There’s a
madness spreading across the world breeding antipathy and hostility to the
Christian faith. This plague is infecting countries and community with a long
history of Christianity. Civic and Church leaders are losing moral strength as
they are confronted by an influx of people with this antichrist fever. Not
wanting to offend such people, those in Government make excuses for expressing
sympathy by undermining their Christian Heritage. As the Christmas season draws
near this well-meaning empathy is actually desecrating the name of Christ. Some areas of Germany are calling the
Christmas season ‘Festival of Lights.’ In Australia Christmas Nativity scenes in
some communities are banned. It is politically incorrect to wish someone “Merry
Christmas”. A Muslim cleric said to be
part of the Christmas celebration and wishing another “Merry Christmas” was
worse than murder.
Some well-meaning and ‘nice’
Christians are going along with this nonsense. Such ‘jellyfish’ believers are
in actual fact betraying the Faith. We
may debate the date but not the fact of the birth of Jesus. Our authority for
this event and who it reveals are *Prophetic Scriptures *Eye witness accounts
in the Gospels. *The Church, which,
without the other two and the historical facts of Christ’s birth, life and
resurrection, wouldn’t exist. We also have to remember the apostles and many
first century believers in Christ paid for their faith with their blood. Our response, as Christians should be similar to those over the centuries who called Jesus Lord, ‘No Compromise.’
Why is
Christmas so offensive? Depending upon the belief of the person the celebration
of the birth of Christ upsets their tolerance. Atheists are rankled by anything
which points to the creator, redeemer God. Muslims deny the claims of Jesus,
especially about Him being the Son of God. Jews reject Jesus as their promised
Messiah. In the final analysis all this angst is directed to the Church and the
Bible. The books of the Bible have one major theme – Jesus! In the 39 books of
the Old Testament He is the promised someone who is coming. In the four
Gospels, Jesus is the promised someone who has come. In the twenty-three other
books of the New Testament Jesus is the promised someone who is coming again.
Every
Christmas and every Easter and Passover the non-Christian belief system is
given a pounding. This happens at Christmas through church services, greeting
cards, nativity scenes, music and the church providing Christmas cheer to the
hungry and destitute. Handel’s marvellous music of the ‘Messiah’ must disturb
those who reject the coming of Jesus to be the Saviour of the World. This would
be especially true of militant Islam which disallows music in their culture.
Who can blame them! They have nothing to sing about, either to their god, his
interest in them, or about their hope of being accepted by him!
It is
time for Christians to stand their ground. It is time to be gracious in the
face of being charged as bigots. It is time to challenge political correctness
when it tries to silence our voice from speaking the truth of God’s Word. It is
time to pay the price for teaching the message of grace, mercy, judgement and
forgiveness found in Jesus Christ. It is time to pray for those who are intent
upon nullifying, undermining and destroying Christ and His Church. It is time
to cancel out compromise.
May the
Lord bless you this Christmas! As you celebrate the birth of the Son of God may
He fill your heart with wonder! In wishing others, friend, family or foe,
“Merry Christmas” let it be our expression of faith in the Christmas event.
©Ray
Hawkins November16th 2015.
If anyone
is interested in finding out more of what the bible says on Christmas get
‘Bethlehem’s Warrior Baby’ by Ray Hawkins. Available in Christian bookshops and
also as an Ebook from Amazon and Goodreads. RRP $10:00.
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