Having you ever wondered why people celebrate Christmas? It’s a wonderful time of year! It is a time of decorating trees, giving gifts to those we love, spending time with family. It’s colored lights twinkling on houses, songs about mistletoe and jingle bells, and sugar cookies in the shapes of snowmen, reindeer, and Santa Claus. But is this really Christmas? It seems like there must be more to this holiday than decking the halls with boughs of holly, doesn’t it? For me, there is!
Here are six reasons that I celebrate Christmas.
R – REDEEMER
Isaiah 47:4 – “As for our redeemer, the LORD of hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel.”
Jesus was born to be our redeemer; to pay the debt for our sins that we could never pay. He did this so we could have eternal life with Him in heaven. Titus 2:11-14 records, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
E – EMMANUEL
Matthew 1:23 – “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they
shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”
Jesus, the Son of God, was born to live among us. He was God in the flesh. John 1:14 tells us, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” In preceding verses, it is clear that Jesus, God’s Son, is the Word, and He came to live with humanity to become our Saviour.
A – ANOINTED ONE
Luke 4:18a – “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor…”
When Jesus began His ministry, one of the first places He went was the synagogue in Nazareth. Here He read this passage from Isaiah 61. At the completion of the reading, He informed those in attendance that He was the fulfillment of that scripture. However, even though Jesus was God’s Anointed One, He was rejected by many in his hometown, and sadly, today as well.
S – SAVIOUR
1 John 4:14 – “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.”
Jesus, God’s Son, was sent from heaven by His Father for a specific purpose. That purpose was to die on the cross for the sins of the world, rise triumphantly from the grave 3 days after His death, and provide salvation for everyone. John 3:16 states “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Luke tells us in chapter 2 that it was indeed God’s Son who was born that night so long ago: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”
O – ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN
John 14:6 – “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Jesus tells us that there is no other way to receive eternal life except through Him. The world will tell you that there are a myriad of ways to get to heaven, but the Bible clearly states there is only one way. Putting your faith in Jesus, trusting Him to forgive you of your sins, and inviting Him to be the Lord o your life is the only way to heaven.
N – NEWBORN KING
Matthew 2:1-2 – “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.”
The magi from the east had studied ancient writings for all of their lives. When they saw the star… the sign of which they had read… they knew what it meant, and they set out to find the divine king for which it shone. They brought with them gold, in recognition of His kingship, frankincense, a symbol of His holy priesthood, and myrrh, a spice used in burial preparations, a foreshadowing of the Saviour’s eventual death.
For me, Jesus is the R-E-A-S-O-N for my Christmas season! I hope He is your reason as well!