John 1:14 ¶ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
“So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
And a new one just begun”
Those are some of the words from HAPPY CHRISTMAS by John Lennon. It is actually a beautiful song but leaves you with the taste of hopelessness. Christmas without Christ, nothing could be emptier. It’s like singing without words, baseball without a ball, or a family feast with no food; what’s the point? Christ is the very substance of Christmas and actually the very substance of life itself. Just as Christmas without Christ has no meaning, life without Jesus is just as empty. Today’s verse speaks to us about the very essence of Christmas. Jesus, the very essence of God, became human. He took on human flesh for the first time in the womb of Mary from Nazareth. When Christ was born in Bethlehem the first Christmas celebration was birthed, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” The unseeable attributes of the invisible God became visible in this glorious person; Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Here are some thoughts from John Piper on the essence of Christmas.
“So the eternal Word of God took on human flesh, and in that way the divine Son of God—who never had an origin, and never came into being, and was God, but was also with God—became man. And in doing this, he made the glory of God visible in a wholly new way. And this divine glory, uniquely manifest in the Son of God, was full of grace and truth. And from that fullness we receive grace upon grace. That is the meaning of Christmas in John’s Gospel. God the Son, who is God, and who is with God, came to reveal God in a way he had never been revealed before. And in that revelation, the dominant note struck is grace: from the fullness of that revelation of divine glory, we receive grace upon grace.”
Your celebration of Christmas will say a lot about your life. Trying to have a Merry Christmas, or even worse, Happy Holidays, without the adoration of Christ is a real waste of time. Christ is the very author and substance of life, Christmas Day is our opportunity to acknowledge that He alone is our source of life.