Devotion / What really happened at Christmas?

Who doesn’t like Christmas?

 Who doesn’t like Christmas? Many children say they love Christmas because they like getting and giving gifts, decorating, and eating some tasty treats like cookies and candy. Most people are in a happy mood at Christmas because it is a fun time of year.

 Sadly, after Christmas is over many people return to the same ruts and routines they were stuck in before the holiday. The gifts get set aside, the cookies get eaten, and the decorations are packed away. For them, Christmas fun is over. 

 God’s children celebrate Christmas with decorations and gifts too. We enjoy being with our family and friends like everyone else, but for us Christmas is more important than that. For us the Christmas enjoyment is never over. We celebrate Christmas every day of the year, because we know what really happened on Christmas.

 We remember

 The story in Luke 2 is very familiar. We read it every year because it is about Jesus’ birth. It tells about the visit of the angels and how the shepherds hurried to the manger to see baby Jesus. The story continues in Matthew where we read about the Magi traveling from far away to praise Jesus and give him their special gifts. We know what happened the first Christmas, and that’s why it has such a great impact on our lives.

 Before Adam and Eve sinned, nothing in the Garden of Eden ever died. God intended for everything to live forever, including Adam and Eve. But when they sinned and ate the forbidden fruit, God judged that people would now have to die. But he promised a glimmer of hope. God pledged to send a Savior who would die as a substitute for the sinner. Jesus would be that glimmer. At Christmas Jesus began his work of saving us all.

 That’s why Christmas is so important! We decorate and celebrate to show our joy knowing that the baby in the manger came for a purpose that would lead him to a cross. We are reminded each Christmas that even though we die, we will also be raised to live forever with Jesus. We let our lights shine brightly at Christmas to let others know that on that day we remember the greatest gift of all!

by Reynold R. Kremer