It was confused because it lacked revelation and, therefore, also an awareness of truth. The appearance of an angel to Joseph in a dream to tell Him to take the Child Jesus and his mother into Egypt to escape the wrath of King Herod. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.. Finally, in chapter 1, verse 7, Paul indicates that the only solution to the problem lies in receiving peace from God: "Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ." Perhaps you are anxious to be delivered from some tenacious sin, but you do not seem to have deliverance. The shepherds took this message, in the only form they knew, to their contemporaries. It comes from a verb which means "to reconcile" or "to bring back into harmony." But the angel appeared and explained to Joseph what was happening. Wesley was praying for the second of these rests, the peace of God that Paul was writing about to the Philippians. You shall not do any ordinary work. In all that he does, he prospers. It also teaches us of God's power, for an incarnation is beyond our ability even to conceive, let alone to bring into being. Will Graham Devotion: The Criminal on the Cross. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath.. Joyful and triumphant,
It is important because man's problems stem from the fact that in his natural state, he is not at peace with God. Systematic Theology. Have you confessed them to God and to others? So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! First, you need to learn about Jesus. The appearance of Gabriel to Mary to announce the birth of Jesus. Unless our way of talking about salvation makes distinctions here, our interpretations inevitably fall short of the biblical conceptions. Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. If you and I and all others who call upon the name of our God should do it, I suppose that the whole world would then rightly resound with His praise. It is unfortunate that these great words "savior" and "salvation" have been watered down so much as they have been in our day. This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Solicitation Disclosure Statement What had happened to these men? V He is able to deliver you from whatever your particular sin may be alcoholism, unlawful sex, a bad temper, gossiping, pride, selfishness whatever it is. We find peace by praying. 10. The development of Christmas was a kind of affirmation of God's interest in the world and in human lifebirth as well as death." He added this. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. The question is important because of the significance of the day and because so many obviously do not know how to celebrate it. Music: Beecher, John Zundel, Christian Heart Songs, 1870. And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Christ was born to save! Because it came from God and was centered in the birth of the Savior. "A Hymn to the Nativity." The noun form of the word is doxa, which we have in our words "orthodox," "heterodox," and "paradox." Why Do We Celebrate Jesus Birthday On Christmas | Hearinnh 12. Now this is what the shepherds did. Copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Notice that this verse does not say, "In everything present your requests to God. One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Jehoshua, meaning "Jehovah is salvation." Moreover, you can do it in song. In other words, James is saying that war begins with men's emotions. God has not forgotten. Let Us Celebrate Jesus Christ's Death Not His Birth Keiper, Ralph L. op. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Sol Invictus was a pagan god who was believed to be the unconquered sun. He explained the full force of the original language which literally means "Glory to God in the highest and peace among men of peace." He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. There is a clue to what peace means in this verse in the way the word is used in the earlier chapters of Romans. This is the message of the angels. We had made a raid against the Negeb of the Cherethites and against that which belongs to Judah and against the Negeb of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire. And David said to him, Will you take me down to this band? And he said, Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this band. And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. Permissions Local: 704-401-2432 Billy Graham: Would You Have Welcomed Jesus or Rejected Him? And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. Why We Celebrate The Birth Of Jesus | Hearinnh He answered, "That old threadbare message of peace on earth, good will to men." Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia. Psalms 118:24 - This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. As a sinner I need a Savior. The other kind of amazement is a holy wonder in response to those acts of God which are beyond human comprehension. For from him and through him and to him are all things. Why not join every year with the shepherds on that first Christmas, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen (Luke 2:20)? Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. Beyond any question, the gospel of Jesus Christ has important social implications. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. You cannot tell that which you have not first felt and experienced. Can we doubt that the shepherds had something worth telling? Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. The hymn is Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, and the stanza to which I am referring is the second. When Was Jesus' Birth? Was Jesus Born on December 25? | What the Bible Says Suddenly the angels appear, first to Zechariah and then to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds, and the word is out: God has not forgotten! In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. Should Christians celebrate birthdays? | GotQuestions.org How do you celebrate Christmas? In the book of Philippians, Paul speaks of this peace when he says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. Anyone can understand Christmas in just three sentences: I am a sinner. Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Why, to their sheep obviously. But in changing the line, the editors of the hymnbooks have probably missed the main point of Wesley's thinking. Further light is shed upon these verses by the meaning of the words for peace in the original Greek and Latin. Observe the month of Abib and keep the Passover to the Lord your God, for in the month of Abib the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night. And they know that as a result of this faith, they are at peace with one another. Judging from the Christmas cards I get every year, I suspect that this is the phrase from the Christmas story that is most popular with people in our day. But the problem is that what God means by the phrase is not what men generally mean when they use it. Be patient! You quarrel and fight. She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? First of all, the Bible tells us that Jesus was born on Christmas day. The Way! For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to celebrate. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Great Neck, NY: Doniger & Raughley, 1955). In other words, the only ultimate essential for proclaiming the gospel is a knowledge of it. Ralph L. Keiper once said, "When we know Christ, not as a doctrine or a theory, but as Savior and Friend in our daily experience, we gain a confidence in Him which brings peace to our hearts. You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the firstfruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. It was dying because it had no adequate cause for which to live. And it is this in which we are to imitate them. Or, in other words, there is a peace with God that we receive freely at the moment of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and there is another peace that we are able to enter into increasingly as we learn to know and trust Him. I doubt if this was what he meant. 2. His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, for so the young men used to do. Tillich, Paul. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found . Oh, it would have been quite a puzzle to Mary! Because of the gospel, Christians understand that the peace of God is only for those who acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. 13. Living a Life of Celebration | Bible.org 5 Bible Verses That Celebrate the Birth of Jesus - Mamiverse Each year when I read the Christmas story, I am impressed with the role that the angels play in it. If God did that, He would soon make a muddle of our Christian lives because "We do not know what we ought to pray for" (Romans 8:26), and we pray with wrong motives. The first message is a message of the faithfulness of God. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord., For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.. Here is a rest that is given and a rest that is found. . For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Answer: Your question is backward. And where are you from? He said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite, and my master left me behind because I fell sick three days ago. Z. There are four main points to this short message: Each of these points is important, of course. For there are many references to salvation as deliverance from disease (Matthew 9:21; Luke 6:19; 18:42; James 5:15), captivity (Philippians 1:13,19), or physical death (Mark 13:20; John 12:27; Hebrews 5:7). There is peace with God. But not once in the Bible does God tell us to celebrate Christmas" (1). And then this is what is so wonderful Joseph believed him. I know that Christmas is a busy time. The professor replied that he thought he had. It looks at the fighting and the wars of history and of our own age and does not find the type of peace that it is seeking. The angel said, "Do not be afraid. Our gift to our children will be teaching them Who Jesus is and what Christmas is all about. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. God told us everything needed for life and godliness ( II Peter 1:2-4 ). Of course, you can and you should! But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. Hardly! To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Had God forgotten His people? The words of the angel to Joseph confirmed Joseph's authority and responsibility in the naming of Mary's child. How Should We Celebrate the Birth of Christ. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. What Does the Bible Say About Rejoice At A Death Cry At A Birth? Greet also the church in their house. Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. Is the Celebration of Christmas Biblical? - Owlcation As you pray that prayer, you will find that God has already been merciful in Jesus. 5. Is there such a verse? God gave Israel many celebrations in the Old Covenant such as the Feast of Booths, year of Jubilee, etc. The difficulty with this approach does not lie in the thought that the biblical view of salvation is unrelated to such themes. He wrote and remember, he is writing to Christians "What causes fights and quarrels among you? S The Bible says that when Jesus was born, a multitude of angels appeared suddenly and erupted in joyful praise to God, saying: "Glory in the heights above to God, and upon earth peace among men of goodwill." ( Luke 2:13, 14) However, it is noteworthy that nowhere in the Bible is there even a suggestion that Jesus' birthday should be celebrated. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Just as we celebrate our children's birthdays every year, I believe it's entirely appropriate for us to celebrate the birth of God's own Son, Jesus Christ, every year. Luke 1:35 ESV / 25 helpful votesHelpfulNot Helpful. 7 This basic approach to salvation has been picked up in an avalanche of books on pastoral counseling, Christian psychiatry, and the cure of souls. If anyone would argue in this way, he should notice that the shepherds had the most important authorization of all possession of good news which had been revealed to them by God. Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. I bring you good news of great joy" (Luke 2:10). And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. In fact, the Bible would not even support the view that the world is capable of being redeemed socially apart from the supernatural intervention of God in history. God is "able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20). Come to Him now! Bible Verses About Celebrating Birthdays - KING JAMES BIBLE ONLINE T Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Ponder on its meaning. This is the perfect combination a knowledge of the Good News and men who need to hear it. Second, it involved her affection, for she treasured these things in her heart. D To do so is to worship God both by words and in song. He loves you so much that He gave His life for your salvation. Copyright 2023, Bible Study Tools. On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it? And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. Well, later in His life He would speak of Himself in terms that spoke to precisely the world's condition. Happiness is a wonderful thing at Christmas shopping, decorating, entertaining, mailing cards but it is the world's virtue, and like all the world's virtues, it quite easily passes away. I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. There is one kind of amazement which is merely a tickling of the fancy. Looking at the verse closely, we find that it uses the word "rest" twice. But how should a Christian celebrate Christmas? In the first place, we are told that the shepherds, after they had come to Bethlehem and had seen the infant Jesus, "spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child." In other words, the shepherds became witnesses of the event. But it does not mean that God has forgotten. Volume I, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951), page 146. There is a sense in which the world will never know even one of these three types of peace until the return of Jesus Christ. 8. Mary and Joseph were far from home, in a strange town without even a room to themselves in which Mary could give birth to the Child. In this hymn, known as the "Benedictus," the aged priest exclaims: "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. (Revelation 22:17). However, by the late fourth century it was generally celebrated in churches. What Does the Bible Say About Celebrating Jesus Birthday? Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! The Apostle James was one who knew this, and he spoke of it in a passage that is a perceptive analysis of such problems in the world and in church circles. This article may not be reproduced in any other fashion without the expressed written permission of the Alliance. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Dr. Keiper relates how during his university days, when he often spent the weekends preaching, he had the following conversation with one of his non-Christian professors. Spend some time at Christmas thinking over what you do know of God and trying to understand the ways of God more fully. 5. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. Let the godly exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. Unless otherwise indicated, all content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. Then the king and all the people offered sacrifice before the Lord. His works were first collected in one volume in 1858, by William Barclay Turnbull. To the choirmaster. Will anyone argue that they were uneducated? Now it is true that this new line is less likely to be misinterpreted. This is why carols are so much a rightful part of Christmas; for, when sung by those who understand them, they are a means of praise. Let's consider four reasons why Christmas doesn't meet the criteria of being "Christian.". To understand what God has to say about peace, we need to recognize that there are different types of peace spoken about in the Bible and that of all of these, the most important is the peace we have with God as the result of justification. Here then is the first lesson Luke teaches us on celebrating Christmas. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. The messages of the angels do not reinforce our secular views of Christmas. Malachi, who lived in the fifth century before Christ, was the last of the prophets. Y Arrangement: William H. Cummings, Congregational Hymn and Tune Book, 1857. But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod. Music: Antioch, arranged by Lowell Mason, 1836. Let your prayer be the cry of the publican: "God be merciful to me, a sinner!" How could they refuse to tell what they had seen? "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. They had heard the music of heaven. We see His disposition to use little things, to exalt the humble and to subdue the proud. Bible verses related to Celebrating Birthdays from the King James Version (KJV) by Relevance. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Why Is Christmas on Dec. 25? Billy Graham's Answer. What does the Bible say about Christmas? - Becoming Christians Have you seen that truth in the story? Does the Bible Condemn Using Tarot Cards? Come to the wedding feast. But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. All rights reserved. Then glorify and praise God for what you know. And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. Keiper then took his Bible from his briefcase and turned to Luke 2:14, to the verse that is our text, and then read with his professor, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (KJV).