Christ, culture and Christmas - a more excellent way (by Theuns Jacobs and Lucille May)

This article was not written by myself, but I could hardly have written it better. Before reading their article, please consider what I'd like to add: The Apostle Paul says in Romans 14:5-6 ⁵ One person considers one day to be above another day. Someone else considers every day to be the same. Each one must be fully convinced in his own mind. ⁶ Whoever observes the day, observes it for the honor of the Lord.

There are many Christians today who don't celebrate Christmas anymore because of its pagan origins. We were not commanded by Christ to celebrate Christmas. However, I believe that Scripture (Rom14:5-6) does make provision for those who choose to do so and we should allow them to, without heaping guilt upon them, even if it is ever so slightly or subtly. It is not wrong to inform them of the real origins of Christmas, but it is wrong to judge their attitudes and actions surrounding the way they celebrate Christmas, as wrong-doing or even evil, when it is their earnest desire to celebrate the birth and life of Christ during these times, even if the date of celebration doesn't co-inside with the real birth date. Such an attitude from a Christian is unloving, unnecessary and does no good. Rather than standing in judgment towards them (revealed in words and attitudes), which puts one's heart in a position of pride towards that person, we should humbly use the opportunity to talk to them about what it means for them that Christ came into this world, what He came to do and what the significance of his death and resurrection is. 

Personally,  I am one of those who mostly "considers every day to be the same". I believe that the celebration of Christ's life, death and resurrection should be a way of life, an everyday occurrence in various forms through living the Christ-centered life and should be celebrated often through communion. 

If you can't speak to or about those who choose to celebrate Christmas and/or Easter in a loving way, without any tone of mocking or judging in your voice or words, rather keep quiet and keep your opinion to yourself. You will do much less damage that way. Neither Christmas nor Easter is going away anytime soon. In the meantime we should find the more excellent way. Now please read the article below by Lucille and Theuns.

"For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect." (1 Peter 1:18-19, NIV)

Jesus, in his preaching of The Kingdom, leaves us in no doubt that it differs fundamentally from all other kingdoms, kingdoms which are often diametrically opposed to His. Consider for a moment that He, in His lifetime on earth, left us no tangible monument, palace or building. His approach differs radically from the rest, whose great kingdoms all aspire to construct imposing edifices of architectural wonder and to entrench a plethora of traditions and rituals, aimed at encapsulating and sustaining an assumedly glorious legacy. In other words every earthly kingdom seeks to impose its culture on us.

Jesus would not for a moment indulge in the pursuit of the superficial ideals of human culture, whose buildings eventually crumble and whose traditions and values evolve and ultimately become extinct. He was emphatic that the only way to relate to God and His Kingdom is through a personal relationship with Himself - the ever-living Christ. In fact Christ in Scripture directs us to celebrate only three ordinances namely, communion, baptism and the Christian wedding. All these in their original design were hard to ritualize or abuse! Furthermore He commanded us to impact cultures through the Great Commission, that is, our mandate to 'make disciples of all nations'. But nowhere in Scripture were we commanded to celebrate His birth. This leaves us with the critical task of learning to distinguish between 'Gospel' and 'culture'. Christians in every culture have the duty to discern and discard "the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers".

At this time of year the world celebrates Christmas. Different cultures do it somewhat differently, and for the most part its focus in the Western world is a commercial one. When one considers the origins of this celebration, many would be shocked to learn that it in fact has nothing to do with Christ whatsoever! Christmas was instituted centuries after the life of Christ, and its chosen date happens to coincide with the 'birth-date' of other ancient pagan deities. From Scripture it is also clear that Jesus was not born in the heart of the Northern hemisphere's winter! Most of the symbols and rituals associated with Christmas are also of pagan origin.

This creates a quandary for the believer. Do we celebrate an empty ritual handed down from our forefathers, fully aware of its idolatrous roots? Or do we refuse to celebrate Christmas and run the risk of confusing and offending friends and family who would desire to 'put Christ back into Christmas' and to 'keep the spirit of the celebration pure'? To this, and other cultural issues, Scripture proposes another, a more excellent, way.

Note how Paul puts it: "When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings." (1 Corinthians 9:20-23, NLT)

The more excellent way then, is to remember our mandate: to bring unbelievers to the knowledge of God through Christ - by all means possible. And if that means seeking common ground with all people and cultures in order to engage them for the sake of the Gospel - we should. This does not mean we are to ignore, or worse still, immerse ourselves in the idolatry and excesses of Christmas. But it does mean that we should see the fact that many people only go to church on Christmas Day as a marvelous opportunity to share the gospel in its full meaning, especially in desperate times like these.

So we encourage you as conscientious believers to refrain from any form of judgment or condemnation toward others in this regard. Remember that we have all been saved by His grace. Let us continue to walk in that grace. So rather than judging those who celebrate Christmas let us use this time as an opportunity to find 'common ground' with friends and family. Invite them to our church service for that day, or accompany them to theirs and so seek to engage them in 'questioning evangelism'; or even share your testimony! But above all remember that even though the celebration may be a misguided one, God's love 'covers a multitude of sin'. Let us opt for the more excellent way and through our love and acceptance show forth the 'goodness of God, which leads people to repentance'! God's love for the world remains as strong as ever!