The Christmases I used to experience growing up were full of playing with my cousins, great food, presents, and trying out all the new stuff. Each year one toy especially captured my imagination whether it was a new bike, or walkie talkies, a board game or some new electronic gadget. I’ll never forget that first new shining green bike with a banana seat, or the Pachinko machine. The Pachinko machine was a Japanese pinball type game where you shot marble-like metal balls strait up into a maze of metal pins with doors that had bells and rewarded you with more metal balls to continue playing. It was loud, and fun and it mesmerized us for hours. And that was basically my Christmas. But where was God in all of it?
Every Christmas Eve we dressed up, got into our cars and headed to the church’s 8pm Christmas Eve service. It was amazing how many people came out that night, people I hadn’t seen all year. Joy and seriousness filled the air as the people of God sang the carols. I remember liking that it was informal compared to regular Sundays as people called out the number of their favorite Christmas songs for all to sing. The high point came when the sanctuary was made dark and each person lit a hand-held candle and passed the light. Soon the entire sanctuary was brimming with the holiness of candlelight. Something special whispered to my soul as we lit the candles: the light had come into the darkness. Still, I was pretty much blind to its meaning. A light was shining in my darkness but I did not understand it (John 1:5). I liked it, it was peaceful, but after it was over I was glad to get back home to get on with “my christmas.”
You may be like that. You enjoy the peaceful feeling at church or singing carols, but Christmas to you is much more the busyness of buying gifts, making a meal and seeing relatives. That is really what you are into.
This year, in the light of all the evil that is going on, I want you to think about what it really means to celebrate, laugh, and have hope in Jesus Christ in the midst of a very dark and sad world. Is such a celebration good? Is it right? Why celebrate Christmas?
In Christmas, worlds collide. The kingdom of God invades the rebel kingdom of men. Many, faithful to the true King, rejoice and join his side. Many others, however, are angry and carry out a plan to keep him at a distance, or to openly oppose and defy him, and some even attempt to kill and destroy him. Remember, at Christmas “Light entered the darkness…” But remember also, this is why we celebrate. The coming of the light was liberation for those who would believe in the light.
But growing up I had little idea of that, and I suppose most of the world on Dec. 25 will have little idea of that. But from the beginning, the Christmas story has had good and evil in it. Can you tell which is which?
What is it like when worlds collide? Matthew gives us a picture of such a conflict taking place just at the birth of Jesus. It is recorded in chapter two. Please read it. Here we see the small town of Bethlehem, the searching journey of the Magi, and the vicious response of the local king. Here we see good and evil at Christmas.
Bethlehem—it was a small place, not the place of political power. David, the small shepherd boy had grown up there one thousand years earlier. He had been anointed king and God had promised him that one of his descendants would sit on the throne forever. It was also a place that had been foretold about in the ancient book of Micah—the Messiah was to be born there. It is so telling that God should enter the world in a place of obscurity. He must have wanted us to know that he will take up residence in the smallest, most insignificant places. That night it was a special, holy place. But soon it would become a place of evil.
The Magi—these were the wise stargazers who also read the ancient books of religion and magic. They had probably read the Jewish book and had noticed that a Savior had been predicted. These were kind of like the wizards in Lord of the Rings. They were aware of powers in the universe, but they knew not God. Sinful men are evil all right, but these men are some unique people because of the following reasons.
The amazing thing is that they were searching. Some who are into the occult or magic or New Age thinking are searching people. We know that these guys paid a price for their desire to know: they traveled for months on the hope that this child might be the real thing. God must have wanted us to know that it doesn’t matter how lost you are, what country you come from, or what you believed in previously. He must have wanted us to know that the quality of pursuing the truth is all-important, and that true searching will be rewarded. (NIV Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” NAS Proverbs 8:17 "I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me.”) Are you searching for God?
And secondly, they came with a question. “Where is the one born king of the Jews?” Their question shows that they knew the child was to be a king at birth. He was born the king of the Jews, He did not earn it. Interestingly, this title was also hung over his head on the cross in Matthew 27:37. Their question was in response to the revelation of the Scripture and to the star in the sky. Your Christmas will only be meaningful if you ask the specific question, “Is Jesus the only way?” “Is He the King of kings?” “Can I trust him with the details of my life?” If you don’t ask a question like that, you get no answers.
Third, they had a desire to worship. At the least, they sought to honor this new king with their respect and their gifts.
So, lost, evil men searched and found Jesus. They bowed down and gave costly things to him. And God protected them by warning them in a dream. Sure, they didn’t necessarily “know” that Jesus was God incarnate who would die for men’s sins. But Matthew seems to hint that perhaps these men worshipped more than they knew. Non-Jewish men from Persia finding Christ under God’s guidance? This is the good of Christmas. God must have wanted us to know that he was coming for everyone—for all nationalities. And that to those who sought the truth, no matter how far away, God would bring them to the truth that is Jesus.
King Herod’s response is just the opposite. He was disturbed. Do you know people who are disturbed by Christmas? Any king would be disturbed if they feared that another would take their power and position. But this guy was clearly evil. Like many who are irritated at Christmas, he appeared mildly interested, but his true deceitful nature was just below the surface. How is this Jewish king different than the foreign astrologers who found Christ?
Like them, he sought to know where Christ was born. His scholars searched the ancient books and found that one specifically said “Bethlehem” was the place of birth (Micah 5:2). Yet Herod did not go. He was apathetic.
He had, instead, a secret plan to get rid of this new king. He lied and hypocritically said, “I want to go worship him too.” Herod was evil personified. He had evil desires, distrust of others, and political power to do something about it. Herod had murdered his favorite wife, three sons, his mother in law, brother in law, uncle and others. Now he wanted to murder a would-be king, Evil?
The Magi, however, were urgently searching for this king to worship him. What a contrast between these astrologers, and Herod and others who had knowledge of the Old Testament. Even after knowing about the child’s birthplace, they did not go the short 5-mile trip to Bethlehem.
God must have wanted us to know that growing up in and around the church can be dangerous. Many who have true Christian parents really have no faith themselves. They are apathetic. They know a lot, but they do not pursue Jesus. This is shown in that they sacrifice nothing for him or his mission.
But as the Magi went on seeking Christ, God rewarded their faith. The star reappeared, confirming their purpose, and they were filled with joy. Do you know what it is like to be on a journey, pursuing something for months and years, and to finally get confirmation that you are on the right path? It is an amazing feeling. It is better than knowing you have just taken and aced your last series of semester final exams in college.
The star first appeared for months leading them, and then it was gone. Then it reappeared and led them to Bethlehem. God uses all of nature, which is good, to draw people to Christ. The answer to life is not in the stars, however, and if people think so, that is evil. But sometimes he uses nature to give people signs or hints of the truth. I know he has done that in my life.
The response of the Magi is true Christmas. When they found Jesus they bowed down and worshipped with gifts. When you approached a superior in that culture, you gave gifts to honor them. (Can we bring that custom to America please?) Gold is an obvious costly gift, still valued today. Frankincense is incense--a “glittering, odorous gum from trees,” a rare gift fit to be given to a King (NIV Bible Commentary). Myrrh likewise is a gum and comes from Arabian trees. It was an expensive perfume used for embalming. The gifts were good, and this last one perhaps hinted even at the death of Jesus.
God wanted us to see that anything less than costly worship is just playing games. Perhaps the many who just play at Christmas have never really journeyed, searched, questioned, and then found and worshiped Jesus. Don’t think it will be easy. Do think that you will have some soul searching to do. Do consider if you yourself have ever have brought out gifts to Jesus that are truly fit for the King of the universe. You’ll know if you ever have by the joy that you feel by such an act. You are filled with joy because you know it is absolutely the right and worthy thing to do.
Herod’s response was evil. He wanted the competition killed. God protected the child Jesus and his parents. But the two and under boys of Bethlehem were all murdered. Probably, it was about 10-15 boys. This was evil. The grief of the parents was great. It was much like the grief of the parents and family of the people killed in New York. And this all happened at Christmas. Why this evil at Christmas?
God wanted us to know that while Jesus would bring peace, the cost would be great. He showed us that not everyone is happy that this King had come. From Herod’s response on down through history, we see that not everyone came to the light. This is because his or her deeds were evil. And men loved darkness.
For a while Jesus’ family became refugees in the African continent. It was a 75-mile journey to the boarder of Israel. Think about it. Their own government’s leader wanted the boy dead. They were forced to leave their country. Like it says in Psalm 2:2, Herod had raged against the Lord’s anointed.
This act of murder also was predicted in an ancient prophecy. Ramah was a town 5 miles north of Jerusalem. Rachel was Jacob’s favorite wife and the grandmother of two important tribes: Ephraim and Manasseh. Matthew’s quote describes the weeping of the women as their boys and men were carried off to captivity in Babylon 500 years before Christ was born.
The weeping has continued to this day as the evil of this world continues to work its will against goodness. At that first Christmas we see the contrast of the joy of the shepherds and the Magi, with the anger of the murdering Herod and the weeping of families who suffered because of his acts against God.
Do you know the world is lost and in darkness? Do you know it is getting worse? The evil in this world is real, and the lead evil one is called the devil.
Do you know that we are without hope to win the battle against him? Do you know that you alone can never eradicate the evil that dwells within your heart?
It may appear as self-centeredness, a cold heart, apathy towards God or others, or it may come out in more obvious addictions of controlling others, food, sex or alcohol. Or you may have racial pride and prejudice. But believe Jesus, the evil is within you as well as in the world. If you know these things, then you know the good and evil at Christmas, and you are ready “to worship him.”
C.S. Lewis said that the child inside that tiny stable was larger than the entire universe. Do you know that? He came not to give us Christmas, he came to set us free. He invaded this evil world as the Light of the world, and He has never left.
I conclude with one of the most hopeful verses in the Bible. This is the whole story of Christmas wrapped up in one sentence…
“The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil,” I John. 3:8.
As surely as we will celebrate his coming as a child on December 25, so we should celebrate his coming as the Ruler of the Nations when he will destroy evil forever.
With this in your mind and heart, may your Christmas be joyous.
---Brent Hoover, December 22, 2001