Christ-centered Christmas

​One of my all-time favorite bumper stickers reads “Wise men still seek Him.”
 
Long ago three wealthy wise men from the east followed a supernatural star halfway across the known world in search of an incredibly special person.
 
“And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And they came into the house and saw the Child with Mary his mother; and they fell down and worshipped Him; and opening their treasures they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”   Matthew 1:10-11
 
The bright, luminous star went before them, finally settling over Bethlehem, a humble, holy place where the Savior of the world was born.
 
The spontaneous response of the wise men was threefold.
 
First, “they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.” What a happy night that first Christmas was! Great joy and rejoicing abounded and rebounded within the walls of the crude animal stable. It was party time in that first Nativity setting!
 
Secondly, when the ecstatic and expectant magi saw “the Child” with Mary His mother, “they fell down and worshipped Him.” Reverent worship. Respectful adoration. The only worthy response to the precious, special baby lying in a manger.
 
Thirdly, they “presented to Him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.” Lavishly expensive gifts were presented to this one-of- a- kind child. The wise men gave their best gifts to the One who was God’s best gift to humanity.
 
Christmas is all about Jesus Christ.
 
” The Child” was the focal point of that first Christmas and has been every Christmas since.
 
Wise men still seek Him. Only fools and a foolish world would try to remove Christ from Christmas. Yet it happens every Christmas season. The devil and those under his influence hate the fact that God’s only Son came to earth on Christmas. His miraculous incarnation and subsequent journey to crucifixion on the Cross and resurrection from the dead sealed Satan’s eternal doom.
           
Unhappy with the Christ of Christmas, Satan does all he can to erase “the Child” from our celebrations.
 
I have a news bulletin for the enemy of our souls and those who reject the Messiah of humanity.
 
Jesus Christ is not erasable!
 
Xmas does not cross out Christ. The Christian response is clear and needs to be heard: Christmas is a Christ-centered celebration. Jesus is and has always been the reason for the Christmas season.
             
The wise men set the pattern for celebrating Christmas. So simple and yet so profound. The person of the Christ child was the whole point and purpose of their sacred pilgrimage. With joyful abandon, they rejoiced in Jesus’ birth. They willingly humbled themselves to worship the Holy So of God. They showered the Savior with their best offerings.
 
The ancient wise men who first found Jesus did not know what we believers know today. So, should our response be any less than theirs? Of course not. It should be even greater! The wise men only knew of a baby in a manger. But we know a crucified and risen Lord and Savior who is coming back soon for us! Hallelujah!
 
My fellow Christian do not become distracted or silent this Christmas.
 
Rise up with boundless joy and rejoice in Jesus Christ. Be bold this Christmas. With the love of God in your heart, and the joy of the Holy Spirit on your lips, tell our spiritually lost world that there is a Savior.
           
His name is Jesus. He is Immanuel, God with us. Counter the world’s foolishness with God’s wisdom. In His wise love, God the Father sent God the Son to save all of us from sin, death and the grave.
 
The Son of God became the son of man so the sons of men could become the sons of God.
 
Now that is worth shouting about and sharing with everyone we know!
 
A Christ-centered Christmas is the only real Christmas.
 
Wise men still seek Him. Will this Christmas find you and your family seeking Him in a fresh way and sharing Him with others?        
             
“For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16
 
“That God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.” 
                                                                                                             II Corinthians 5:19
 
A Word For Your Week: Celebrate “the Child” who is still the center of Christmas.