Why Do Christians Celebrate Christmas?

I read about the pastor of a prairie church who, one year, directed the children’s program on the Sunday night before Christmas. Visitors came from miles away, and it was standing room only. The pastor was especially excited about the final scene of the production in which four children would give recitations using letters they held up: S-T-A-R, which stood for Shepherds, Trees, Angels, and Redeemer. 

The scene opened with “Silent Night” playing softly in the background as the four children filed onstage holding posters. The narrator solemnly spoke into the microphone, saying, “And now, four of our children are going to tell you how they feel about Christmas.” On that cue, the youngsters turned over their cards, which should have spelled the word STAR. 

Unfortunately, they had lined up backwards. What the letters said instead was…RATS!

I guess that’s the way many people feel about Christmas. High prices, crowded malls, exhausting parties, snarled traffic, blown diets, and cold weather. 

One of the reasons we feel like saying, “Rats!” at Christmas is that we take our eyes off the original story. Distracted by the activities of the season, we forget the Reason we celebrate. 

It’s impossible to have the right perspective about Christmas without remembering the Person at the center of it. Everything changes when we focus on the who, what, and why of Christmas. So, let’s take a moment and review the basics—the who, what, and why—of the greatest story ever told.

~ The WHO of Christmas ~

The who is given to us in the first syllable of Christ-mas. It is Christ.

The Babe enshrouded in swaddling clothes and lying quietly in the splintered hay was—and is—the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. He is the Light of the World and the Bread of Life. He is the King of kings, the King of the Ages, and the King of the Jews. He is Emmanuel—God with us.

As He slumbered between ox and donkey, tended by Joseph and Mary, He was God in disguise, the Incarnate Deity, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.

The whole teaching of the Bible and of Christianity in all its major branches is that Jesus Christ was and is the infinite God Himself, pure, perfect, sinless, and holy. 

It was the Great I Am who created the nocturnal skies under which shepherd boys watched their lambs, who formed the glittering stars into which eastern Magi peered with interest, and who birthed the creation into which He descended in the fullness of time.

Jesus is both God and Man.

~ The WHAT of Christmas ~

Secondly, this may be confusing to us unless we understand the what—what Jesus did by coming into the world. 

Jesus was born to die, and it was only a step in time between Bethlehem and Calvary. The shadow of the cross fell over the stable, over the carpenter’s shop, over the fishing boats, and over His synagogue sermons. In this, He is unique in history, for what other person has ever been born for the specific purpose of dying? This, of course, presupposes His pre-existence. His coming was planned before the ages began, and in the fullness of time, He was sent to redeem those under sin.

And that brings us to the why. 

~ The WHY of Christmas ~

That is the greatest question of the ages—why did He come?—and yet I can answer that with two simple one-syllable words. The first is “you,” and the second is “me.”

The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17) 

In the genius of God’s infinite mind, He longed to restore our fellowship with Him. He made us in His image, created us with wills and emotions and well-engineered minds. He made us for eternity and for Himself. But every one of us has failed Him. We’ve all been waylaid by our own sinful attitudes and actions.

Since nothing impure or imperfect can dwell in God’s presence, we’re separated from Him by a barrier we ourselves have built. 

On Christmas, God poked a hole of grace into that barrier. He became human to take upon Himself the guilt and punishment of our sins and to call us to receive His gift by simple faith. 

I pray you have done that. 

What a wonderful gift! God loaned us His Son so that in our sadness and grief we might find joy and fullness in a new, abiding relationship. Jesus came to die, but that’s not the whole story. He died to save, and He rose again on the third day.

This Christmas, as you make your plans to celebrate, focus of God’s gift to you through Jesus—and remember the who, what, and why of the season. Do this, and you will experience the wonder of His love.

This article is an excerpt from Why the Nativity Devotional Experience.

Unlock the true meaning of the holiday season with Season of Joy, a treasure trove of heartwarming Advent readings, inspirational Scriptures, and insights into the essence of Christmas. Experience more than merely a day of celebration, but a full month soaked in the atmosphere of love, generosity, and tranquility that Christmas brings. Allow this time to remind you of the countless blessings we behold in Christ, whose arrival we celebrate each year.

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