Christmas . . .
Christmas is becoming increasingly 'secularised'. Political correctness has
seeped in - some Councils and companies express a 'Seasons Greetings' wish
rather than say 'Merry Christmas'!. . .
Christmas for Christians is about celebrating the birth
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who came to earth to provide a way for us
to be restored to relationship with the Father. Through Jesus' death
and resurrection, we can obtain forgiveness and new life as we confess
our sins and commit to follow Jesus.
Our 2007 Christmas message tells the story of the godwit,
an amazing bird that travelled 11,500 km non stop and relates this to the
amazing love that God has for us.
The message is attached below.
How should Christians celebrate
Christmas?
Many of the 'trappings' and 'traditions' of
Christmas have pagan origins. As Christians we need to carefully consider the
symbolic nature of these as we celebrate the real meaning of Christmas - the
birth of Jesus as He came to earth to die for our sins. We don't just focus on
the nativity but we look forward to the crucifixion and resurrection and
His coming return.
Unwrapping Christmas
This video
from Jeremiah Films will make you think about the traditions of Christmas.
It analyses the pagan origins of the tree, the Yule log, the origin of 'Santa'
and so on. The video also looks at why some Christians decide not to
celebrate 'Christmas' at all.
The authors conclude that we can use the
Christmas celebration to draw people to the real message of Jesus.
Available
from our office: $29 plus $5 postage.
Articles:
NAKED ON CHRISTMAS DAY
ByPete
Lane, Exodus
Asia Pacific.
Peter contrasts his meeting with people
who are on the edges of society and the outcasts with the birth of Jesus who was
born in difficult circumstances... he encourages us to look beyond our comfort
zone to those who are in need of Jesus' touch at Christmas...
Article
attached below.
Santa . . .
We
don't believe in Santa Anymore
Pastor Steve
McNeilly has written an insightful article on the origins of Santa Claus.
His
message is that focusing on the myth of Santa confuses the message of the TRUTH
of Jesus birth and life.
Article also attached below.
Christmas
A History of the Celebration of
Christmas
Pastor Dennis Rupert writes about the history
and background of Christmas celebrations, including the tree, santa claus, etc.
He asks ‘Is it wrong to celebrate Christmas? His conclusion: We can
celebrate Christmas ‘to the Lord’ as a reminder of his birth and death and
resurrection. Some elements that have pagan roots have been re-defined to have
Christian meanings.
He says “What's a Christian to do? Celebrate to the
Lord! And discern bad elements from neutral or good ones.”
Celebrating Christmas at
all?
R.C. Sproul answers the question of whether we should
celebrate Christmas at all… with a resounding YES! Naturally with the focus on
Jesus! Author: Jenny Stokes | Modified: 27 December 2007 |
