Would Christ want that? Would YOU really want that?
During this time of the year it is not unusual to see Facebook postings urging us all to put Christ back into Christmas, and to say “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy holidays”. We’re reminded that “Jesus is the reason for the season”. I’m sure you’ve seen those.
I love my Savior. I love the story of his birth that is given in two of the gospel accounts, though two other gospels don’t mention his birth at all. Were you aware of that? But what I don’t like, and will have no part in, is proclaiming our Savior’s birth and Christmas are synonymous. They’re not. Nor is this just a little thing. Either Christ always was in Christmas or he wasn’t. If he wasn’t, then associating a pagan-originated celebration with our holy Savior – is simply a lie. And remember: Christ said to worship in spirit and TRUTH.
Any of you who have come to our website for any length of time know we have proven that our Savior was born in the autumn, certainly nowhere near December 25. We also know beyond any doubt that Dec 25 was a well-established day of celebrating the returning sun after the winter solstice. In fact many religions celebrated it also as the day of birth of their own pagan god – but not the son of God. That’s for sure. Just do your own searches. Start with a Google search of “Pagan origins of Christmas” and see what you find.
I’ve discussed these things in previous sermons. Just write “Christmas” into the search bar of this site and my teachings and blogs will pop up.
The truth is, Yeshua’s (Jesus’) actual birth had nothing to do with Saturnalia or Christmas celebrations. Scripture doesn’t tell us exactly when it is, though we know it was in the Fall. Some identify it with the Feast of Trumpets or the Feast of Tabernacles – both falling in our Sept-October. I have a sermon about the true story of the Messiah’s birth. And a blog about the likely SPOT where he was born. The links to those are listed at the end of this blog.
Our Savior, Yeshua the Messiah, or you probably call him by his Greek name Jesus Christ, was never in the pagan winter Saturnalia celebrations. And of course he wouldn’t be. Of course he would hate associating his name with that. Our God condemns pagan holidays and commands his children to have nothing to do with them. It is not OK to paste God’s name on to those pagan-rooted celebrations. In fact, as we’ll see, Yah can get angry at that.
So how does God see it?
Deuteronomy 12:1-4
"These are the statutes and judgments which you shall be careful to observe in the land which YHVH God of your fathers is giving you to possess, all the days that you live on the earth. You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place. You shall not worship the Lord your God with such things.”
Deuteronomy 12:29-32
"When YHVH your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.
"Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.”
Deuteronomy 18:9
“When you come into the land which YHVH your Elohim (God) is giving you, you shall NOT learn to follow the abominations of those nations.
Here, Yahweh describes an idol, but it can also sure sound like a Christmas tree.
Jeremiah 10:2-4
Thus says YHVH:
"Do NOT learn the way of the Gentiles;
Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,
For the Gentiles are dismayed at them.
For the customs of the peoples are futile;
For one cuts a tree from the forest,
The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax.
They decorate it with silver and gold;
They fasten it with nails and hammers
So that it will not topple.
So what do our “Christian” nations do? We label the days of the week and the months of the year and the names of the planets after pagan gods and goddesses! And then we copied their pagan celebrations, put God’s name on them and pronounced them Christian!
Folks, Yah really does despise having HIS holy name be attached to the Saturnalia, cloaked now in “Christian” garb. It makes it WORSE to put his holy name on to pagan celebrations and revelries he tells us to have nothing to do with – regardless of how beautiful the songs are (and they do have lovely melodies), no matter how colorful and beautiful the Christmas trees are, regardless if we’re singing songs to HIM – in a pagan-based celebrations – it all just becomes more repulsive to our King. I assure you of that. God says he hates it.
Do you remember the story of the gold calf in the Wilderness (see Exodus 32)? Aaron, brother of Moses and High Priest of Israel, made that awful sinful conclusion of thinking if he could just put God’s name on to a pagan worship celebration, maybe doing so would make it alright. It doesn’t. It didn’t. Aaron almost lost his life over it and in fact 3,000 people did die due to the gold calf sin.
Click on “Continue reading” to read what it says in Exodus 32 and why we CANNOT put Christ “back” into Christmas.