By Douglas V. Gibbs
It’s the end of a long, wonderful Christmas. The torn wrapping paper is now kindling in the wood stove. The tree lights are unplugged. My wife stretched, rose from the couch, and drifted off to bed. The dogs are busy with their new toys. The leftovers are in the fridge, and I’m finishing a bowl of fruit salad while catching up on a football game I missed earlier in the week.
Outside, the rain has finally eased after a day of showers and a morning mix of hail and snow. Our Bible study wrapped up a couple hours ago, and most of the gifts have already found their places around the house… except for my new watch, hats, mini‑golf set, and football card still sitting on my desk. We opened most of our presents on Christmas Eve with a turkey dinner, then saved the best three for this morning, followed by a ham lunch and a late snack as we played billiards in the game room. It was a full day, and we are happily exhausted.
Christmas is celebrated by more than two billion Christians around the world. And while the season has picked up its share of cultural add‑ons – trees, mistletoe, gift‑giving, feasting, and certain aspects of Santa Claus – the heart of Christmas remains a 2,000‑year‑old event: the birth of a Jewish child of the line of David in Bethlehem who would become a rabbi, a miracle worker, and ultimately the Savior who died on a Roman cross at Calvary.
The first followers of Jesus never believed they were creating a new religion. They were Jews who recognized Him as the long‑awaited Messiah foretold in what we now call the Old Testament. They rejected the accusation of blasphemy from the religious authorities and became the first Christians.
As the Gospel spread into Africa, the Middle East, and southeast Europe, believers came to understand that while Christianity shared its roots with Judaism, it was something distinct. The Messiah had not come as a warrior king, but as a humble child destined for the cross. The restoration of Israel would come, but not until His Second Coming.
Christians still honor Israel as God’s chosen people, yet believe they have been grafted into God’s family through the blood of Jesus. And they hold that the only way to the Father is through Christ, meaning that anyone who desires eternal life with The Father in Heaven must accept Him as the Messiah, which became the ultimate and most pure Lamb on The Cross.
That is the true meaning of Christmas: the celebration of the Savior’s arrival. God in human flesh. A Messiah born to die for the sins of the world. A gift, but one that must be received.
Some belief systems spread their message by the sword. But the true sword of the Christian faith is not violence, it is the Word of God. Ephesians 6:17, “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Then in John 1:14 the Bible states, “…the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us…” Jesus is The Word, and The Word is the Sword of the Spirit. While others advance their ideology through force (The Sword), Christians advance theirs through a Sword of Peace – the transforming power of Christ.
— Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
