Spiritual Reasons to Celebrate Christmas

Good morning, Happy Souls!

Bill Keller wrote a wonderful devotional today
that I highly recommend to you.  He has given
me permission to copy his e-mails, and I'm sure
he would be happy if you would share this with
people you know as well.

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL    MONDAY DECEMBER 5, 2005
( Luke 2:6,7 )

***CHRISTMAS PASSAGE:  "Therefore the Lord himself
will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child
and will give birth to a son, and will call him
Immanuel."  (Isaiah 7:14)

Why Christians should NOT celebrate Christmas.
Every year at this time, I get inundated with
emails that read like 40 page doctrinal
dissertations on why a Christian should NOT
celebrate Christmas.  They make very good arguments
about the pagan celebrations at this time of year,
the evils of the Christmas tree, lying to children
about Santa Claus, how Jesus was not born on December
25th, and many other reasons why a Christian should
not celebrate Christmas.  To those people I have only
one thing to say....BAH HUMBUG!

Please, don't send me emails why those who celebrate
Christmas are following the devil.  If you are led to
not celebrate the birth of our Lord and want to miss
that is up to you.  Sadly, your misguided legalism has
stolen your joy.

Listen, everyone understands that Jesus was not born
on December 25th, but according to most scholars,
sometime in September.  I have yet to meet anyone that
worshipped their Christmas tree, only decorated it.
If you are old enough to be able to read this, you are
old enough to know that there is no Santa Claus.  And
yes, there are many pagan celebrations that occur at
this time of the year, and the Bible does not have the
word Christmas in it. However, there is only ONE
REASON that we celebrate Christmas and that is to
celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Christians SHOULD celebrate the birth of Jesus!  It is
right and good that we take time each year to remember
that blessed event.  It was foretold by the prophets of
old.  It is a well documented historical event
chronicled in the Gospels and supported by the
historians of that day.  After His death and
resurrection, it is easily the GREATEST EVENT IN HUMAN
HISTORY!

Think about it.  God Himself, the Creator of the
heavens and earth, came to this earth as a mere man to
live with His creation.  He came as a baby, born of a
virgin in a humble manger in an obscure little town.
He would grow up to die on a cross as the perfect
sacrifice for the sins of all mankind.  Three days
after His death, God would raise Him from the dead as
a sign to this lost and unbelieving world that He was
exactly who He claimed to be...the SON OF GOD!  His
life would literally transform the lives of every
man, woman, and child for the rest of human history!!!

THAT is why we celebrate Christmas.  THAT is why as
Christians, we SHOULD celebrate Christmas!!!

I love you and care about you so much.  I realize
that people who say not to celebrate Christmas mean
well, and are trying to live their lives in a way
pleasing and acceptable to God.  Sadly, they are
missing the great joy of this time of year.  I know
they are well intentioned and many of the things
they point out about Christmas are true, but they
have missed the point of Christmas.  Christmas is
about only one thing, celebrating the birth of
Jesus.  It is one of those times of the year that
we gather with family and friends and share our
faith in Christ.  That alone is a great reason we
should be celebrating Christmas.

Christmas is also VERY BIBLICAL.  Luke chapter 2
gives us the account of His birth.  That was the
very first Christmas.  Of course Mary was there,
as was Joseph.  We also read about several shepherds
that God spoke to who were part of that first
Christmas.  Now, some 2,000 years later, we will set
aside time in the coming days to do what they did at
that first Christmas...to celebrate the birth of
Jesus!

I pray today that you will never forget what
Christmas is really about, and why we celebrate this
holiday.  Of course, anything that the world gets
involved with becomes perverted.  The world has taken
this sacred time of the year and turned it into a
time of commerce.  We must never allow ourselves to
get so caught up in the parties, the gifts, the food,
and all of the other things associated with the
Christmas season to forget what it is about....a time
to celebrate the birth of Jesus.  THAT is what
Christmas is really about, and THAT is why as
Christians, we SHOULD celebrate this wonderful event!!!


In his love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

***If I can help you in any way you can contact me
through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com

***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND
ETERNITY?  The fact is you will die one day.  At
that moment, you will either spend eternity with
the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness
forever separated from God your creator.  To know
for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to:
http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.html

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(C) Copyright 2005, Bill Keller Ministries.
All rights reserved

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May God bless you as you learn from this message!

Merry Christmas!!

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2005 Donald W. Mitchell