How Christmas Impacts Our Faith

Do you have any special memories of Christmases past? Maybe you got that gift you had really wanted. Perhaps it was the time the whole family celebrated with a parent or grandparent. It could be the blizzard that changed your travel plans or resulted in postponed church services. Whatever happened, it is a recollection that is fond for you and perhaps has been passed down as a favorite story.
We want our celebration of the birth of Christ to have an effect on our lives. We go to a great extent of preparations to make sure it is special. The house is decorated. Family gatherings with a fancy meal are planned and carried out. Thoughtful church services are arranged, practiced, and held. Time is spent on shopping for gifts and wrapping them.
However, despite our preparations and celebrations, sometimes we come away from Christmas thinking, “What was that for?” Worse, we may want to adopt the attitude: “I survived Christmas.”
In order not to miss the meaning and application of the birth of Christ, let us consider some people in the Bible who came away changed by His advent.
Let’s start with Simeon and Anna, even though they didn’t see Jesus until He was eight days old. They were waiting faithfully for the promised Messiah to come. They did this because they heard and searched the Scriptures. They studied them to make sure they knew who to expect and what He would do. When Jesus arrived in the temple, they were prepared to believe He was the Savior even though they saw Him as an infant.
We learn from the Scriptures that hearing and studying the Bible will help us not miss the impact of Christmas. They will focus on our need for Jesus as our Savior as well as how He completed that salvation. No matter how busy we are before Christmas, we should take time for daily advent devotions and/or midweek services.
Next, we consider Mary, the mother of Jesus. When the angel Gabriel announced the conception and birth of Jesus to her, she accepted the message with faith and gave glory to God. She did not allow human reason to drown out those words. She recognized her desperate need for this Savior and the benefits of forgiveness and heaven that He would win for all mankind.
There are a host of competing messages claiming the “real” reason for Christmas.  Our own schedule can drown out the blessings offered. To counteract this, we should focus on the Savior born for us. If we think we are losing that focus, it’s time to evaluate our celebration. We ask God to help us to be like Mary in humbly accepting His promises and giving Him glory in our Christmas observances.
Finally, we look at the shepherds. Once the angels had proclaimed and sung their wonderful message, the shepherds immediately went to see the baby Jesus for themselves. Then, when they had worshipped Him, they went and told others. They shared what they had seen and heard with those who had not had that wonderful blessing. They wanted others to have the joy and peace that the Savior had brought into their lives.
The birth of Christ has had an impact on our lives. We believe He is our only Savior. Let us pass this effect on by engaging others with Jesus. Such is the gift that we want to keep on giving and can have the greatest benefit for those who hear and believe.
God grant us a Christmas and New Year full of spiritual impact!
Gregory Haugen is pastor of Messiah Lutheran Church in Omro, Wisconsin, and Our Savior’s Lutheran in Amherst Junction, Wisconsin.