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WHAT ARE YOU DOING FOR CHRISTMAS?
This question will probably be asked of you many times in the run-up to Christmas. There are lots of answers we might be minded to give. Visiting family or having family visit us will perhaps top the poll. We might be going away, maybe even abroad. Others of us will spend the time quietly at home.Still others will have something much more active in view. So here are some further suggestions as to how you might answer this question.
I am looking forward to thinking about why God sent His Son.
Now, how many of us would honestly answer the question this way? Does it sound too religious, too pious? But it would be a good answer to give. We often remind ourselves that Christ is the reason for the season. But the worthy aim to remember Him gets lost amidst the frantic activity, not to mention the chaos we might have been thrown into by the Christmas weather. Yet to remember that the life of the Lord Jesus Christ is the most significant life there has ever been could open up a rich treasury of thought and blessing to us. Remember, the fact that God sent His Son to the world should be a source of wonder to us.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
I will be finding out more about my soul.
That would be an interesting answer to give. Lots of people are curious about the soul. Some try to reduce it down to something made up of chemicals and not really special at all. Others are not so persuaded by that line of reasoning. Perhaps some of us will be reading up about the subject over Christmas. But the child who was born to us shows us how to make progress in our understanding. Though we might be loath to admit it, Christ’s coming is proof of our sinfulness and that the soul of man is ‘…dead in trespasses and sins…’ He came to seek and to save that which is lost. True repentance from our sin and true faith in Christ to forgive us our sin bring God’s quickening power for the soul. Then we are able to see the kingdom of God. Now that would be a great discovery to make this Christmas.
I will be worshipping God.
Could this be an answer you would give to our question? It was how the wise men and the shepherds spent some of their time the first Christmas as they beheld the wondrous gift sent from heaven. Whether we admit it or not, we all worship something or someone, even if it turns out to be ourselves. But our noblest occupation should be to worship the true and living God. What fine Christmas hymns we have to assist us in that endeavour. For I would suggest Christ is worthy of the highest accolades and honours that we can give Him. As the King of Kings and Lord and Lords, He rules with authority and power. He will come again one day. But His second coming will not be ‘…in that poor lowly stable...’ but on the clouds, with the holy angels and with great glory. We will certainly worship Him then, whether we are willing or not. But we should worship Him now. So perhaps that is something we should be doing this Christmas?
May God bless us all this Christmas time and on into 2012.