The Christmas Story

Matthew 1,2, 26, 27, 28, and Luke 1, 2, 22, 23, 24

I've included the last passages of Matthew and Luke because they are why Jesus was born in the first place.



I found a book in Barnes and Noble this morning entitled "The Purpose of Christmas". I turned it over to read the back cover and this is what it read:

Why is Christmas such a big deal?

If you stop to think about it, it is astounding that the simple, unassuming birth of a peasant baby boy more than two thousand years ago in the Middle East can today cause traffic jams every December in places like New York City, Tokyo, and Rio de Janeiro.

I never finished reading the synopsis because this was a truly amazing thought. It is amazing how the birth of a baby can cause such traffic jams for an entire month. People are so busy getting ready for the one day of the month they miss the entire purpose of the day. Perhaps some have never heard. Perhaps they just do it because it's expected. Maybe they have heard, and they keep forgetting. I suspect many, like those who have written "xmas" in place of "Christmas", just don't want people to remember. Many would have us believe that Christmas is about santa claus coming on Christmas eve. Many would have us believe that it's about showing the people we love that we care.

But the real reason for Christmas?


It's been lost in the business of the gifts, the stockings, the fireplaces, the food, the family time, the cards, the traditions, and everything else that's seeped in originally just to celebrate the Christmas season.


The reason that so many have forgotten is that Jesus came to earth as a baby. He came as a baby. That's an amazing thought. That such a holy, righteous God would come to earth as a little baby boy. That He would humble Himself to such an estate. He was and is a King. He could have come as anything. He could have come as a conqueror or a king. But He chose to come as a baby.


He chose to come as a baby.


What an amazing thought. And He came not to condemn us, but to forgive us. To live a perfect life and then die for our sins, that we might live for Him. That we might be saved through Him. I cannot begin to fathom the kind of love He had in His heart for us. To die for us. To forgive us for all the wrong things we have done. To still forgive us when we're so imperfect.

You know, we are so selfish. We don't want to forgive someone who may have borrowed our hairpin without asking. And yet, Jesus forgave all of us for every single thing we have ever ever done wrong.


"Wow" is the only word that comes to my mind.


How can I be so selfish and unforgiving of those in my life when Jesus forgave me for things that I deserve death for? How?


I'm speaking to myself here, so those who may get offended at anything I'm saying, please forgive me. =D Seriously, I have a lot of things that I need to fix about myself, and I'm not meaning to attack anyone personally.

I just wanted to remember the real reason for Christmas. The reason we're even here on this earth. It's not about presents, it's not about food, or traditions, or santa claus.







It's about Jesus Christ and what He did for us.