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Okay, I am NOT going to hash out the issue of pagan roots in Christmas traditions, etc. What I am going to do is to challenge you on your own holiday activities/attitudes.

First let’s take a quick quiz…
Complete this text as far as you can: ‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house…..

OK, now try this one: Now you know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer…

One more: Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way…
What’s wrong? Prefer the more traditionally quoted passage? OK, try finishing it: In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus…

Quickly made point:   Most all of us know more of the “traditional” or “secular” Christmas than we do of the true incarnation of Christ. If this were not true we would not be picturing wise men visiting the stable (check it for yourself) or many of the other mistakes that are common.

BUT ALL THAT ASIDE WHAT I REALLY WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS:

Although there is usually a significant effort on the part of many churches to remind folks of “The Reason For The Season” even that slogan has become a generic often meaningless mantra. What I mean by this is sadly there have been MANY well intentioned people who tried to overcome even my grinchy attitude reminding me how important it is to celebrate the real event of the birth of Christ. Then it happens… I ask “Why?    It is the answer to that question that I want you to ponder. Why is it important to celebrate the birth of Christ? Many times the answer is given “It is the most important event in human history!”   (I hope you read that and say,  “NO IT’S NOT!”)

The single most important event in human history took place outside Jerusalem at a place called Golgotha. It is not my intent to convince you to avoid Christmas or from telling about the very Son of God being born as a human baby in Bethlehem. It is my intent to remind you that the significance of a manger is the cross!  The virgin birth is a doctrine of primary significance, but only as it finds fulfillment in the death and subsequent resurrection of Jesus! The birth of Jesus should NEVER be celebrated in isolation from the reason for it.

His very name proclaimed the reason for His coming!   Matt 1:21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

The angels openly proclaimed it!     Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Simeon identified him!     Luke 2:29-32 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

So celebrate!  Rejoice!  MY SAVIOR has come through a humble birth. I openly proclaim my belief in the lowly, virgin birth of the Christ child in a stable in Bethlehem just as the Bible says. More than that, the Bible teaches that the reason there was the manger was that there would be the cross. The biblical nativity was not recorded for Hallmark’s benefit. It was for the benefit of unworthy and helpless sinners like me. I hope people see that as the reason for any and all celebrating I do this Christmas season. I hope the same for you.

I put this together a couple years ago for a Thanksgiving devotion. It’s good to look back and give us perspective. Listen to a proclamation from our 16th president and thank God for His providence on us!

In his book on the Holy Spirit, speaking of evidence of regeneration Octavius Winslow says the following:

“What evidence can be more convincing? It is a symptom that cannot mislead. The praying soul is a quickened soul. The prayerless soul is a lifeless soul. The individual that has never truly prayed has never known what one throb of spiritual life is. He may content himself with the external form—he may kneel in the outer court of the tabernacle, and, as the holy Leighton expresses it, “breathe his tune and air of words,” and yet continue an utter stranger to true prayer.”

How many times am I guilty of merely kneeling in the outer court in this way? What a sense of dread filled me when I read the words and felt the sting of personal guilt from lack of prayer. Then all at once as I sorrowed over my lacking came the familiar and comforting sense that is only felt by a lively soul inhabited by the great comforter sent by God Himself bearing witness once again that I am His and He is ever present.

Take joy Christian! The pain of realizing fault is but for a moment for the redeemed. He is ever ready to accept our continuing repentance and draw us closer to Him. It is His purpose to do it! so rejoice in the Beloved and pray! Pray more! No less than Jesus said to the woman publicly outed for her sins, He says to us today “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

(Quote taken from page 13 of THE HOLY SPIRIT, An Experimental and Practical View by Octavius Winslow)

Lately I have been thinking on prayer; actually on the need for more of it in my life. Prayer is a funny thing if you listen to what people say about it. It’s another term that probably needs defining more often than not.

Once I heard a radio host (who considered himself devout in the faith) comment about a politician’s prayer habits and said something like he believed in taking your petitions to God as this was called prayer, but saying that God answered directly back was not prayer; that was mental illness. I don’t like that definition. That’s not biblical.

I like my pastor’s definition that it’s speaking to the King in the King’s language. While it doesn’t explicitly mention the hearing part it does orient prayer around the Lord. It is not a function of repetition or dramatic language or obligatory habit nor does it need audible tones or good grammar (fortunate for me). He gave us instruction on prayer in the Bible so if we learn to pray as He taught… that’s when we begin to hear back, and THAT IS PRAYER!

The problem more often than not is that rather than spending our lives constantly in prayer after the manner that Jesus taught in the model (aka Lord’s) prayer, our lives more represent the following:

So here’s me praying that will be less true in my life and yours.
Lord, may it be.
DCW