Lots of Lying at Christmas Time.

Christmas presents a challenge to Christians. The celebration, it seems, has a questionable origin and roots, but surely we want to rejoice in the birth of Jesus, don’t we? Yet, this cultural—what shall I call it?—extravaganza we experience annually has wrapped itself around His glorious incarnation; perhaps I should say it has strangled it almost to death. We are awash, inundated, swamped by commercials and advertisements. It’s a cultural, materialistic tsunami. “Buy! Buy! Buy!” we’re told, ad nauseum. “Gifts bring joy! Happy family around the gorgeous tree! Warm, fuzzy tradition! Santa Claus! He’s coming! Gifts under the tree!”

So, what should Christians do? Bow the knee to it? Put up with it?

I say resist it. Resist it the best you can. Resist it because if you are a Christian, you should not be content with a “Christian” holiday the foundations of which are lies. Let’s enumerate some of them.

Lie #1: We give gifts to one another because gifts were given at Christmas. True, gifts were given, but they were given to Jesus and His family. How that got finagled around to giving gifts to each other is a history too long to tell, substantially bolstered by Dickens’ well-meaning, if off-the-Jesus-centered mark, A Christmas Carol. So, we wonder if we should deny our children and others joy if we don’t give mounds of gifts. Nobody wants to be like Scrooge. Bah! Humbug! However, that meme is a lie, as well. Scrooge ended up giving a grand turkey to the family of a handicapped boy. He was kind to his financially struggling employee. He helped the poor. This is a good thing to do at Christmas. It has nothing to do with giving gifts to work mates, family, or friends.

Lie #2: Santa Claus exists. Parents spoon this to their children because the cultural meme is too strong to oppose. To be frank, it’s a lie. So, think about this for a moment. What would Christmas look like in the U.S. if Santa Claus wasn’t part of it? Interesting thought. I am angered, righteously, I would argue, that a god-like mythical being who knows the thoughts and actions of children has become the center of Christmas rather than Jesus.

Lie #3: Receiving gifts brings joy. No, receiving a gift brings momentary happiness that dissipates in twenty-four hours. I don’t know about you, but I was enlightened when my little children tossed aside the first gift they had just opened in their exuberance to find the next best thing, the next I’ll-be-made-happy-by-this-package frenzy. It was something to see such, um, raw greed on display.

Lie #4: Christmas is wonderfully joyful for American families. Certainly, there is a truth here. Gathering as a family is a good and biblical thing to do. But the commercials we see portray wonder and joy because everyone is thrilled about receiving their presents, as if somehow this is the dream of a lifetime. But what message do the poor receive from this false narrative? What about broken families? Families that have experienced tragedy? Will they experience this “joy”?

Resist the lies.

However, resistance isn’t all. Consider the poor. Consider those who have less than you.

Do these words from Jesus mean anything at Christmastime?

“‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’” (Matthew 25:37–40). ¹

The wise men traveled a great distance to sacrificially give gifts to Jesus. We can’t do as they did. But we can endeavor to sacrificially give to Him and those who are His, regardless. This will please Him. This will honor Him.

Thank You, Jesus, that though You were rich, for our sake You became poor, so that we by Your poverty might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). You emptied Yourself and offered Yourself in sacrifice for sinners. What an amazing, wondrous God You are. Help us follow Your example and not be compromised by a misleading love for the things of this world.

 

¹All Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Gif courtesy giphy.com