For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 6:23 ESV

For many years when Mom hosted Christmas dinner at her house, she always ordered a cake from a bakery. It was a birthday cake that said Happy Birthday Jesus. She wanted to make everyone mindful that the day was not about stuffing ourselves on the food you only eat during the holidays, it wasn’t about the gifts we give or receive, it was about the most important gift. It was about the gift God gave us all those years ago-His son, Jesus Christ.

She wanted us to remember that God loved us so much He gave his one and only Son to die on the cross for our sins. He wanted those of us who believe in Him to have eternal life. We can’t obtain the righteousness to do this on our own because we are all sinners (Romans 3:23). But if we believe in Him and confess our sins to Him, He is faithful. He will forgive us our sins and his blood will cleanse us of all our unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

I spoke yesterday about my great disappointment when I found that Snickers and Snickerdoodles had nothing to do with each other. They shared no similar characteristics. Being a chocolate lover, of course, I enjoy a Snickers bar from time to time. I assumed that Snickerdoodles had Snickers in them or at least some of the same ingredients. I was wrong.

Sadly, Christ and Christmas have become about as different as Snickers and Snickerdoodles. Some people are offended when we say, “Merry Christmas”. Some choose to leave Christ out all together and just write X-mas. Our Scripture passage tells us the wages of sin is death. Jesus is a gift God gave us to save our lives for eternity. Jesus clearly says in Matthew 10:33, “Whoever denies me before men, I will deny them before my Father in heaven.”

When we remove Christ from Christmas, we are denying Him. When we are more concerned about the tree, gifts, parties, food and whatever else occupies our little minds, we deny Him. This should be all about Him. We don’t throw a birthday party for someone we love and not invite them. We have no problem, however, with having Christmas and leaving Christ out of it.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not being a grinch and telling you we can’t have fun at Christmas. I think honoring God should be fun. It can be a wonderful time of fellowship, but we must keep our hearts and minds focused on the purpose of this season.

Next week, we will have a time to be thankful and praise God for all the good things He has provided and done in our lives. Don’t leave the thanks out of your Thanksgiving. Our hearts should remain thankful as we thank God for the baby boy He sent down to us to die for us so that we might live forever.

John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Get to know God’s Word. Study your Bibles, God has a lot to say to us. His Word became flesh, His Son, sent to earth to dwell among us to teach us how to live. We should be imitators of Him (Ephesians 5:1). He died to set us free from the bondage of sin and death.

Use thanksgiving as a time to give thanks for God and for His Son, Jesus Christ. Use Christmas as a time to give Christ glory, honor and praise. Share His love with those who are less fortunate. Share His Word with those who are lost and dying.

Keep Christ in Christmas.

Have a great day!