lengthy conversation that discussed the whole Biblical account of the birth of Jesus and the events surrounding it. The bus monitor Nadi (who is also a Christian) and I together, explained the many details of the Christmas story to Jill as we remembered it. This then led to a conversation about the crucifixion, followed by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jill seemed intrigued by our discussion, hearing some of the details for the first time.
A few days later on the bus, Jill said that since we had our discussion about Jesus, she had watched five episodes of the series made for TV called THE CHOSEN, which portrays the life of Jesus. She also discovered the local Christian radio station which she did not know existed. It became more clear that Jill was searching for truth about God. She told us that after our conversation, she went home and was thinking about things, when all of a sudden, she said “I felt so much joy fill me inside.” Then she said, “I went and got out all of my decorations and started to decorate for Christmas.” I smiled and said, “It sounds like you got into the Christmas Spirit.” She said, “More like the Spirit got into me!”
The next day while riding the bus, Jill informed me that she set up an old nativity set that she had in storage. She found all of the pieces but was missing baby Jesus. She said, “I need a baby Jesus!” She held up her right hand and spaced her fingers about two inches apart and said “This big.” Then she asked me if I could print out a picture of a baby Jesus for her on my computer so that she could put it into her nativity set so that something could be there. I said that I would.
On the way home, I thought about Jill’s new interest in Jesus and it was clear that things were becoming real inside of her. She was opening up her heart, beginning to put her faith in Him. I thought of finding a baby Jesus figurine for Jill instead of just a printed picture for her nativity. At home I went online and looked up figurines, & mini sculptures of baby Jesus in various poses made out of wood, resin, or clay. Nothing looked right. Some of the figurines were downright strange and creepy looking. Since my husband and sons do woodworking, I thought that maybe they could create a baby Jesus out of wood and so “How to create a baby Jesus” became a topic of our dinner discussion. We couldn’t come up with a quick easy solution without a great deal of work that this wood project would involve.
What could be done?
The very next day as I was preparing dinner in the kitchen, my husband came home from our town’s transfer station and said, “You are not going to believe this! Guess what I just found at the dump about to be thrown away?!…THIS!… I have never seen something like this at the dump – ever!” He pulled out a small two inch baby Jesus figurine in a cradle made out of resin. A perfect little baby Jesus, like new, complete with the rest of a beautiful nativity set with all of the people, animals, stable – everything in great condition, (except that one of the figurines was broken a little, but that could be covered up with a cloth or something). This nativity set had been placed next to the large dump container headed to be disposed and crushed, but was salvaged before that happened. So we found a nice gift box, put the baby Jesus figurine in it and wrapped it up.
The next day, I brought the wrapped box to Jill and she opened it up, and there it was…the missing piece! I shared the story about my husband finding the whole nativity set the night before. I told her that it was meant for her, and she was overjoyed and said, “Wow! This nativity set is nicer than the one I have,” and she thanked me and gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
Later that day, I thought about Jill holding up the small baby Jesus figurine and was reminded of the King of Kings who left His majestic throne in Glory to enter our world filled with the refuse of sin. He came to earth and humbled Himself in many ways in how He lived and ultimately laid His own life down to die a cruel death on a cross. But it didn’t end there! Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead in a powerful triumphant resurrection, having victory over death, hell and the grave. THIS is the Spirit of Christmas.
It’s not about a cute baby in a manger, nativity sets, or little figurines. It’s about welcoming and worshipping the eternal King Jesus who was born in that lowly manger. He gave His life for the sins of the world and died for you and for me. Why? Because of LOVE. Jesus loves you and He loves me. He took all of our sins upon Himself, and for the joy that was set before Him, He endured the cross. He loves the whole world and wants the world to be restored to a right relationship with their creator. He desires sons and daughters to be reconciled to Him. He wants to share life with us forever.
The same hand that formed Jill’s – holding the tiny figurine of Jesus, is the same hand that is holding hers now.
Christmas is about celebrating extravagant love. It is celebrating hope and joy. Hope for the whole world.
“Joy to the world the LORD is come, let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare Him room…let heaven and nature sing!”
© 2022 Written by Elicia Roy (names changed for privacy)
what a beautiful story! one that only God could author and orchestrate perfectly the timing of each element of it – right down to a discarded Nativity set. He is such a deeply personal Heavenly Father. Thank you for sharing this story – Christmas is about joy and hope – about The Light of the world coming into this dark world – about promises kept and prophesies fulfilled. Your story is one of God actively at work in our world today. thank you! http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com – post “Advent – seeking and celebrating the sacred”
There are hidden ‘secrets’ in our Holy Christmas Season that need our inquiry. ABBA Father, we ask that You would illuminate our study of Your precious Word to guide our lives and families forward with undying acceptance and obedience to the reality of Mankind’s Saviour… In Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
https://zionsgate.wordpress.com/2012/12/21/the-reality-of-christmas-birth-of-mankinds-savior/
The word Christmas which means Christ’ mass, and the holiday instituted by the catholic church is not from GOD. CHRIST nor any of HIS Disciples ever celebrated a mass that I have read in scripture. HOLY SPIRIT please teach us how to honor CHRIST birth every day. Let us trust YOU to teach us in JESUS NAME! Amen!
My Dear Beloved Brothers and Sisters who call up the name of our Savior and Messiah Jesus/Yahshuah of Nazareth our Heavenly High Priest who is now seated on the right hand of our Abba Father. My prayer is today that we would diligently seek to worship the Father and His Son in spirit and in truth. Many believers are listening to the Holy Spirit’s promptings in regards to the understanding that holding fast to these traditions of men and false worship is something we must let go. One of the major snares that kept God’s people hearts from faithfully serving Him throughout history is holding to idolatry. We must worship God in spirit and truth. The truth is that our Savior did not tell us to observe and remember His birth, but He did say to do THIS in remembrance of Him until Him comes. “Remember His death & resurrection. And to flee idolatry through his servant John. The truth is that Christmas is the pagan holiday of Saturnalia (the worship of the God of Saturn) not our Lord and Savior which has been brought into the true worship and has been turning God’s people’s hearts away from Him to false worship and idolatry. Idolatry is just not following another it also is attributing worship of another god in the form and image of God such as we see in Exodus regarding the golden calf. The golden calf was created and was crafted as a substitution for YAHWEH! The people and Aaron actually called the calf YAHWEH and worshipped the image as though it was Him. Is not the worship of this holiday not doing the same? Remember Beloved we must worship our Savior in spirit and in truth. Please search these things out like a Berean and Love YAHWEH wholeheartedly with all of your heart, mind and soul. Be faithful and endure to the end!
Thank you for confirming. I worship him in spirit and in truth and no longer have any dealings with Christmas, a pagan holiday! Period!
I wondered about this, too, so have done quite a bit of research on the subject. Pagans celebrate the birthday of the sun god on December 25th. Names for the sun god include Baal, Tammuz, Horus, etc. His mother is called Semiramas, Ishtar, Asheroth, etc. God removed His presence from the Jewish temple and His people because of sun worship (Ezekiel 8:16; 9:3; 10:4-5, 18-19).
My wife and I have prayed the Advent meditation each evening before we retire. This keeps our thoughts focused on the Christ child and the redemption He brought to the world.
Twenty years ago this Christmas, I was putting up our Christmas tree, and I realized that it had become an idol to me….I was so caught up in how beautiful it was, that other things paled in comparison….Holy Spirit revealed this to me. Since then, I have had no desire to put up a tree….I decorate some, but I am not obsessed with Christmas decorations—-I am filled with humility as I Remember the Real Reason for the Christmas Season: JESUS CHRIST, GOD with us, IMMANUEL.
Bishop Fulton J. Sheen in his inimitable television program, Life is Worth Living, alluded to our Blessed Lord’s being born in a manger to a for-shadowing of his crucifixion on the hill of Calvary during his noteworthy explanation of the true meaning of Christmas. Both environments were austere and unsheltered ones for our Blessed Mother Mary, as Simeon had foretold, “and a sword will pierce your soul revealing the hearts of many.” As she looked down and saw heaven in the manger, she would eventually look up to behold her son, Lord and Saviour, as the king of kings who stumbled to his throne amidst great torment and suffering. It is this paradox of Christmas that one who is faithful should never fail to contemplate, never fail to appreciate and never fail to give reverence to our Almighty God and Father for coming down to save us in the Divine Person of his only begotten son, Jesus Christ. For although the night was dark and fearful when our Lord was born, it is he himself who shone and continues to shine as the only true light of the world and cosmos now and forever as the apostle John makes clear in the first chapter of his holy gospel. Yes, only when we are tried and tested in suffering, misery, oppression and poverty of all kinds, can we at least apprehend a semblance of the true meaning of Christmas. Amen!!!
Sincerely,
Vincent
There is nothing sweeter than the picture of the babe in the manager and how He stepped down from heaven to spend 33 years giving His life for us. But I do have two problems with Christmas (and they’re not the problems you think I’m going to have):
1) 99+% of the believers I know who celebrate Christmas do not celebrate the 7 festivals God tells us to celebrate in Leviticus 23. What? You think God changed His mind when He said they were to be kept forever in Leviticus 23? Then why did Jesus, the disciples, and Paul keep them? (Mt. 26:17, Mk. 14:12, Lk. 2:41, Lk. 22:7,8,15, Jn. 13:1, Acts 20:6, 27:9 1 Cor. 5:8, 11:23-26)
Isn’t Jesus supposed to be our example? Faith in Jesus should not contradict the faith of Jesus. WDJD (What Did Jesus Do?) trumps WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?) every time.
He said, “Whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven” – and whoever doesn’t will be called the least in the kingdom (Mt. 5:19). Since the New Testament hadn’t been written yet, Jesus was talking about the commands in the Old Testament. While clearly not a salvation issue, these commands are obviously important to the God who gave them and will have an impact on your future with Him.
2) The mushrooming principle: Christmas has a way of being so big, so time-consuming, and such a central focus for your year, that little time or energy is left for the festivals God does tell us to celebrate.
Jesus is the center point of every festival and gives insight on God’s master plan for the Messiah:
Passover: Jesus died.
Unleavened Bread: Jesus was buried.
Firstfruits: Jesus was resurrected.
Pentecost: The Holy spirit came as promised by Jesus.
Trumpets: Jesus will return on a white horse with His Bride.
Day of Atonement: Jesus serves as our High Priest this very moment!
Tabernacles: He tabernacled with us, and we will “tabernacle” with Him forever!
The festivals utilize all five of our senses, giving us a better understanding of God’s plan and reminding us to examine ourselves lest anything hinder that plan.
There is no other biblical subject which will shed as much light on end-time prophecy as a study of the festivals.
Although God is always there, there are special appointments on His calendar in which He wants to meet with you. Don’t miss them.
Good article. I’m not sure that the devil was fully aware, or fully understood, his defeat at the cross, or he may have tried harder to keep Jesus alive.
Jesus was most likely not born on Dec 25; possibly in the fall at Sukkot, but Jonathan Cahn researched and has a great teaching on how Jesus/Yeshua may have been born in the spring, at the lamb-birthing time of year.
Yes, I heard Jonathan Cahn give that message. Nissan 1. It bears witness to my spirit that the Lamb of God would be born with the wee earthly lambs that foal in the early, early Spring. Nissan 1 is the first day of the Hebrew calendar, if I understand correctly. But Jesus will come again in the Fall at the Feast of Trumpets, if I heard right.
Father please help people understand the true meaning of our holidays and celebrations that take place in the United States open the eyes of their understanding so that they understand many of the major celebrations really do have pagan roots… that we need to take the United States back not by joining in pagan celebrations claiming it as your celebrations but to keep the feast the way you called us to in your word ….If we want to truly take back the holidays and come out from among them and not be equal like the word of God says in 2Corinthians 6:17…then we need to go back to keeping the feast that God prescribed in the Torah (The first five books of the Bible) because Tammuz was born Dec 25th and he is the pagan sun god’s son. (The tree represents the sun god) this was a pagan celebration prior to anything else unfortunately. The tree is depicted as an idol in Jeremiah 10:3-4.
Yeshua was born in Sept-Oct during the feast of Tabernacles. During Sukkot (feast of tabernacles) we celebrate Yeshua’s birth at that time. Constantine came in and mixed all the pagan religions with the Bible and outlawed the true name of God, and moved the Sabbath day. If you used his name, Yehovah, you would die. (Example feast of first fruits is now called Easter. Easter is actually a Babylonian sex goddess. Searching for the egg is looking for her arrival on earth to bring about spring.) Yeshua rose on first fruits (a regular work day for Israel).
December 25 two years after Yeshua’s birth the wisemen arrived and brought their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The wisemen were from Babylon, where Daniel had taught to watch for the Messiah star…they followed the star to Bethlehem where it came over the house where Yeshua was living at the time. That is how come people who do not understand the Hebrew/Jewish roots to our Messiah’s birth say that is his birthday. December 25 is a true Messianic holiday. I call it the gift of the magi day. Then we also have Hanukkah to celebrate. When the temple was recovered from the Greeks. An eight day celebration of the rededication of the temple. Or if you will a Sukkot two months later. They could not observe the feast of tabernacles in its proper time. Yeshua celebrated the Feast of Dedication. If you read the word of Yah (God) very closely… you will notice that Lazarus died during the feast of dedication. Yeshua stayed and finished the celebration then he went and raised Lazarus from the dead. The Puritans understood all this… which is why they outlawed Christmas. Father please have mercy and convict us, your people, of sin and righteousness and judgment. Show us what is true and the truth.
This ianalysis is not illustrative of what Christians believe. Christians do not put up wirshio Christmas trees, and they don’t worship false Gods on The Feast of the Nativity of our Lord. Yes, Christmas has been commercialized and the true meaning has been obfuscated, but your history is completely innacurate and only leads to further confusion.
Thank you Lord for the birth of your son Jesus Christ to be a witness to the world and to save us from our sin… Let us never run out of ways to be a witness of the reason for the season of the birth of Jesus Christ and we thank you and give you praise in Jesus mighty name… Amen
Here is where my heart is cries out in the waters for wisdom. I honor Yeshua. I also am learning from those keep searching for the season he was born and they believe it was closer if not on the feast of tabernacles, not 12/25- the birth date celebrating the birth of Tamuz, the son of Nimrod, grandson of Noah, who elevated himself as a god in the tower of babel. We still want to celebrate the celebration of His life and only passover, but we will celebrate his arrival on earth during yom teruah. blessings
This is a good article. Thank you. For several years, God has given me a poem for Christmas that empathizes not just the birth of Christ but the reason. I use this as a basis for my Christmas cards. It is so important that we treat Christmas as a time to make the gospel known. I pray that as people hear the Christmas carols in the stores, it would remind them of the reason for Christmas and that the Holy Spirit would use that to awaken them.
Father, we pray that the church will rise up and show the true meaning of Christmas, the celebration of Jesus’ birth. Father, you gave us the best gift ever. No gift compares to the awesome gift of Jesus Christ. He came as a man to take upon Himself the sins of mankind so we can escape the gruesome depths of hell. Hallelujah!!!! Thank you Jesus.
Father God as Christmas is being celebrated around the world there are many questions about Christmas in the month of your birth the more I look at Christmas the more it is commercialized for the pagan holiday for the Pagan greed Lord God help us to understand when we are supposed to celebrate Christmas when the true birth happened cuz there are many questions around December 25th we see what the pagan holiday has caused it has caused many to be poor it has caused many to be greedy father God I don’t want to be any part of this if this is not truth could Jesus name I pray
The Christmas Season, in the traditional Catholic Church, does not officiaaly begin until December 25th. Decemember 25th marks the first of the traditional twelve days of Christmas. The day after the completion of the Twelve Days of Christmas is the Epiphany. The liturgical seasin of Christmas does not end until the end of January. My husband and I are observing the traditional 12 days of Christmas this year. The 4 weeks leading up to Christmas are called Advent, and Advent traditionally is supposed ti be a mini-Lenten season, where Christians make room fir Christ in their lives by extra prayer, a good confession, alsmgiving, frequent fasting, and penance. Yes, the culture has defiled Christmas, but that does not mean we should give up Christmas. Instead, we should observe Advent and Christmas the way the church set it up to be observed: Joyfully but reverently. We should cut out all of our society’s customs and cling to the true meaning of Christmas. Liturgically, Christmas is a FEAST day, not a birthday. It is when we observe the birth of Christ with fasting on the days leading up to Christmas, and feasting on the 25th. Since the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord, aka Christmas, is on a Sunday this year, we abstain on Friday, and fast and abstain all day Saturday. This is traditional. Then, we feast on Christmas. I urge all Christians, especially Catholics, to start observing these beautiful, traditional practices and bring the true meaning of Christmas back to our culture.
Sorry for the typos. The keypad on my phone is too small.
It is interesting how the Enemy has twisted the true meaning of Christmas through man’s “innocent” treatment of Christ’s birth. This is so typical of any God-ordained event. To me, the disconnect between what Christmas is all about, and what man has made it into, seems to grow wider and wider each year. Lord Jesus, as we go about our Christmas celebrations this year, help us to remember that You are the reason for the season, and keep You first in our lives. Help us to remember that apart from Your great love for us, we are unable to have ANYTHING. Thank You, Jesus, for everything we have and do in this life.
Try using a pencil eraser to type on your keyboard when the keys are to small for your finger.
At a time where we Celebrate the coming of our savior/messiah and His love over us ….to redeem, bring restoration to relationships and show us God’s ways…
Yet, at this time satan brings relational pain, loneliness, depression as people can’t afford to meet the expectations financially to buy or are alone for Christmas. I too love your article to bring back clarity over the real celebration we should be announcing.
Prayers for all those who find themselves alone and or challenged this Christmas that they were feel the peace and presence of our Heavenly Father and the love He gave in the bringing forth His son Jesus.
Blessings be felt and arise.
…Debi
This year provides the unique opportunity to celebrate Christ’s birth on Sunday! So why are so many churches by passing this opportunity to come together on Christmas morning to celebrate his birth? Dec 25 Sunday services are being cancelled and replaced with online services all over the country! Thank you, Lord, that our church’s doors will be open as we celebrate Christ’s birth with fellow believers on Christmas Day!
I love the facts that are in this article about why we celebrate Christ birth on December 25th. They are pagan celebrations. Christ wasn’t born on December 25th nor does the Bible tell us to celebrate his birth. I celebrate his birth and death for my sins every day I do not need a specific day to do so. Knowing the truth about how Christians came to celebrate the birth of our Lord on December 25th and it being Pagan origin makes my blood boil. So, in truth why do we celebrate December 25th as Christ birth when there is nothing from God in the Bible that says to celebrate it on a specific day?
Thank you for this historical background information on how certain “customs” have come to be. I have been very convicted about the losing of the true meaning of Christ’s Mass amid all the other added on traditions. I have been writing a series of Advent blog posts at http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com – which I have done the last three Decembers – hopefully to point people back to the baby in the manger who became our Christ on the cross – defeating death and setting us all free who invite Jesus to be our Savior and our Lord. Every day is Advent as we anticipate Jesus’s return – His question is the one we must answer when Jesus asked “When I return will I find faith on the earth?” (post “the question Advent asks” and post “Advent – seeking and celebrating the sacred”) and there are more – Advent is our time of preparing to receive the Christ child into our lives – hope for a world in despair and ruin, the Light coming into darkness, the message of Christmas must not be lost! The world needs a Savior and He has come! This good news should be proclaimed from the rooftops – even the very same rooftops that receive Santa and his reindeer. http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com
Father God we pray now more than ever this year – the truth of your birth – Your death on the cross for each and everyone of us – to be a most clear and bold message for all to understand – to defeat Satan and all of the satanic forces surrounding us – all the principalities of darkness surrounding us – we pray to rebuke and purge them this holiday season. like NEVER before IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST!!!!!
I love Christmas and Christmas Music, and to those who feel the same, come see my article…
THE HEART OF CHRISTMAS: A Musical Journey of the True Holiday Season.
Let us push back the darkness…
https://medium.com/scroll-it/the-heart-of-christmas-162854175d0d
Keeping Advent is a very countercultural way to keep Christ the center of the Christmas celebration. Then keeping Christmas as a season, not simply a day is another. Both are rich with history and meaning.
yes, I agree about Advent – it is a season, not a day. It is a time of preparation – in the parables the servants were told to be about the Master’s business while He was away and to always be prepared for His return. I have been writing about Advent at http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com – (post “always Advent” and others about this sacred season) Advent is truly a sacred time if we have eyes to see it – the miracle of the “Advent” of Christ’s arrival here on earth is truly more than the mind can grasp – God with us – Immanuel – “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” – a miracle of such magnitude I can scarcely take it in – that is the true wonder of the season – the true miracle in this season of miracles – the miracle that “God loved us while we were yet sinners” – these truly are “tidings of great joy” if only we had eyes to see and hearts to receive our King! http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com
Pray for peace throughout the world.