Jesus' Coming Brings Hope

"Today's Devotion" For November 30, 2005

Read: Isaiah 40:27-31; Psalm 85

JESUS' COMING BRINGS HOPE

"...but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Is. 40:31)

We've entered another Advent season according to the Church calendar. It's a time of preparation to celebrate once more Jesus' birth as well as a time to reflect on Jesus' promise to return to take His people home. Of course, if we look at what takes place in a typical day of such preparation in our Christian homes, we'd have to wonder if God's people truly understand what this celebration is all about.

Our modern Christmas celebration is beginning to look much like the pagan celebrations out of which our December 25 "birthday party for Jesus" evolved. In its purest form, our celebration of Christmas - the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - is a "toned down" version of a variety of pagan celebrations and customs going back almost 4,000 years. Looking back over those millennia, we observe the customs of the ancient Mesopotamians, Persians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans in worship of their gods around the turn of the New Year and the winter solstice. Gift giving, amnesty (exchanging of the positions of masters with their slaves - Romans), lights on trees, and other decorations and customs have been handed down to our present day in some form or another.

The early church knew the challenge of facing a hostile, pagan world. That world had recently put the Lord of life on the Cross and crucified an innocent Man for the sins of the whole world. While it was God's Will and purpose that Jesus' die for our sins, the crucifixion also clearly brought out humanity's enmity against God. Facing such a world, God's people nevertheless stepped forward in faith to share the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world. People were brought to faith in Christ, yet they also brought their cultures with them. The early church faced the challenge of the Roman celebration, during the winter solstice, of their god, Saturn. "Jo Saturnalia," as it was called, was a festive event, filled with excesses to be sure, but one in which gifts were given, decorations hung, and slaves and owners even exchanged places (an "amnesty" of sorts).

Faced with this challenge to the Christian faith, the early Church decided to "Christianize" the customs of "Jo Saturnalia," toning them down to fit a celebration of the birth of the Son of God. Historical evidence points to 98 A.D. as the date from which the Church began to celebrate Jesus' birthday. The Bishop of Rome, in 137 A.D., declared that the birthday of Jesus should be celebrated as a solemn feast. In 350 A.D., the then Bishop of Rome, Julius I, declared December 25 as the observance of Christmas (Note: the exact day of Jesus' birth has never been determined).

Today's celebration of Christmas in the world around us, and, sadly, even among God's people, often looks more like the Roman celebration of "Jo Saturnalia" than celebration of the birth of the Son of God and Savior of the world. Many of the customs of Christmas have their origins in pagan cultural celebrations of their gods and the superstitious observance of the winter solstice. They are customs that stretch back over 4,000 years and come to our day from the ancient Mesopotamians, Persians, Babylonian, Greeks, and Romans. The gift giving, tree lighting, decorating, and feasting that mark our modern day "winter solstice" observance, paying tribute to the modern day cultural gods of "retail sales," "corporate bottom lines," "keeping up with the Joneses," and a host of others too numerous to list. In that mix there's no room for celebrating the birth of a nondescript child, in a nondescript town, in a far away time, and a faraway place called Palestine - specifically a nation called Israel. There's no room, it seems, for the Son of God and His sacrificial gift of salvation from Sin, Death, and Satan for the whole world.

Yet, in the midst of these challenging days and times, we, as God's redeemed children in Jesus Christ need not fear or grow weary. We don't have to succumb to the world's excesses at Christmas (or any other time of the year for that matter). We have the power and strength through faith in Jesus to overcome and stand tall as true worshippers of God. Isaiah reminds us that "those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." As we approach another celebration of the "solemn feast" of Jesus' birth called "Christ Mass," we draw hope and comfort from God's promise to us that we are not forsaken or alone. He holds us in the very palm of His hand and we need not become weary. With His strength holding us up, we have the same challenge the early Church did - to take a "pagan" celebration - and turn its focus to God.

Prayer: Father, I'm saddened when I realize that my world has become so very much like the ancient world when it comes to knowing and worshiping You. I grow weary of fighting the trends of society and culture and find myself, all too often, succumbing to the prevailing ways of the world. Forgive me for forgetting that, as Your child in Jesus Christ, You have given me a mission of sharing Your Good News with the whole world, starting in my own little corner. By the power of Your Word and Spirit help me to keep "Christ Mass" as a truly "solemn feast" and a time of worship and praise for Your love for me and all humanity given in Jesus. As I approach the coming of Christmas, pour out Your Spirit upon me that I may not be given to excess in my gift-giving or pressured into allowing that giving to be the purpose for Christmas. Even though the world around me forgets that Jesus came to take away the Sin of the world, give me the strength to remember and the courage to declare Him to everyone. As my hope is in You and Your love for me in Jesus Christ, help me to share that same hope with others so they, too, might be received into Your kingdom. In Jesus' precious name I pray. Amen.

[Note: For an excellent, brief article on some of the history of Christmas, I recommend the following website: http://www.holidays.net/christmas/story.htm. This link should be live - it is if you see it in color - so click on it and enjoy the article:]
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--Pastor Boeck

Copyright ©2005 Rev. Richard J. Boeck, Jr. All rights reserved.