What We Celebrate on Christmas

I have probably heard hope, love, joy, and peace talked about every year during advent for about as long as I can remember. And yet as 2019, what has easily been the worst year of my life, comes to a close, those are no longer just Christmas themes, they are life themes. Something different stood out to me as this familiar passage was read during our Christmas Eve service last night, “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:8-14). I have probably also heard this passage every Christmas for as long as I can remember, but this was the first Christmas it really struck me that Jesus came to bring great joy and peace.

And I realized that’s what we celebrate on Christmas.

Of course I had realized this in the more obvious sense before. Jesus came so he could ultimately sacrifice his life on the cross to offer the forgiveness of our sins which is of course reason for great joy and everlasting peace. But this year, this struck me in a different sense. When my husband relapsed in April and my life was turned completely upside down, I often turned to Philippians 4:4-7 for comfort, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” This passage is a reminder to rejoice, or choose joy, always, even in the hardest times. It’s a reminder to trust God with every aspect of my life and a reminder that when I am successful in doing so, peace from God that is unlike anything I could muster up or even begin to understand will be given to me from him alone to help me through. Both joy and peace are mentioned in this passage as well. The thing is, the only way to rejoice and have peace in the midst of the darkest times of life is to have a God that willing to walk with you through them.

And that is what we celebrate at Christmas.

This was not just a baby born to a virgin that we talk about at Christmas time and then forget about the rest of the year. Jesus is not a far off, distant god. This baby was God in the flesh- God who was willing to take on a body so he could feel what we felt, experience what we experienced, be tempted the way we were tempted, hurt the way we hurt, be rejected, be despised, and bear our suffering (Isaiah 53, Hebrews 4:15). But he not only came… he conquered! He overcame the world so that we might have hope in him (John 16:33). And now he desires that you would accept his gift of forgiveness that you might have a relationship with him so that he could walk with you through all of your pain and suffering too. There is great joy and peace for all who choose to rest in him.

That is what we celebrate at Christmas.

Jesus is the life-sustaining, joy-filling, peace-bestowing, hope-giving, and relationship-desiring Son of God. He is good news of great joy not just because he was a miracle baby born to a virgin, but because through his sacrifice we are no longer separated from God because of sin. And because we are now reconnected to God, we do not have to despair when people fail us and life doesn’t go according to plan. Instead, we are able to have hope and peace that surpasses understanding and even rejoice because we have a God that walked among us and chooses to walk with us still. That is good news of great joy and peace on earth!

And that is what we celebrate on Christmas.

I don’t know what you may be facing this Christmas or what trials might be right around the corner for you. But I do know that Jesus’ message of good news of great joy and peace on earth is much more than a feel-good Christmas message or something to sing light-heartedly about in a carol. These themes of joy and peace have given me hope during my weakest times. And as I have chosen to trust God with this life that I have no control over anyway, I have been amazed to see the true joy and peace that surpasses all understanding that he has given me to get me through. I pray that you will experience this same thing as you take some time to meditate on the message of good news of great joy and peace that Jesus offers to all who come to him. Merry Christmas!