We like things neat, orderly and clean. It’s part of our culture for sure. Right angles, symmetrical shapes, complementary colors. Christmas in our culture mirrors this preference. Decorations are carefully coordinated in placement, tone and texture. There is nothing innately wrong with this. As long as our heart is rightly motivated. But truth be told, oftentimes our heart is not in the right place.
The quest for a little bit of heavenly order in a chaotic world can easily morph into an obsession, a distraction and even Sin. God does not intend for us to be fully satisfied in a fallen world. Not physically, not mentally, nor emotionally. So to be continuously seeking satisfaction, perfection and physical order is indicative of a faulty perspective at least...and perhaps even grave Sin.
“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When it comes to celebrating Christmas, we might do well to check in with the Holy Spirit. He is perpetually available to guide us in all things. Would He not be interested in how we celebrate the birth of Christ? And if He is, how does our practice compare to His Will? We might begin by reconsidering the text. What the Word of God reveals about the birth of Christ. The place, the people, the time, the manner, the textures, the sounds, the emotions....the Truth. No detail is insignificant. No fact irrelevant. No words wasted. So what do we find?
We find, first and foremost, Life amidst Squalor. The innocent, pure, unblemished, vulnerable, dependent Babe...born in a manger. Not a dwelling for human, but rather domesticated animals. The smells, the entropy, the utter insignificance contradict every orchestrated Hallmark nativity scene. In reality, the birth of Christ was a backwater experience that simply can’t be glamorized. And yet we try. By doing so, we eviscerate some of the most profound Truths that God has ever conveyed.
There is Significance in the Squalor. Humility and lowliness abound. This is not “off-grid” engineered simplicity, but street level Desperation. More akin to giving birth on the streets of Kensington (Philadelphia), Overtown (Miami), South Central (Los Angeles) or Kibera (Nairobi). Is there Meaning or a Message in this? Could it possibly have been deliberately positioned this way by God? Yes...everything with God is Purposeful.
If so, then the synchronized light displays, artificial trees, exquisitely wrapped gifts, “Season’s Greetings” and Christmas Cheer certainly aren’t adding to our understanding. In fact, they are masking the Points our God is proclaiming. The Squalor screams of the effects of Sin upon His Creation. The foul Smells unleash the reality of decay and death around us. The Solitude confirms the hopelessness of relying upon anyone or anything...outside of God. Into this spiritual and physical destitution, the Child was born. On Purpose. To make a Point. Let’s not dress it up.
Our Savior was born into an Evil World. The only redeeming thing about Christmas night...was Him. And yet it is “Him” Who has been shunt aside. Find a Christmas tradition that is not rooted in paganism. Find a nativity scene that is not assembled with artificial rustic grandeur. Find a Church open for service on Christmas day. It’s nearly impossible. At best, we squeeze Jesus into a Christmas Eve service...so we have all Christmas day for our leisure and festivities. It’s all a bit unbiblical at best.
We’ve become the Owner of the Inn. No room available for this type of Jesus.
This is not a message of doom and gloom. Nor one of condemnation. Much the opposite. It is the Heralding of God’s Messages to us at the First Christmas. It is Amidst the Squalor of the Nativity that we find pearls of God’s Truth for mankind. Evident at the Savior’s birth...recorded in the Word of God...and yet so cunningly covered. The grown Man Jesus publicly proclaimed those same Messages over and over again...for anyone who missed the Nativity. Messages shown at His Birth...were repeatedly taught later by the Man Jesus Himself:
Utter Dependency: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” Jn 15:5
Deceit of Materialism: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Mk 10:25
Humility before God: “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” Lk 18:17
Acceptable Sacrifice: “And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, ‘Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.’ “ Luke 21:1
Eternal Perspective: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matt 6:19
Sincere Servanthood: “But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.” Luke 14:13
Pure Motivations: “But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” Matt 6:3
Priorities & Perspective: And Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Mark 13:2
Trust in God: “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Matt 6:25
Exclusivity of Purpose: Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the Will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” John 4:34
Selfless Surrender: “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.” Mark 8:35
All of those Messages, and more, are reflected in the Biblical Nativity. And again in the Gospel proclaimed by Jesus Christ. God does not change. Nor do His Messages.
Let’s stop pursuing a picture-perfect Christmas celebration...when the whole Point was to point out our Brokenness. Our Spiritual Squalor.
There is no Heaven on Earth...no matter how well we dress it up. But there was Jesus born amidst the Squalor. For our sake. Let’s halt the cute and cunning Christmas distractions, dust off our Bibles, and drop to our knees amidst our Spiritual Squalor. ...the Newborn Babe is speaking.
