Christmas is rapidly approaching, and I can assure you that all that is on many people’s minds is shopping for gifts. Materialism and satisfying the cravings of the flesh are what most people focus on in this world. They have no interest to know what this season really means. And they don’t even realize or acknowledge that Christmas, one of the most important days of the year, is not celebrated in its proper time frame. December 25th is a date that was negotiated in the reign of Constantine. Jesus was actually born in the fall of the year and the actual date is not known.
The importance of Christmas is the fact that it marks the beginning of God’s Plan of Salvation for man. After the original man, Adam fell from grace, God the Father conceived of a plan whereby He could be reconciled with man. Through Jesus’ sacrifice, man could have his sinful slate wiped clean, escape perdition, and have the opportunity to become an adopted son of God. And man could have eternal life.
There is a saying that if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. Using that analogy, God the Father chose Christ (the Word, His Son) to implement His Plan of Salvation. So, Christ, the second person of the Godhead materialized Himself in the body of baby Jesus, the human son of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem in a manger.
Jesus’ birth was foretold in Micah 5:2 where it is written:
“But as for you Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah;
From you One shall come forth for
Me [who is] to be ruler in Israel,
His going forth (appearances) are from long ago
From ancient days.” [Gen. 49:10; mat. 2:5-12; John 7:42
Jesus, who was half man and half-divine coming from the incorruptible seed planted by the Holy Spirit in Mary who knew no man, would be God the Father’s holy instrument on Earth. Being completely submissive to the Father’s will, he would grow up as a sinless lamb completely fulfilling the Law and not violating any of it. Symbolically, this was shown in the tabernacle’s Holy of Holies by at the ark of the covenant where the golden mercy-seat was placed over the 10 commandments which represented the law.
Jesus would only do what would glorify his Father in heaven, and the Bible tells us that he perfectly pleased the Father in thought, purpose, and action. He performed many miracles and healed many people as he was the role model, and standard bearer on how to live, love, forgive, and how to have the reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord. He came to take the sins of the world on himself so man could be reconciled with the Father, escape perdition, and have everlasting life. His birth, which we call Christmas, was the beginning of implementing that plan.
We, believers, should be thankful that God the Father loved us so much that He presented His only unique son as a supreme sacrifice, so those who believe in him could have everlasting life. [Jon 3:16] And we should thank the Father for loving us as He has His own son {John 17:23], and for loving us first. And we should thank Jesus for staying the course and seeing the implementation of God’s plan to the end, as he said in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Not my will, but let thy will be done.” It was not until his 3-year ministry was at its end that Christ could say on the cross, “It is accomplished (finished).
CONCLUSION
Christ, the second person of the Godhead, manifested himself in the flesh to mark the beginning of God’s plan of Salvation for man. It had been foretold many years before in Micah 5:2 and now it finally came to pass.
So, when Christmas comes, why not focus its true significance? It marks the beginning of the good news for you—Your salvation.
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