|
Sign Here::
Should a
Christian Celebrate Christmas?
By Brother
Tim Butler
There is no
Biblical warrant, precedent, nor precept for remembrance of the day of
Christ's birth as a day of special religious celebration. This is not
to say that we shouldn't remember Christ's birth and its
significance, but for religious commemorations or celebrations, we must
have Biblical command or precedent! The fact of the matter is this --
the early church did not celebrate Christ's birth, but such
celebration only came into the church with the "Christianization"
of pagan rites as Catholicism was made the state religion by Constantine
in the fourth century A.D. Since the Word of God does not support
the tradition of Christmas, a Christian's conscience ought not and
must not be bound.
The following
outline describes the origin of Christmas (with its associated pagan
customs, symbols, and terminology), details the Scriptural support against
celebrating Christmas, attempts to show that celebrating Christmas
violates the spirit of every one of the ten commandments, attempts to
demonstrate that celebrating Christmas does not fall in the realm
of Christian liberty, and attempts to debunk eight of the major
rationalizations Christians put forth for celebrating Christmas.
I. The
Origin of Christmas
A. A Long
Evolution --
Christmas customs are an evolution from times long before the Christian
period -- a descent from seasonal, pagan, religious, and national
practices, hedged about with legend and tradition. Their seasonal
connections with the pagan feasts of the winter solstice relate
them to ancient times, when many of the earth's inhabitant's were sun
worshipers. As the superstitious pagans observed the sun gradually
moving south in the heavens and the days growing shorter, they believed
the sun was departing never to return. To encourage the sun's return
north (i.e., to give the winter sun god strength and to bring him back
to life again), the sun gods were worshipped with elaborate rituals and
ceremonies, including the building of great bonfires, decorating with
great evergreen plants such as holly, ivy, and mistletoe, and making
representations of summer birds as house decorations. The winter
solstice, then, was the shortest day of the year, when the sun seemingly
stood still in the southern sky. Observing the slowdown in the sun's
southward movement, and its stop, the heathen believed that their
petitions to it had been successful. A time of unrestrained rejoicing
broke out, with revelry, drinking, and gluttonous feasts. Then, when the
pagans observed the sun moving again northward, and a week later were
able to determine that the days were growing longer, a new year was
proclaimed.
B. Not Among
the Earliest Christian Festivals
--
Christmas was
not among the earliest festivals of the Church. It was not
celebrated, commemorated, or observed, neither by the apostles nor in
the apostolic church -- not for at least the first 300 years of church
history! History reveals that about 440 A.D., the Church at Jerusalem
commenced the celebration of Christmas, following the lead of Roman
Catholicism (see I.C.). [It was sufficient for the early Christians that
Jesus, their Lord and Savior, had been born. They praised God that Jesus
Christ had, indeed, come in the flesh. The day and the time of His birth
had no relevance to them, because Jesus was no longer physically on
earth. He had returned to heaven. And it was the risen, exalted Christ
whom they looked to, and that by faith -- not a babe laid in a manger.
Jesus Christ is no longer a baby; no longer the
"Christ-child," but the exalted Lord of all. And He does NOT
somehow return to earth as a baby every year at Christmas-time -- though
this is the impression given even in certain hymns sung in Protestant
services.]
C. The Role
of Religion in Ancient
Rome>
-- Seemingly forgotten is the essential role religion played in the
world of ancient Rome . But the Emperor Constantine understood. By
giving official status to Christianity, he brought internal peace to the
Empire. A brilliant military commander, he also had the genius to
recognize that after declaring Christianity the "state"
religion (Constantine forced all the pagans of his empire to be baptized
into the Roman Church), there was need for true union between paganism
and Christianity. The corrupt Roman Church was full of pagans now
masquerading as Christians, all of which had to be pacified. What better
way than to "Christianize" their pagan idolatries. Thus, the Babylonian
mystery religions were introduced by Constantine beginning in 313
A.D. (and established a foothold with the holding of the Council of
Nicaea in 325 A.D.). The Constantine-led Roman Church was more than
willing to adapt and adopt pagan practices in order to make Christianity
palatable to the heathen. Constantine used religion as a political tool,
totally devoid of any true spirituality: • Pagan rituals and idols
took on Christian names (e.g., Jesus Christ was presented as the Sun of
Righteousness [Malachi 4:2] replacing the sun god, Sol Invictus ).
• Pagan holidays were reclassified as Christian holidays (holy-days).
• December 25th was the "Victory of the Sun-God" Festival in
the pagan Babylonian world. In the ancient Roman Empire, the celebration
can be traced back to the Roman festival Saturnalia, which
honored Saturn, the harvest god, and Mithras, the god of light; both
were celebrated during or shortly after the winter solstice (between the
17th and 23rd of December). To all ancient pagan civilizations, December
25th was the birthday of the gods -- the time of year when the days
began to lengthen and man was blessed with a "regeneration of
nature." Moreover, all of December 25th's Babylonian and Roman
festivals were characterized by 5-7 day celebration periods of
unrestrained or orgiastic revelry and licentiousness. December 25th was
particularly important in the cult of Mithras, a popular deity in the
Old Roman Empire. Robert Myers (a proponent for celebrating
Christmas) in his book Celebrations says: "Prior to the
celebration of Christmas, December 25th in the Roman world was the Natalis
Solis Invicti, the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun. This feast,
which took place just after the winter solstice of the Julian calendar,
was in honor of the Sun God, Mithras, originally a Persian deity whose
cult penetrated the Roman world in the first century B.C. ... Besides
the Mithraic influence, other pagan forces were at work. From the
seventeenth of December until the twenty-third, Romans celebrated the
ancient feast of the Saturnalia. ... It was commemorative of the Golden
Age of Saturn, the god of sowing and husbandry." In order to make
Christianity palatable to the heathen, the Roman Church simply took
Saturnalia, adopted it into Christianity, and then eventually many of
the associated pagan symbols, forms, customs, and traditions were
reinterpreted (i.e., "Christianized") in ways
"acceptable" to Christian faith and practice. (In fact, in 375
A.D., the Church of Rome under Pope Julius I merely announced that the
birth date of Christ had been "discovered" to be December
25th, and was accepted as such by the "faithful." The festival
of Saturnalia and the birthday of Mithras could now be celebrated as the
birthday of Christ!) The pagans flocked into the Catholic places of
worship, because they were still able to worship their old gods, but
merely under different names. It mattered not to them whether they
worshiped the Egyptian goddess mother and her child under the old names
(Isis and Horus), or under the names of the "Virgin Mary" and
the "Christ-child." Either way, it was the same old
idol-religion (cf. 1 Thes. 1:8-10; 5:22 -- Paul says to turn from idols,
not rename them and Christianize them). Roman Catholicism's Christmas
Day is nothing but "baptized" paganism, having come along much
too late to be part of "the faith once delivered unto
the saints" (Jude 3). D. "Christianization" of Pagan
Customs, Symbols, and Terminology -- Christianity had to undergo a
transformation so that pagan Rome could "convert" without
giving up its old beliefs and rituals. The actual effect was to paganize
official Christianity. "'A compound religion had been manufactured,
of which ... Christianity furnished the nomenclature, and Paganism the
doctrines and rights.' The idolatry of the Roman world, though deposed
from its ancient pre-eminence, had by no means been demolished. Instead
of this, its pagan nakedness had been covered with the garb of a
deformed Christianity" (W.E. Vine). Pagan customs involving
vestments, candles, incense, images, and processions were all
incorporated into church worship and continue today. The following
customs and traditions associated with Xmas all have pagan/heathen
origins. ("Xmas" is the more preferable form for the day,
since it at least leaves the name of our Savior out of the heathen
observance.) Naturally, Christians would not keep these customs for such
evil and perverse reasons, but the fact of their origins remain --
"the customs of the people are vain" (Jer. 10:3), and should
thereby be carefully considered by all who know and love the Lord: 1.
The blasphemous "Christ's Mass" shortened to
"Christ-mas" -- The Roman Catholic "Christ's Mass"
is a special mass performed in celebration of Christ's birth. In this
mass, Jesus is considered both the priest and the victim, represented by
the Catholic priest who offers Him as a sacrifice each time the mass is
performed. In offering this "sacrifice," the priest believes
he has the power to change the bread and the wine of the Communion into
Jesus' literal flesh and blood, requiring the people to worship these
elements as they do God Himself. This is obviously a denial of the
gospel, and thereby, a false gospel (a re-doing of the sacrifice for sin
-- Heb. 9:12 , 24-26; 10:10 style="font-size: 10pt; font-family:
"comic sans ms"; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">,12,14).
Yet, many who cry out all year long against the blasphemous Roman
Catholic system, at year-end embrace style="font-size: 10pt;
font-family: "comic sans ms";">Rome 's most
blasphemous abomination of them all -- Christmas! 2. Nativity Scenes (tainted
with paganism) -- Nearly every form of pagan worship descended from the
Babylonian mysteries, which focus attention on the
"mother-goddess" and the birth of her child. This was adapted
to "Mary- Jesus" worship, which then easily accommodated the
multitude of pagans "converted" to Christianity inside
Constantine 's Roman Catholic Church. [If anyone were to erect statues
(i.e., images) of Mary and Joseph by themselves, many within Protestant
circles would cry "Idolatry!" But at Xmas time, an image of a
little baby is placed with the images of Mary and Joseph, and it's
called a "nativity scene." Somehow, the baby-idol
"sanctifies" the scene, and it is no longer considered
idolatry!] (cf. Exo. 20:4-5a; 32:1-5; 9-10a) 3. Christmas Tree --
Evergreen trees, because of their ability to remain green through-out
the winter season when most other forms of vegetation are dormant, have
long symbolized immortality, fertility, sexual potency, and
reproduction, and were often brought into homes and set up as idols. The
full mystical significance of the evergreen can only be understood when
one considers the profound reverence the ancient pagans had for all
natural phenomena -- "To them, Nature was everywhere alive. Every
fountain had its spirit, every mountain its deity, and every water,
grove, and meadow, its supernatural association. The whispering of the
trees ... was the subtle speech of the gods who dwelt within" (W.M.
Auld, Christmas Traditions). This is nothing but nature worship
or Animism. The custom of bringing the tree into the home and decorating
it as is done today has legendarily been attributed to Martin Luther. In
truth, the modern custom has been lost in obscurity, but almost every
culture has some such tradition. For ages, evergreen trees would be
brought into the house during the winter as magic symbols of luck and
hope for a fruitful year to come, It may also be that the star with
which many of today's trees are topped did not originate as a
representation of the star that the wise men followed, but rather a
representation of the stars to which the ancient Chaldean astrologers
looked for guidance. The first decorating of an evergreen was done by
pagans in honor of their god Adonis, who after being slain was brought
to life by the serpent Aesculapius. The representation of the slain
Adonis was a dead stump of a tree. Around this stump coiled the snake --
Aesculapius, symbol of life restoring. From the roots of the dead tree,
then comes forth another and different tree -- an evergreen tree,
symbolic to pagans of a god who cannot die! In Babylon , the evergreen
tree came to represent the rebirth/reincarnation of Nimrod as his new
son (Sun), Tammuz. In Egypt , this god was worshiped in a palm tree as
Baal-Tamar. (Heathen people in the land of Canaan also adopted tree
worship, calling it the Asherah -- a tree with its branches cut off was
carved into a phallic symbol.) The fir tree was worshiped in Rome as the
same new-born god, named Baal-Berith, who was restored to life by the
same serpent. A feast was held in honor of him on December 25th,
observed as the day on which the god reappeared on earth -- he had been
killed, and was "reborn" on that day, victorious over death!
It was called the "Birthday of the Unconquered Sun." Thus, the
annual custom of erecting and decorating evergreen trees was brought
down to us through the centuries by the pagan Roman Catholic Church --
the paganism of Tammuz and Baal, or the worship of the sun, mingled with
the worship of Aesculapius the serpent. Whether erected in private homes
or in churches, decorated or not, the evergreen tree is a glaring symbol
of this false god. 4. Christmas Wreaths -- In pagan mythology,
evergreen means eternal life and a never-dying existence. Made from
evergreens, Christmas wreaths were most frequently round, which
symbolized the sun (just as do halos in most religious art). Hence, the
round Xmas wreaths stand for an eternal sun, a never-dying or
self-renewing sun. In addition, the round form can also relate to the
sign of the female, which stands for the regeneration of life. Because
of these pagan associations, the Christian church was initially hostile
towards the use of wreaths and other evergreen derivatives. But in the
same way it Christianized other pagan traditions, the church soon found
a way to confer its own symbolic meanings. For example, the sharp
pointed leaves of the "male" holly came to represent Christ's
crown of thorns and the red berries His blood, while the
"female" ivy symbolized immortality (Sulgrave Manor, "A
Tudor Christmas," p. 6). Such wreaths now not only adorn churches
at Christmas time, but are also appearing during the Easter season. 5.
Mistletoe -- The use of the mistletoe plant (which is poisonous to
both man and animals) can be traced back to the ancient Druids. (The
Druids were pagan Celtic priests who were considered magicians and
wizards.) It represented the false "messiah," considered by
the Druids to be a divine branch that had dropped from heaven and grew
upon a tree on earth. This is an obvious corruption of God's prophetic
Word concerning Christ, "the Man the Branch," coming from
heaven. The mistletoe symbolized the reconciliation between God and man.
And since a kiss is the well known symbol of reconciliation, that
is how "kissing under the mistletoe" became a custom -- both
were tokens of reconciliation. The mistletoe, being a sacred plant and a
symbol of fertility, was also believed to contain certain magical
powers, having been brought to earth from heaven by a mistle thrush
carrying it in its toes (hence the name). It was once known as the
"plant of peace," and in ancient Scandinavia , enemies were
reconciled under it (yet another reason why people came to "kiss
under the mistletoe"). It was supposed to bring "good
luck" and fertility, and even to protect the house in which it hung
from witchcraft. A kiss is also something which is, at times,
associated with lust. So the practice of "kissing under the
mistletoe" also had roots in the orgiastic celebrations in
connection with the Celtic Midsummer Eve ceremony. At the time the
mistletoe was gathered, the men would kiss each other as a display of
their homosexuality. (The custom was later broadened to include both men
and women.) Kissing under the mistletoe is also reminiscent of the
temple prostitution and sexual license prolificating during Roman
Saturnalia. 6. Santa Claus -- Santa Claus or "Father
Christmas" is a corruption of the Dutch "Sant Nikolaas."
("Saint Nicholas" was the 4th century Catholic bishop of Myra
in Asia Minor , who gave treats to children; he was canonized by the
Roman Catholic Church, "regarded as a special friend and protector
of children." The red suit comes from the fact that Catholic
bishops and cardinals in Italy wear red.) Santa Claus was also known as
"Kriss Kringle," a corruption of the German "Christ
Kindl "-- Christ Child. This has to be one of the most
subtle of Satan's blasphemies, yet most Christians are unaware of it.
Originally, the Santa Claus concept came from the pagan Egyptian god,
Bes, a rotund, gnome-like personage who was the patron of little
children. Bes was said to live at the North Pole, working year-round to
produce toys for children who had been good and obedient to their
parents. In Dutch, he was called "Sinter Klaas." Dutch
settlers brought the custom to America . In Holland and other European
countries, the original Santa Claus was actually a grim personage who
traversed the countryside, determined to find out who really had been
"naughty or nice." Those who had been acting up were summarily
switched. The association of Santa Claus with snow, raindeer, and the
North Pole suggests Scandinavian or Norse traditions of the Yuletide
season. [In Babylonia , also, the stag (raindeer) was a symbol of the
mighty one, Nimrod. The symbolism of antlers worn on the head of a noble
leader would demonstrate his prowess as a hunter, and thereby, influence
people to follow him.] Santa is the blasphemous substitute for God! He
is routinely given supernatural powers and divine attributes which only
GOD has. Think about it. He is made out to be omniscient -- he
knows when every child sleeps, awakes, has been bad or good, and knows
exactly what every child wants (cf. Psa. 139:1-4). He is made out to be omnipresent
-- on one night of the year he visits all the "good"
children in the world and leaves them gifts, seemingly being everywhere
at the same time. He is also made out to be omnipotent -- he has
the power to give to each child exactly what each one wants. Moreover,
Santa Claus is made out to be a sovereign judge -- he answers to
no one and no one has authority over him, and when he "comes to
town," he comes with a full bag of rewards for those whose behavior
has been acceptable in his eyes. Santa Claus has become one of the most
popular and widely accepted and unopposed myths ever to be successfully
interwoven into the fabric and framework of Christianity. It is a fact
that Christ was born, and that truth should greatly rejoice
the heart of every Christian. But the Santa Claus myth distorts the truth
of Christ's birth by subtly blending truth with the myth of
Santa Claus. When Christian parents lie to their children about Santa
Claus, they are taking the attention of their children away from God and
causing them to focus on a fat man in a red suit with godlike qualities.
All of this teaches the child to believe that, just like Santa, God can
be pleased with "good works," done in order to earn His favor.
Also, they teach that no matter how bad the child has been, he will
still be rewarded by God -- just as Santa never failed to bring gifts.
Even in homes of professing Christians, Santa Claus has clearly
displaced Jesus in the awareness and affections of children, becoming
the undisputed spirit, symbol, and centerpiece of Christmas. 7.
Christmas Eve -- "Yule" is a Chaldean word meaning
"infant." Long before the coming of Christianity, the heathen
Anglo-Saxons called the 25th of December "Yule day" -- in
other words, "infant day" or "child's day" -- the
day they celebrated the birth of the false "messiah"! The
night before "Yule day" was called "Mother night."
Today it is called "Christmas Eve." And it wasn't called
"Mother night" after Mary, the mother of our Lord --
"Mother night" was observed centuries before Jesus was born. Semiramis
(Nimrod's wife) was the inspiration for "Mother night,"
and "Child's day" was the supposed birthday of her son (Tammuz),
the sun-god! 8. Yule Log -- The Yule log was considered by the
ancient Celts a sacred log to be used in their religious festivals
during the winter solstice; the fire provided promises of good luck and
long life. Each year's Yule log had to be selected in the forest on
Christmas Eve by the family using it, and could not be bought, or the
superstitions associated with it would not apply. In Babylonian
paganism, the log placed in the fireplace represented the dead Nimrod,
and the tree which appeared the next morning (which today is called the
"Christmas tree") was Nimrod alive again (reincarnated) in his
new son (sun), Tammuz. (Still today in some places, the Yule log is
placed in the fireplace on Christmas Eve, and the next morning there is
a Christmas tree!) Today's Yule log tradition comes to us from
Scandinavia , where the pagan sex-and-fertility god, Jule, was honored
in a twelve-day celebration in December. A large, single log was kept
with a fire against it for twelve days, and each day for twelve days a
different sacrifice was offered. The period now counted as the twelve
days between Christmas and Epiphany was originally the twelve days of
daily sacrifices offered to the Yule log. (What, then, are we really
doing when we send "Yuletide greetings"? Are we really
honoring Christ by sending greetings in the name of a Scandinavian
fertility god? These are the same customs being practiced today
as in ancient paganism! Only the names have changed.) 9. Candles --
Candles were lit by the ancient Babylonians in honor of their god, and
his altars had candles on them. And as is well known, candles are also a
major part of the ritualism of Roman Catholicism, which adopted the
custom from heathenism. Candles approached the Yule log in ritual
importance. Like the Yule log, they had to be a gift, never a purchase,
and were lighted and extinguished only by the head of the household.
Such candles stood burning steadily in the middle of the table, never to
be moved or snuffed, lest death follow. The Yule candle, wreathed in
greenery, was to burn through Christmas night until the sun rose or the
Christmas service began (Sulgrave Manor, "A Tudor Christmas,"
p. 9). Obviously, candles should have no part in Christian worship, for
nowhere in the New Testament is their use sanctioned. 10. Giving of
Gifts -- The tradition of exchanging gifts has nothing to do with a
reenactment of the Magi giving gifts to Jesus, but has many
superstitious, pagan origins instead. One prominent tradition was the
Roman custom of exchanging food, trinkets, candles, or statutes of gods
during the mid-winter Kalends (the first day of the month in the ancient
Roman calendar). This custom was transferred to December 25th by the
Roman Church in keeping with the Saturnalian festival and in celebration
of the benevolent St. Nicholas. [Is it not the height of ridiculousness
to claim that giving one another presents properly celebrates Jesus'
"birthday" (not that there is anything necessarily wrong in
giving each other presents)? But what are we giving Him, if
indeed we are specifically celebrating His incarnation?] 11.
Christmas Goose -- The "Christmas goose" and
"Christmas cakes" were both used in the worship of the
Babylonian "messiah." The goose was considered to be sacred in
many ancient lands, such as Rome , Asia Minor , India , and Chaldea . In
Egypt , the goose was a symbol for a child, ready to die! In
other words, a symbol of the pagan "messiah," ready to give
his life (supposedly) for the world. This is obviously a satanic mockery
of the truth. 12. Christmas Ham -- Hogs were slaughtered and the
eating of the carcass was one of the central festivities of the
Saturnalia. Each man would offer a pig as a sacrifice because
superstition held that a boar had killed the sun deity Adonis. Hence,
the tradition of the Christmas ham on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. 13.
Christmas Stocking -- According to tradition, a poor widower of Myra
, Turkey , had three daughters, for whom he could not provide a dowry.
On Xmas-Eve, "Saint Nicholas" threw three bags of gold down
the chimney, thereby saving the daughters from having to enter into
prostitution. One bag rolled into a shoe, and the others fell into some
stockings that had been hung to dry by the fire. Hence, the beginning of
the tradition of the "Christmas stocking" or "boot."
14. Christmas Cards -- The first British Xmas card can be dated
back to 1843. The first cards featured pictures of dead birds!
Evidently, the popularity of hunting robin and wren on Christmas Day
made the dead bird image an appropriate one for "holiday"
cards. Often the text of the cards would also have a morbid tone. Later,
the cards displayed dancing insects, playful children, pink-cheeked
young women, and festively decorated Christmas trees. The first actual
Xmas cards were really Valentine's Day cards (with different messages)
sent in December. Mass production of Xmas cards in the United States can
be traced back to 1875. Initially, the manufacturers thought of Xmas
cards as a sideline to their already successful business in playing
cards. But the "tradition" of sending cards soon caught on,
leading to a very profitable business by itself. 15. Christmas Carols
-- What do you suppose the reaction would be by a church's leaders
if its Pastor were to propose that the following hymns be introduced
into the church to commemorate the birth of Christ? After all, the tunes
are quite lovely. style="font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">Hymn #1 -- A hymn by a Unitarian (rejects the
Trinity and full deity of Christ) minister that does not mention Jesus
Christ and reflects the liberal social gospel the-ology of the 19th
century. Hymn #2 -- A hymn by an American Episcopal priest, the
fourth verse of which teaches Roman Catholic superstition about Christ
coming to be born in people during the Advent season. Hymn #3 --
A song, the words by an Austrian Roman Catholic priest, the music by a
Roman Catholic school teacher, containing the Roman Catholic
superstition about halos emanating from holy people, with no gospel
message. Perhaps you would expect the church's leaders to be very upset.
It might surprise you to learn that they were upset when they suspected
that the Pastor might somehow prevent them from singing them. You
see, those three hymns were already in the church's hymnals! The Pastor
did not have to introduce them. The three theologically incorrect
"Christmas carols" referred to above are It Came Upon the
Midnight Clear, O Little Town of Bethlehem , and Silent Night.
(See the appendix for an evaluation of some of the most popular Xmas
carols found in church hymnals today.) E. European Xmas Traditions --
In the early days of Christianity, as it moved north and west into
Europe , many pagan celebrations were encountered. For example, in the
late-6th century in England , the Angles and Saxons were found
celebrating Yule. The Christian evangelists thought they would fail in
any attempt to rival, suppress, or stamp out such long held customs, so
they simply adopted popular dates for their own "special rituals
and hallowed services." In other words, it was easier to establish
a festival celebrating the birth of Christ if it conveniently coincided
with an existing popular feast day. In this way, the pagan peoples
(albeit potential converts to Christianity), could continue with their
usual celebrations at this time of year, but the reason for the
merrymaking could be redefined and attributed to Christ's birth rather
than to any pagan rituals. As paganism eventually died out and
Christianity became widespread, Christmas became increasingly more
associated with its religious foundations than any others (Sulgrave
Manor, "A Tudor Christmas," p. 2). It was left to the Puritans
to denounce everything. For them, Christmas was rightfully part popish,
part pagan, and was forbidden to be kept as a holiday or feast day. The
attack began in 1644 when the Puritans controlled the Parliament;
December 25th was changed to a Fast Day. By 1647, even the Fast Day was
abolished as a relic of superstition, synonymous with the Church of
Rome. No observation on December 25th was any longer permitted,
but the day was to be observed as a normal market-day. Christmas was
accurately depicted by such names as the Profane Man's Ranting Day, the
Superstitious Man's Idol Day, the Papist's Massing Day, the Old
Heathen's Feasting Day, the Multitude's Idle Day, and Satan-that
Adversary's-Working Day. In those days, any Christmas celebrations would
be broken up by troops, who would tear down decorations and arrest
anyone holding a service. Some who celebrated it in Europe were also
thrown into prison. Because of the riots that broke out following the
banning of Christmas, the celebrations and revelry were restored in 1660
by King Charles II, a Catholic (Sulgrave Manor, "A Tudor
Christmas," p. 3). F. American Xmas Traditions -- America 's
settlers (the "founding fathers" of so-called "Protestant
America") rightfully considered Christmas a "popish"
holiday. In fact, it was only in the early 1800s that several founding
members of the New York Historical Society "invented"
Christmas. Before then, it was illegal in colonial Massachusetts to even
take December 25th off work. Christmas was forbidden as "unseemly
to ye spiritual welfare of ye community." (It was banned in
Massachusetts in 1659, and this law remained on the books for 22 years.
In Boston , public schools stayed open on December 25th until as late as
1870!) It wasn't until 1836 that any state declared Christmas a holiday
( Alabama ), and then there were no more state declarations until the
Civil War. It was not until 1885 that all federal workers were given
Christmas Day off. The so-called Xmas customs and traditions were later
concocted more for commercial purposes than for religious. Quoting from
a 12/23/83 USA TODAY article about Christmas: "A broad
element of English Christianity still considered Christmas celebration a
pagan blasphemy. The Puritans, Baptists, Quakers, Presbyterians,
Calvinists and other denominations brought this opposition to early New
England and strong opposition to the holiday lasted in America until the
middle of the 18th century." Henry Ward Beecher, a
Congregationalist, wrote in 1874 of his New England boyhood: "To me
Christmas is a foreign day, and I shall die so. When I was a boy I
wondered what Christmas was. I knew there was such a time, because we
had an Episcopal church in our town, and I saw them dressing it with
evergreens, and wondered what they were taking the woods in the church
for; but I got no satisfactory explanation. A little later I understood
it was a Romish institution, kept by the Romish Church." II.
Scriptural Support Against Celebrating Christmas -- Unacceptable
Worship A. 2 Chron. 33:15-17 -- The Israelites had kept the old
pagan form (the high places of Baal), but had merely introduced the
worship of God into that form -- a refusal to let go of pagan worship
forms (i.e., God was to be worshiped in the Temple, not on the high
places). This was unacceptable worship because the right object of
worship was mixed with wrong forms of worship; i.e., the mixing of godly
worship with ungodly form. [Likewise, is not the celebration of
Christmas the taking of a celebration established by pagans and for
pagans, and then introducing the worship of Christ into that pagan
form?] B. Deut. 12:29 -32 -- God warned His people Israel to
destroy all vestiges of pagan worship that they found in the
"Promised Land." Not only did God want to prevent His people
from being enticed to worship false gods, but He specifically revealed
that He did not want His people to worship Him in the same manner in
which the heathen worshiped their gods. We know, therefore, that our
Lord is displeased by practices which profess to honor Him, but which
are copied from the tradition of false religions. The command here was
to worship God only in His way, i.e., do only what God commands -- not
adding to God's commands nor taking away from them. [Is not
"putting Christ back into Christmas," worshiping "the
Lord your God their way"? Is there any command in the
Bible to give special reverence to the Scriptural account of Christ's
birth more so than to any other Scripture, let alone even a suggestion
to celebrate or commemorate His birth in any way whatsoever? God never
intended for His people to be imitators of the pagan customs of the
world, but has called us to be separate and set apart.] C. Lev.
10:1,2 -- Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire to the Lord. [Is not
the celebration of Christmas, with all its pagan symbols and forms, a
"strange fire" unto the Lord, and is not this form of worship
contrary to what God commands?] D. 1 Sam. 15:1-3, 7-9, 21-23 --
Saul disobeyed God's prophet in order to worship God in his way. [Is not
the celebration of Christmas one of man's ways of worshiping Christ?
There is certainly no Biblical command to offer worship in this manner.]
E. 2 Sam. 6:2-7 -- David attempts to transport the ark on a
"new cart" instead of using the rings and poles as the Law
required (Exo. 25:12-15). Additionally, the "transporters" of
the ark were not even authorized to carry it (1 Chron. 15:2, 13-15);
i.e., the ark was not only transported in the wrong way, but was
transported by the wrong people! [Is not the celebration of Christmas
the wrong way (pagan forms and tradition) with the wrong people (the
heathen of the world join right in with the professing Christians)?] F.
1 Ki. 12:26 -33 -- In order to unify the northern ten tribes of
Israel , ungodly King Jeroboam set up pagan idols, not in place
of God, but as new focal points for directing worship to God. He even
instituted a new festival on a new day; i.e., a new religious holiday of
his own choosing. Even though the true God of Israel was still to be the
object of worship in the new religious holiday, both the holiday and the
worship were not authorized by God nor accepted by Him (1 Ki. 13:1-3;
15:29,30). Why? Because the concocted mixture of error with truth
constituted false religion! [Is not the celebration of Christmas a
religious holiday of man's own choosing, replete with pagan symbols and
forms, all under the guise (by sincere Christians at least) of
worshiping the one true God and Savior? But does not this worship form
and system still constitute false religion, and thereby, make it
unacceptable to God? And besides, where in the Bible do Christians have
the right to add a new holy day to the so-called Christian calendar, any
more than King Jeroboam had the right to add a new holy day to God's
theocratic calendar?] G. 1 Cor. 8:4-13; Rom. 14:1-13; 1 Cor.
10:14,18-21 -- These passages concerning Christian liberty are
discussed in more detail under Roman numeral IV. [Christian liberty can
best be defined Biblically as "the freedom to engage in practices not
prohibited by the Scriptures or denying oneself what is permitted
(i.e., a moral choice of selfdiscipline) in order to be a more
effective witness for God." So the question must first be answered,
"Is Christmas permitted?"] Briefly, some claim that Paul is
teaching that the participation in pagan forms condemns no one, and
therefore, participation in Christmas and its forms, even though arising
out of pagan idolatry, is inconsequential. However, Paul nowhere
approves participation in acts of idolatry, of which the
participation in the pagan forms of Christmas comes dangerously close to
doing. Instead, Paul is speaking of the liberty to continue in Jewish
days of worship/festival that had been previously ordained under the
Jewish law. There is certainly no liberty to bring outside pagan forms
into the church's worship services. Likewise, there is no liberty to
Christianize Babylonian/Roman pagan holy days as special days.
Christians in the first century churches had the liberty to observe Old
Testament holy days and feasts (days that had previously been revealed
by God) if they were so immature as to do so. The weaker brother, Paul
wrote, was at that time not to be censured for continuing to attach some
importance to the Old Testament holy days, as a clear knowledge of their
abolition in Christ was not yet given to him (the weaker brother). But
to observe a pagan holy day is something this passage does
not sanction. They certainly did not have the liberty to regard
Babylonian/Roman pagan holy days (days that were invented by the devil)
as special days. Again, that would have been idolatry, worldliness, and
perhaps even a form of Satan worship on their part. Therefore, how can
the observance of Christmas Day, or any other Babylonian/Roman Catholic
holy day, be a matter of Christian liberty? Yet when some of us refuse
to regard the pagan holy days as special days, we are the ones often
referred to as the "weaker brother" in this matter! Are we
opposed to such days because we are "weak in faith"? Faith
would be defined as believing what the Word of God says about a matter
and acting upon it. It was by faith that we stopped regarding pagan holy
days as special days. Would we be more mature Christians if we would
start regarding such days again? It would certainly be much easier on us
and our families. III. Christmas and Violation of the Ten
Commandments (reverse order) A. Do Not Covet -- Children
learn to covet the gifts of others, to drool over the Christmas catalog,
to drag their parents endlessly through toy stores, all in the name of
"the Christmas spirit." B. Do Not Bear False Witness --
"Jesus is the reason for the season!" is the Christian battle
cry to "put Christ back in Christmas," when in actuality,
there is not only no Biblical warrant for Christmas, but its roots are
in pagan worship systems. Nevertheless, professing Christians lie to
their children about Santa Claus, the supernatural, sorcerous false
"god" of Christmas, whose "gospel" is one of works
salvation along with unconditional acceptance and rewards. Parents lie
to their children for years about the god-like character of Santa Claus,
in effect asking them to trust in a false god and a lie, and then
don't understand why later in life their children won't believe and trust
in the true God, Jesus Christ. C. Do Not Steal -- Christmas
spending patterns could never stand the test of Biblical stewardship;
i.e., Christians, in celebrating Christmas, "steal" the Lord's
resources by ignoring their proper use; lavishly spend these resources
on worthless and useless trinkets (in many cases); and withhold
resources from those in need, while at the same time claiming to never
have enough money to buy good Christian books, pay for home schooling,
or buy Bible helps for their children. (Christians could also be helping
the spiritually needy by buying and giving them tracts, books, etc.) We
"steal" from our families what they need and what we owe them
in order to buy gifts for those who don't need them. D. Do Not Commit
Adultery -- At this "special" time of the year, lustful
thoughts are actually encouraged; e.g., teens are allowed to go to
parties and stay out later, thereby having temptations put in front of
them that otherwise wouldn't be there. Christmas parties for adults also
encourage evil thoughts through the use of the mistletoe, etc.
(According to Matt. 5, such thoughts constitute adultery. At the very
least, spiritual adultery is encouraged by the
"season.") E. Do Not Murder -- Envy and hate of my
brother (which, according to Matt. 5, is equal to murder) because he has
more than me or because he receives a larger Christmas bonus than me, is
encouraged at Christmas time. We also tend to spiritually sacrifice our
children to the "god of Christmas" via greed, selfishness,
etc. F. Honor Father & Mother -- Christmas gift-giving is not
an honor to parents; the term "exchanging" gifts (i.e., giving
in expectation of a return) is a dead give-away of the mockery
associated with this tradition. G. Remember the Sabbath & Keep It
Holy -- Although we recognize that the Lord's Day is not the
"Christian Sabbath," clearly the Lord's Day is to be kept for
worship and observed as such. Yet when Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or
the day after Christ-mas falls on a Sunday, most churches adjust the
Lord's Day to accommodate Christmas, usually by cancelling the regularly
scheduled Sunday evening service. Most of its members are too busy or
too tired to attend services anyway. H. Do Not Take the Lord's Name
in Vain -- "Christ" and "mass" are two words
that are totally opposite from one another, and to connect the two is to
blaspheme the name of Christ. By taking a pagan celebration,
"Christianizing" it, and calling it a celebration of the birth
of Christ, is most certainly taking the Lord's name in vain. (A good
example of the willingness of the professing church to profane the name
of the Lord would be the title of a popular children's Christmas concert
production -- The Divine Ornament. Imagine, identifying our Lord
with a pagan ornament to hang on a pagan tree! What insult! What
blasphemy!) In addition, some professing Christians use religion
("Christ's birthday") as a cloak to cover the evils of
covetousness, idolatry, greed, immorality, etc. -- all excuses to give
vent to evil lusts. I. Do Not Make Yourself Any Carved Image --
Nativity scenes, "pictures" of Christ, Christmas cards with
"pictures" of Jesus, etc., all violate this command. God has
given us His Word, not images, to teach us about Christ (1 Pe. 1:23 ; Dt.
4:12 , 15-19). J. Have No Other gods Before Me -- The "god
of Christmas" is idolatrous! Looking to the Christmas season for
happiness, joy, and fulfillment, rather than through a pure, personal,
and Biblical relationship with Jesus Christ, is idolatry. IV. Is a
Christian's Decision to Celebrate Christmas a Part of Christian Liberty?
A. Romans 14:1-13 -- This passage is speaking of Jews who were
observing the Old Testament Jewish holy days/festivals and dietary laws
even though they were now believers in Christ; but they were also
judging their Gentile brothers-in-the-Lord who did not observe the
Jewish customs. Likewise, the Gentile Christians were judging their
Jewish brothers who were seemingly caught-up in ceremonial law. Paul was
thusly saying, "To you Gentile Christians -- leave the Jewish
Christians alone, because they are not violating any Scriptural
commands by their actions (i.e.,it's a "disputable" matter
[doubtful or gray area] and not a moral issue). To you Jewish
Christians -- it's okay for you to observe the Jewish festivals and
dietary laws because they were given by God in the Old Testament,
and thereby, are considered to be previously approved worship forms,
but don't judge your Gentile brothers because there is no Biblical
command for either of you to continue to observe these things."
(Actually, it wasn't "okay" [see IV.C. below], but Paul allowed
it as an act of an immature/weaker brother [see II.G. above].) If a
moral issue is involved (i.e., a practice that is covered in Scripture),
then this passage and its application to Christian liberty (i.e., the
freedom to engage in practices not prohibited by Scripture) would
obviously not apply. And as brought out earlier in this report, the
celebration of Christmas appears to be such a moral issue, because its
celebration is not only not from God, but is from ancient
paganism itself! B. 1 Corinthians 8:4-13 -- The Gentile
Christians, who had been raised in an idolatrous system, were having a
problem with the their Jewish brothers who were eating meat that had
been sacrificed to idols. (Apparently, this was the only
"healthy" meat available.) Similar to the Romans 14 passage
above, Paul says that eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols is not
a moral issue, and thereby, is not prohibited. However, Paul
does not say that it is okay to go into the pagan temple itself;
in fact, in other passages (1 Cor 10:14 , 18-21), Paul specifically prohibits
getting involved with the pagan feasts. In other words, it's not a
moral issue to partake in the byproducts of a pagan religious
system (note, however, that there is no indication here that the Jewish
Christians were using the "idol meat" as part of their
worship), but it is not okay to partake in the religious system
itself (because the corrupt character of the participants would be
harmful for believers). Rather, we must be separate from the worldly
system (2 Cor 6:14 -7:1). Therefore, when items (byproducts)
associated with a pagan religious system not only develop religious
associations of their own, but have been integrated into what would
otherwise be true Christian worship (as the celebration of Christmas has
clearly become in our culture), then we should pull away from them so
that there is no confusion over our allegiances. C. Galatians 4:9-10;
Colossians 2:16 -17 -- Both these passages of Scripture refer to the
Jewish holy days under Old Testament law. If Christians were not
even to observe the Old Testament holy days -- days which did have
divine sanction, for a time -- they certainly don't have the liberty to
observe pagan holy days! D. James 4:11 -- James is saying
that Christians may only judge a brother on matters determined in God's
Word (i.e., moral issues). If a matter is not covered in the Word, then
these are matters of Christian liberty (á la Rom. 14:1- 13 and 1 Cor
8:4-13), and he who judges in these areas of Christian liberty is, in
effect, judging and condemning the Word of God as being an imperfect
standard to which the judge, thereby, refuses to submit. On the other
hand, since we have clear Scriptural precept that condemns the things
that go on around December 25th in the name of Christ, the celebration
of Christmas does not appear to be a matter of liberty, but one of moral
conduct. V. The Right Response A. Quench Not the Holy Spirit (1 Thes
5:19 -22) -- Test all things against the Scripture and line-up
beliefs and actions with what is true (i.e., do not treat with contempt
the Word of God). If one is convinced that to celebrate Christmas is
sin, then he and his family must not compromise with the world or the
church by participating in any Christmas celebrations (Rom. 14:23). B.
Avoid Traps of the Devil: 1. Lack of Zeal -- One who never considers
why he does certain things, but he just does them because he always has
or because his parents always have; one who acts on emotions rather than
on facts. 2. Lack of Truth -- One who does things for good
reasons and right motives (i.e., plenty of zeal), but not in truth. C.
Realize that Christians Celebrating Christmas as the Day of Christ's
Birth Makes No More Sense than Adding Any of the Following Days as
Special Days of Christian Celebration: -- (Remember, the Bible's
focus on the birth of Christ is for the sole purpose of documenting his
virgin birth, his incarnation, and the fulfillment of His prophetic
Messiahship. Like the tongue-in-cheek suggestions below, one must also
remember that there is no Biblical warrant, precedent, nor
precept for the remembrance of the day of Christ's birth as a day of
special religious celebration.) 1. Baptism Celebration -- Why not
have three days of swimming parties in the summer in order to
celebrate/symbolize Christ's three days in the grave? We could even pick
a time based upon our speculation of when John the Baptist
baptized Jesus! 2. Ascension Celebration -- Why not have one day
set aside every year for hot-air balloon rides in order to celebrate
Christ's ascension to heaven? 3. Miracle Celebration -- There is
considerable Biblical focus on Jesus' miracles (even more than on
his birth), so why not have one day set aside every year to celebrate
the first of Christ's miracles? And since that was the turning of water
into wine (Jn. 2), why not have "Christian" wine-tasting
parties?! D. Avoid the Rationalizations that: 1. "Christmas
Provides a Festive Time to Share the Gospel" -- One cannot take
something condemned in God's Word and "use it" to spread the
Gospel; neither will God bless it to spread His Word. Unacceptable
worship and the "mixing-in" of unholy/pagan forms is surely
not the normal means through which God blesses the faithful. Satan works
to blend together his system with God's system, because when
unacceptable worship (paganism) is blended with true worship (God's
truth), true worship is destroyed. In fact, any time one mixes pagan
ideas and practices with the pure religion of Christ, it is condemned in
Scripture as the heinous sin of idolatry! God has always detested taking
those things dedicated to idols and using them to worship Him. [As a
matter of fact, this "special time of the year" is probably
more a hindrance to the receptiveness of the gospel message than
a help. Much of the celebration observed by our contemporary society
deludes people into assuming that God is pleased, when in reality, He is
offended by false religion, pseudo-worship, and alien philosophies. The
ecumenical spirit and a counterfeit "love" under the guise of
"peace and goodwill among men," more than likely dulls one's
sensitivity to his desperate need to repent of sin and be reconciled to
a holy God.] 2. "Christmas is Merely the Honoring of Christ's
Birth" -- Someone says, "I know Christmas is of pagan
origin, but I still think it's not wrong for a church to have a special
time for honoring Christ's birth." But since when did Protestants
believe that Christians have the right to add to the Bible? Is the
church a legislative body? Are we to follow the Bible in our faith and
practice, or the thinking of fallible men? If we have the right to add a
special holy day to the Christian economy, then we can add 10,000 other
things. Then we will be no better than the false cults and the Roman
Catholics who follow heathen traditions! [Besides, celebrating Christ's
birth is a form of worship. But since Christmas is a lie, those who
celebrate it are not worshiping in "spirit and truth" (Jn.
4:24 ).] 3. "All I'm Doing is Putting Christ Back into
Christmas" -- The modern conservative cry to put Christ back
into Christmas is absurd. As detailed earlier in this report, Jesus
Christ was never in Christmas. It's a lie to say He was. He has no part
in a lie. When anyone takes the truth and mixes a lie with it, they no
longer have the truth. They have changed the truth into a lie. Neither
is it possible to take a lie and mix enough truth with it to change the
lie into the truth. You still come out with a lie. One may say,
"Well, I know it's not the truth, but I'll put Christ back in
Christmas and glorify God in it then." No, you won't. Christ never
was in Christmas. You cannot change a lie into the truth. It should in
reality be called Baal-mass, Nimrod-mass, Tammuz-mass, Mithras-mass, or
Mary-mass. Christ-mass is a lie. Why use a lie as a good time for a
cardinal truth (the incarnation) of the Christian faith? 4. "I'm
Using Christmas to Witness for Christ, Just Like the Apostle Paul
Did" -- Some say that all they are doing is taking the
"truth" from Christmas (i.e., the incarnation of Christ) and
"cultivating" it as the Apostle Paul did (Acts 17/Mars Hill),
taking the opportunity of the season to witness to a lost world. This
would be fine if these Christians were actually doing only as
Paul did. Paul, in addressing the Greek philosophers on Mars Hill,
proclaimed to them that their "unknown god" to whom they had
erected an altar, was none other than "the God who made the world
and all the things therein." Paul was not intimidated by the pagan
surroundings and symbolisms, nor did he berate the Greeks for their
error, but merely showed them the truth of the gospel of Christ. But do
Christians really use the "opportunity presented by the
season" in the same way as Paul used the opportunity of the pagan
altar? Do Christians personally stand in front of their hometown public
displays of Xmas (Nativity scenes, etc.) and preach the gospel? To
paraphrase Paul, do they say: "Men of Indianapolis, I see that in
every way you are very religious; what you worship as something unknown,
I am going to proclaim to you"? Do they come out of the public
schools where they have just attended their children's Xmas programs and
preach to the attendees about the true God who has been grossly
misrepresented in the program they have just witnessed? Hardly. Even to
most of those who understand the true origin of Xmas, this "unique
time of year" means inviting unbelievers into their homes to gather
around the Xmas tree, to enjoy the beauty of the wreaths, absorb the
heat from the Yule log, etc., reasoning that they are only using the
pagan forms and the pagan festival season as an opportunity to witness.
If Paul meant this in Acts 17, he would have met the people in the
Athenian temple or in his or their homes, gathering around their idols
that he had Christianized and was now using as a part of his worship.
Most of the people who decorate their homes and churches with Xmas
trees, holly wreaths, Nativity scenes, etc., all supposedly to be used
as "opportunities" via "Xmas coffees," neighborhood
"grab bag" gift exchanges, Xmas concerts, etc., are thoroughly
convinced that they're doing God a service. And since they are not
involved in the crass secular "commercialization" that the
world revels in, but have instead "put Christ back in Xmas"
(so to speak), they reason that all is Biblical and pleasing to God. 5.
"It Doesn't Mean Anything to Me" -- Many Christians who
routinely make a habit of picking-and-choosing which Biblical commands
they will or will not obey, have likewise carried this practice over
into a justification for celebrating Christmas. They claim, "but
the Christmas tree, mistletoe, Santa Claus, etc., don't mean anything
pagan to me, so I'll exercise my Christian liberty and partake in all of
it." Obviously, if one were to take such a cavalier approach to the
physical world (i.e., "I can drink rat poison because I choose not
to regard it as poison"), it would likely lead to a quick physical
death. Why then do Christians think they can avoid spiritual harm by
ignoring God's spiritual warnings? 6. "The 'Connection' Has Been
Broken" -- There are those who clearly recognize the pagan
nature of the various Christmas worship forms and practices.
Nevertheless, many of these Christians claim that because of the long
passage of time from their pagan inception to the present (6,000
years?), the "connection" to paganism has been sufficiently
diminished to allow the adoption of these forms and practices into our
Christian worship and celebration. While it may be true that most
symbols have lost their original demonic meaning and significance in a
modern society, it is strangely bizarre and ironic that Christendom
seeks to commemorate Christ's birth with the faded symbols of Satan. And
even though some of God's people may be naive and ignorant about the
source of these things, surely God is not. Can such things please Him?
And think about this -- if it were possible to "disconnect"
current practices from their pagan/occultic roots, why does Scripture
not provide us any guidelines as to: (a) how much time is necessary for
the "neutralization"/disassociation process to occur; and (b)
which of the hundreds of ancient pagan rites would then be acceptable
for adaptation into Christian worship (since some are obviously much
more pagan/occultic than others)? 7. "There Are Hundreds of
Other Items of Daily Life that Have a Pagan Origin" -- It is
said, "Such things as the wedding ring, certain clothing customs,
the modern division of time into hours and minutes, the names of the
days of the week, etc., all have pagan connections in their origins, so
isn't it a contradiction on your part to say that their meanings
have sufficiently changed while Christmas's meanings have not?" But
we are not saying that their meanings have changed. The question is one
of using things of pagan origin in our worship of Christ. So we would
ask the question back, "Which of these pagan items do we focus on
to celebrate the birth of Christ? Or which of these is 'Christianized'
and brought into our weekly worship of, or our daily devotion to Christ,
as you do with the pagan forms and traditions of Xmas?" The origin
and meaning of a custom, tradition, or form does not take on
significance unless it is somehow specifically incorporated into, or
lined up with, our worship. As we have already detailed in the section
on Christian liberty (Section IV.B.), these rings, clothing customs,
etc. would be merely the byproducts of paganism, not paganism
itself, and they have developed no religious connotations or
associations of their own, as have the Xmas customs and traditions. 8.
"Baptism (and Circumcision) Have Pagan Origins and God Still Gave
Their Use in Scripture, So What's Wrong With Using the Pagan Forms of
Christmas?" -- This argument is frequently made by Pastors who
say that to be consistent, those who would have us forbid the forms,
symbols, and traditions of Christmas should also be calling for us to
abandon believer's baptism; i.e., shouldn't the would-be banners of
Christmas be saying, "Since the ancient mystery religions practiced
forms of baptism, therefore baptism is a pagan custom and should be
outlawed for the believer in Christ"? This is a strange argument
for anyone to make, particularly a theologian (and, in our opinion,
reveals a low view of Scriptural admonitions). If baptism were absent
from the Bible, as using pagan forms and traditions to celebrate or
commemorate Christ's birthday are totally absent, there would then be no
Biblical justification for baptism. But God has not commanded us
to celebrate or commemorate Christ's birth in any way. He has
commanded us to baptize (Matt. 28:19). E. Abstain From the
Observance of Christmas -- What, then, ought to be the Christian's
response to this and other pagan and Roman inventions? It cannot be
denied that they are pagan pure and simple, from beginning to end. God
gives us specific instructions in His Holy Word: Thus saith the Lord,
Learn not the way of the heathen ... (Jer. 10:2). These words are
perfectly clear. What rational options does a Bible believing Christian
have? VI. Conclusion The very popularity of Christmas should
cause the Christian to question it. Anyone and everyone can celebrate
Christmas without question -- outright pagans, nominal Christians, and
even Buddhists and Hindus. If, in reality, December 25th were a date set
by God to remember the birth of Jesus, there is no doubt that the world
would have nothing to do with it. After all, God has commanded one day
in seven -- the Lord's Day -- to worship Him. Does the world observe it?
Of course not. As expected, the world loves Christmas, but hates the
Lord Jesus Christ (Jn. 15:18 , 23-25). It shuns anything pertaining to
true religion. Shouldn't the Christian be just a little suspicious of a
celebration in which the whole sinful world can join without qualms? One
way to test the Scripturalness of our practices is to reflect on what we
would expect missionaries to teach new converts in a foreign culture. We
assume that they would use the Bible as their guide book. If they could
start new local churches without importing American culture encumbered
with Roman Catholicism, liberal Protestantism, and crass commercialism,
wouldn't it be wonderful? Missionaries who have urged new converts to
forsake all pagan superstitious relics have later been questioned about
the apparent inconsistency of their own American Christmas customs.
Nationals perceived them as idolatrous even though the missionaries were
oblivious to that possibility! When Christmas is exposed for what it
really is, this angers people. It angers Protestant people! And
there is reason why it does so. When the pagan celebration of Christmas
is rooted up, and rejected, then what has become a Protestant
tradition is, in effect, being rejected! And that is why
people become angry. It began as a Roman Catholic holy day, and then it
became a Protestant holy day. And if anyone dares show it up for what it
really is, they face the wrath of the Protestant religious machine. And
these days, that can be very ugly. Christmas is a thoroughly pagan
holiday -- in its origin, in its trappings, and in all its traditions.
Perhaps we should contemplate the words of Charles Haddon Spurgeon,
delivered in a Lord's Day sermon on December 24, 1871 : "We have no
superstitious regard for times and seasons. Certainly we do not believe
in the present ecclesiastical arrangement called Christmas:
first, because we do not believe in the mass at all, but abhor
it, whether it be said or sung in Latin or in English; and secondly,
because we find no Scriptural warrant whatever for observing any day as
the birthday of the Saviour; and consequently, its observance is a
superstition, because [it's] not of divine authority. Superstition has
fixed most positively the day of our Saviour's birth, although there is
no possibility of discovering when it occurred. ... "It was not
till the middle of the third century that any part of the church
celebrated the nativity of our Lord; and it was not till very long after
the Western church had set the example, that the Eastern adopted it.
Because the day is not known, therefore superstition has fixed it; ...
Where is the method in the madness of the superstitious? Probably the
fact is that the holy days were arranged to fit in with the heathen
festivals. ... We venture to assert that if there be any day in the year
of which we may be pretty sure that it was not the day on which
the Saviour was born, it is the twenty-fifth of December. ... regarding
not the day, let us, nevertheless, give God thanks for the gift of His
dear Son." And from Dr. H.A. Ironside's Lectures on the Book of
Revelation (1920: p. 301): "It is a lamentable fact that
style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Babylon 's
principles and practices are rapidly but surely pervading the churches
that escaped from style="font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">Rome at the time of the Reformation. We may see
evidences of it in the wide use of high-sounding ecclesiastical titles,
once unknown in the reformed churches, in the revival of holy days and
church feasts such as Lent, Good Friday, Easter, and Christ's Mass, or,
as it is generally written, Christmas. ... some of these
festivals ... when they are turned into church festivals, they certainly
come under the condemnation of Galatians 4:9-11, where the Holy Spirit
warns against the observance of days and months and times and seasons.
All of them, and many more that might be added, are Babylonish in their
origin, and were at one time linked with the Ashtoreth and Tammuz
mystery-worship. It is through Rome that they have come down to us; and
we do well to remember that Babylon is a mother, with daughters who are
likely to partake of their mother's characteristics ..." And,
finally, from Alexander Hislop's 1916 classic, The Two Babylons: Or
the Papal Worship: "Upright men strove to stem the tide, but in
spite of all their efforts, the apostasy went on, till the Church, with
the exception of a small remnant, was submerged under Pagan
superstition. That Christmas is a Pagan festival is beyond all doubt.
The time of the year and the ceremonies with which it is still
celebrated, prove its origin." We can summarize by saying that
nowhere in Scripture are we commanded to commemorate the birth of our
Lord, and God the Father evidently deemed it unwise to make the date
known. Hence, it will always remain unknown and is not to be
ceremoniously remembered and celebrated. (In fact, God has warned us
about getting entangled with any special days [Gal. 4:10 ]). Notice
though, that we are commanded to remember Him in His death (but
no special day was specified for this either): "Take, eat; this is
My body which is broken for you; this DO in remembrance of
Me" (Luke 22:18,19; 1 Cor. 11:23-26). To commemorate His death is
Scriptural. Any day of the year will do. To commemorate His birth is
non-Scriptural, even extra-Scriptural (Deut. 4:2; 12:32 ; Prov. 30:6;
Rev. 22:19), whether one chooses December 25th or any other day. If God
had desired us to remember Christ's birthday, He could have left us the
precise date. But if He had, He would have vindicated every astrologer
in the past 2,000 years. In occult circles, the anniversary of a
person's birth is the most important metaphysical day of the year. The
Bible recognizes no such significance. It is intriguing that there are
only two birthday celebrations recorded in the entire Bible and they
were both those of ungodly kings -- and both resulted in an
execution (Gen. 40:16-22 and Matt. 14:6-10/Mark 6:21-27)! The Apostle
Paul says: "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross [not
the manger] of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is
crucified unto me, and I unto the world" (Gal. 6:14 ). By itself,
we find no salvation in the birth of the Lord Jesus, for salvation was
only made possible through His death (i.e., His shed blood) and
resurrection. Our focus should be on the cross and our ascended Savior, not
in a cradle. Those who love Jesus should certainly rejoice that
He was born and lived amongst us as a man. But if we truly want to
glorify Him and bear testimony of who He is, we must stop marrying that
blessed gift with the debauchery of paganism. If we want to honor His
birth, let it be done as He would have done it: year-round unselfishly
serving our fellow man as an unending act of love for our God. Let us
put away all of the mixture of pagan customs and take up His mantle and
His pure worship, and show the confused world that there is a
difference. style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: "Comic
Sans MS";">BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES 1. Assemblies of
Yahweh. The Case Against Christmas. Sacred Name Broadcaster,
Bethel , PA ,23pp. 2. Becker, R.F. The Truth About Christmas. Chapel
Library, Venice , FL , 36 pp. 3. Blanton, Raymond. The Christmas Lie.
Highways & Hedges Tracts, Liberty , SC , 13 pp. 4. Buday,
George. The History of the Christmas Card. Putman Pub., New York
, 1954, 304pp. 5. Dager, Albert James. "The Origins of Christmas
Traditions," Media Spotlight Special Report Redmond , WA ,
1985, 2 pp. 6. Dickey, D.J. & Shetler, Earl. "Should A
Christian Celebrate Christmas?" Grace Reformed Baptist Church,
Vernonia , OR , 10/89: three-part sermon series -- each on a 90-minute
audio cassette tape. 7. Dossey, Donald. Holiday Folklore, Phobias and
Fun: Mythical Origins, Scientific Treatments & Superstitious
"Cures." Outcomes Unltd. Press, Asheville , NC , 1995
(paper ed.), 232pp. 8. Elwell, Walter A. (Ed.). Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids , MI , 1984,
pp. 218-221. 9. Halff, Charles. The Truth About Christmas. The
Christian-Jew Foundation, San Antonio , TX , 13 pp. 10. Halff, Charles.
"Is Christmas a Jewish Holiday ?" Message Of The Christian
Jew. November-December 1993, pp. cover, 1,2 & 7. 11. Helgerson,
John C. Considering the Christmas Issue. The Church of the Open
Bible, Burlington , MA , 12/31/90 , 12 pp. 12. Hislop, Alexander. The
Two Babylons: Or The Papal Worship. Loizeaux Bros., Neptune , NJ ,
1959:Second Edition, 330 pp. 13. Kohler, John. Our Baptist Heritage. Heritage
Baptist Church , Salem , IN , Vol. 2, No. 3, 11/92, 8 pp. 14. McCurry,
Robert. The God Man Has Made. Heritage Press, Sharpsburg , GA ,
8pp. 15. Pink, A.W. Xmas . Chapel Library, Venice , FL , 6 pp.
16. Schneider, Michael. Is Christmas Christian? Chapel Library,
Venice , FL , 15 pp. 17. Spurlin, Ed. Where Is The Christ In
Christmas. Voice in the Wilderness, Milford , NH , 11/92, 8pp. 18.
Spurgeon, C.H. "Joy Born At Bethlehem ," A Sermon: Delivered
on Lord's Day Morning, December 24th, 1871 . Metropolitan Tabernacle
Pulpit, pp. 697-698. 19. Unknown. My Lord Has Not Told Me To Do
It: The Christian and "Christmas. " Chapel Library,
Venice , FL , 4 pp. 20. Unknown. 10 Reasons Why Christmas Is
Unscriptural. Chapel Library, Venice , FL , 8 pp. 21. (Vine, W.E.),
Gospel Tract Publications. The Collected Writings of W.E. Vine,
Volume 5. Glasgow , Scotland , 1986, pp. 436-439. 22. Willcock,
Shaun. The Pagan Festivals of Christmas and Easter. Bible Based
Ministries, Pietermaritzburg , South Africa , 1992, 76 pp. 23. Wilson,
Greg. Let's Keep Christ Out of Xmas. Landmark Independent Baptist
Church, Homestead, FL, 4 pp. style="font-size: 13.5pt;
font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Biblical Discernment
Ministries style="font-size: 13.5pt; font-family: "Comic
Sans MS";">- Revised 1/97 ________________________________________________
style="font-size: 24pt; font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">Should A Christian Celebrate Christmas?
style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">Bible
style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">
style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">References
style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: "Comic Sans
MS";">
I.
C. 3. 1 Th 1:8-10; 5:22 - The Lord's message rang out from you
not only in Macedonia and Achaia-your faith in God has become known
everywhere. Therefore, we do not need to say any-thing about it, for
they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how
you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to
wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead-Jesus, who
rescues us from the coming wrath. … Avoid every kind of evil.
I.
D.
1. Heb 9:12, 24-26 - He did not enter by means of the blood of
goats and calves; but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His
own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. … For Christ did not
enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He
entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did
He enter heaven to offer Himself again and again, the way the high
priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his
own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation
of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the
ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Heb 10:10,12,14
- And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of
the body of Jesus Christ once for all. … But when this Priest had
offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right
hand of God. … because by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever
those who are being made holy. I. D. 2. Exo 20:4-5a; 32:1-5, 9-10a -
"You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of any-thing
in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You
shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am
a jealous God …" When the people saw that Moses was so long in
coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said,
"Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses
who brought us up out of Egypt , we don't know what has happened to
him." Aaron answered them, "Take off the gold earrings that
your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to
me." So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to
Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the
shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, "These
are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt ." When
Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced,
"Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD." … "I
have seen these people," the LORD said to Moses, "and they are
a stiff-necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn
against them and that I may destroy them." II. A. 2 Chr 33:15-17
- He got rid of the foreign gods and removed the image from the
temple of the LORD, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple
hill and in Jerusalem ; and he threw them out of the city. Then He
restored the altar of the LORD and sacrificed fellowship offerings and
thank offerings on it, and told Judah to serve the LORD, the God of
Israel. The people, however, continued to sacrifice at the high places,
but only to the LORD their God. II. B. Deu 12:29-32 - The LORD
your God will cut off before you the nations you are about to in-vade
and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their
land, and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to
be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, say-ing, "How do these
nations serve their gods? We will do the same." You must not
worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their
gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates. They even
burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.
See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from
it. II. C. Lev 10:1,2 - Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu took their
censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered
unauthorized fire before the LORD, contrary to his command. So fire came
out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died
before the LORD. II. D. 1 Sam 15:1-3, 7-9, 21-23 - Samuel said to
Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over His
people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD. This is what
the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did
to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt . Now go,
attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to
them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and
infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.'" … Then Saul
attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, to the east of
Egypt . He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he
totally destroyed with the sword. But Saul and the army spared Agag and
the best of the sheep and cattle,the fat calves and lambs-everything
that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy com-pletely, but
everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed. … The
soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was
devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at
Gilgal." But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt
offerings and sacrifice as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To
obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of
rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like
the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he
has rejected you as king." II. E. 2 Sam 6:2-7 - He and all
his men set out from Baalah of Judah to bring up from there the ark of
God, which is called by the Name, the name of the LORD Almighty, who is
enthroned between the cherubim that are on the ark. They set the ark of
God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was
on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart
with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it. David
and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might
before the LORD, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, sistrums
and cymbals. When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah
reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled.
The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act;
therefore God struck him down and he died there beside the ark of God. II.
F. 1 Ki 12:26 -33 - Jeroboam thought to himself, "The kingdom
will now likely revert to the house of David. If these people go up to
offer sacrifices at the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem , they will
again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah . They
will kill me and return to King Rehoboam." After seeking advice,
the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, "It is too
much for you to go up to Jerusalem . Here are your gods, O Israel , who
brought you up out of Egypt ." One he set up in Bethel , and the
other in Dan. And this thing became a sin;the people went even as far as
Dan to worship the one there. Jeroboam built shrines on high places and
appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not
Levites. He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth
month, like the festival held in Judah , and offered sacrifi-ces on the
altar. This he did in Bethel , sacrificing to the calves he had made.
And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made.
On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing,
he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel . So he
instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to
make offerings. III. (General Applications) 1 Sam 16:7 - But the
LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height,
for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks
at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the
heart." 1 John 3:15 - Anyone who hates his brother is a
murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him. Mat
15:19 - For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery,
sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. IV. A. (& II.
G.) Rom 14:1-13 - Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing
judgment on disputable matters [non-essential/nonmoral issues]. One
man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith
is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look
down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must
not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to
judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And
he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One man considers
one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike.
Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one
day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord,
for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and
gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of
us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we
die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the
Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that He
might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you
judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will
all stand before God's judgment seat. It is written: "'As surely as
I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every tongue
will confess to God.'" So then, each of us will give an account of
himself to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another.
Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in
your brother's way. IV. B. (& II. G.) 1 Cor 8:4-13 - So then,
about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing
at all in the world and that there is no God but One. For even if there
are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are
many "gods" and many "lords"), yet for us there is
but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live;
and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came
and through whom we live. But not everyone knows this. Some people are
still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food they think of
it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is
weak, it is defiled. But food does not bring us near to God; we are no
worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do. Be careful, however,
that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to
the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this
knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what
has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ
died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers
in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.
Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will
never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall. 1 Cor
10:14, 18-21 - Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. …
Consider the people of Israel : Do not those who eat the sacrifices
participate in the altar? Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an
idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of
pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be
participants with demons. One cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the
cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord's table and
the table of demons. 2 Cor 6:14 -7:1 - Do not be yoked together
with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in
common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is
there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common
with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Comic Sans MS";
color: blue;"> > and
> idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
"I will live with them and walk among them, and I
> will be their God, and they will be My people."
"Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord.
> Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." "I will
be a Father to you, and you will be My sons and daughters,
> says the Lord Almighty." Since we have these promises, dear
friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that
> contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence
for God.
IV. C. Gal 4:9,10 >- But now that you know God-or rather are
known by God-how is it that you are turning back to those
> weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them
all over again? You are observing special days
> and months and seasons and years!
Col 2:16,17 >- Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what
you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival,
> a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the
things that were to come; the reality, however,
> is found in Christ.
IV. D. James 4:11 >- Brothers, do not slander one another.
Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks
> against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not
keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.
V. A. 1 Th 5:19-22 >- Do not put out [quench] the Spirit's
fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything.
> Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.
Rom 14:23 >- But the man who has doubts is condemned if he
eats, because his eating is not from faith; and
> everything that does not come from faith is sin.
V. D. 2. John 4:24 >- God is spirit, and His worshipers must
worship in spirit and in truth.
|
