Christmas Television Specials - Do They Really Know the True
Meaning of Christmas?
Christmas is celebrated by almost all of Christendom uniformly
throughout the world. The origin of this celebration was
instituted by the Catholic Church centuries after the death and
resurrection of Christ. No one but the church fathers is
responsible for this holiday. It is not something called for in
the bible nor ever taught by Christ or his apostles. Regardless
of this fact it is what it has become that is more in question
than how it began.
Some sects of the church do not observe Christmas at all.
Probably the most well know modern church that refuses to
celebrate this holiday is the Jehovah Witnesses. It may surprise
many people to learn that most of the Puritans of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony also banned this holiday. If approached
without bias, an honest study of the origins of this holiday
might not cancel all your Christmases but you would be certain
of one thing, it is a man made mandate and nothing less. The
advent is of God but the celebration of it, is of man.
I believe that the birth of Jesus Christ was the most important
single event to happen on this old earth since it began. But I
can't prove to myself or anyone else that Christmas is a God
given mandate. I don't like the middle of the road stance on
anything, I have always thought it is a cowards hiding place. I
choose not to fight Christmas but to preach the Christ of
Christmas. I abhor all that Christmas has become but I also know
that it has a momentum that makes the speed of light look pokey.
Suffice it to say that all the peripheral Christmas excesses and
nonsense notwithstanding, I am glad for a season where at least
some people are considering the birth of the Savior.
I don't have an active battle going against Christmas but I
cannot help raising at least one question. Where does Hollywood
come into the picture? After feeding us sex, violence, crime,
witchcraft, debauch and mayhem all year long how do they
suddenly qualify for telling us the true meaning of Christmas?
The Christmas specials are like a black hole sucking in every
ones attention from November first, to the dropping of the ball
on Times Square. The Grinch, Little House on the Prairie,
Charlie Brown, The Christmas Shoes, Scrooge and Marley, Robbie
the Reindeer, Rudolph the Reindeer, Bambi the Reindeer (whoops),
this is some of the specials fare and lest I forget, isn't some
network still playing John Denver's Christmas specials?
Sure, some of them are ok and might be moderately entertaining,
but the question still begs to be answered, how does Hollywood
presume to tell us the true meaning of Christmas. Perhaps I
should say, how do they even know the true meaning of Christmas.
Do directors and producers take an October sabbatical to holy
places, or secret themselves away and study the bible for a few
weeks prior to the season? Not likely.
Almost everyone knows the biblical account of the birth of
Christ. If you are one of those who somehow missed it just pick
up a bible and read the entire second chapter of the Gospel of
Luke. Remember you will only be reading the beginning of the
story. If I were Paul Harvey I would urge you to take a break
after which I would advise you to read "the rest of the story."
Jesus also lived a sinless life, preached the words of life,
gave up his life and now offers you life. The rest of the story
is what the full meaning of Christmas actually is. If taking a
verse or passage out of context is truly only a pretext, then
all of the meaning of Christmas dribble Hollywood serves up is
just a pretext, regardless of how quaint or entertaining it may
seem. The story of Christ's humble birth is only the beginning
and it is not supposed to end with television specials. It must
end only with..."the rest of the story."
Let me end with a "meaning of Christmas" thought that was given
to me by the late Dr. Eathan Henry of New Orleans, Louisiana, a
teacher in The Union Baptist Seminary. He said that "we are
prone to think of the fullest meaning of Christmas as being a
babe in a manger. Even though this is true, and even though the
baby was the Christ child and promised Messiah of the scripture
it still leaves something to be desired. When we consider that
God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself 1Corinthians
5:19 then the picture is significantly altered. It is not just a
babe in a manger but it is...God in a baby."
You can't get any closer to the true meaning of Christmas than
this, and if should you choose to ponder this wonderful truth
let me say to you with all sincerity...Merry Christmas.