Rejoicing in Christmas

Every year, during busy holidays, Christians remember the true meaning of Christmas: the coming of Jesus ! Our hearts are filled with gratitude because God the Father sent a Savior to redeem us. We enjoy many blessings : see colorful gifts around the tree in the living room, sing Christmas carols, thank God for his goodness. Some of us look forward to even watching "Merry Christmas Charlie Brown," with Linus quoting Luc 2 at the end.

We must be grateful for all the blessings we enjoy at Christmas. We know that all good things come to us from the Father. But it is good to remember why Jesus came : because we are at war - at war with the powers of darkness, against demonic spirits, against the devil himself. The devil comes into our lives to steal, kill, and destroy - all of this in an attempt to turn us away from God's good plans. With the birth of Christ, God established a bridgehead to fight the enemy in a new way - in fact, a D-Day of D-Day against the entrenched forces of hell.

Many believers do not want to recognize this war in their lives, but it is a biblical fact that the enemy of our souls is always at work against the people of God. It is for this reason that when we focus on the holiday only on blessings - even good things like giving and receiving - we miss the full impact of Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf. And we miss the deeper and true blessing that gives us the revelation of Christmas for us.

God the Father made sure that His beloved Son would be delivered. All the miraculous victories conquered in the name of Jesus for centuries are lying there, in a humble manger, in the small shape of a baby.

As we celebrate Christmas, may we be thankful for all the blessings of God, and especially for the victory we have won because of the birth of the baby Jesus.

Gary Wilkerson