Joy Of Christmas

Christmas is just around the corner. The spirit of Christmas is everywhere!  Love, Peace, and Joy are strong words in the Christmas message, and the universal acceptance of the same has become much stronger, much more meaningful. What is the meaning of Christmas? Love, Peace, and Joy is a feeling of presence and pleasure caused by someone or something exceptionally glorious, great and good. Christmas is exceptionally glorious, great and good for it is about the miracle of the birth of a unique personality, a precious person, a priceless gift, a glorious message and the presence of God coming down to earth to be born in a manger.

Historically, Christmas commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ. Theologically, Christmas is the celebration of the incarnation of God in Jesus, the self-revelation of God to the world in human form for the reconciliation of the world. Traditionally Christmas a time of wonder and joy, of generosity and peace that brings family and friends together in celebration. However, the Paradox is that many are so preoccupied with the celebration that they forget the celebrant. But the Celebrant is more vital than the celebration because the Celebrant is the cause of the celebration. Jesus is the center of Christmas and He is the reason for the season.

This is why “Joy to the World” is a favorite carol of many and one of the best known of all the Christmas songs. The hymn is really an Old Testament prophetical Psalm mixed with New Testament anticipation which probably describes Christ’s second coming better than his first. Still, the note of joy and the images of the Lord coming and every heart preparing him room all combined to make this one of the best-loved Christmas carols of all time.

At the perfect time in history, Jesus was born for the purpose of dying for our sins. He lived a sinless life and sacrificed Himself so that we might believe in Him and live eternally. This really is the greatest good news! Jesus Christ is the greatest gift God has given to mankind because the gospel message is the greatest treasure God has given the world. The message is loud and clear No matter who,  you are, what you’ve done or what kind of past you had – there’s always hope – if you open up your heart and receive the greatest gift of all. As the song says:

Joy to the world, the Lord has come

Let earth receive her King

Let every heart prepare Him room

And heaven and nature sing…

Christmas does not offer to rejoice to a selected few, and it cries out “joy to the world!”Where was Lord Jesus before coming to earth? Bible says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men; And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ( John 1:1-3,14)

Through the centuries before Christ, the prophets predicted the promised Messiah would come –According to God’s preordained plan, when the perfect religious, cultural, and political conditions were in place; Jesus Christ left the Father’s presence and entered this world to become one of us. Isaiah 7:14 states: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel, means “God with us.” Setting aside religious assumptions, what do historians really know about the “Jesus Story?” What does history tell us about Jesus of Nazareth?

The story begins in the little town of Bethlehem in Israel over 2,000 years ago, a baby was born whose life was destined to affect countless millions. Even for skeptics, the historical influence of Jesus of Nazareth is the result of arguably the most influential life ever lived. Jesus was raised in humble Jewish surroundings in Roman-controlled Judea and Galilee, he never traveled more than 300 miles from his birthplace, he had a small group of simple followers, and he was killed for violating the religious laws of his own people. He never received political power, he never raised an army, and he never conquered territory. By historical standards, Jesus didn’t cut it as an influential figure in political, economic, or military power. So, why the powerful influence — even today? Why does about a third of the world call themselves followers of Christ about 2,000 years later?

There must be something more to the story surrounding the historical influence of Jesus…The birth of Jesus was not an ordinary birth! Centuries before his birth in Bethlehem, the Jews's prophets predicted his coming.  The Angel Gabriel announced His arrival. In fact, God had to arrange a welcome for Himself, and legions of angels circled the skies and heralded His birth. The brightest star marked His presence.  The Wise men came to worship Him. The Angelic host sang a chorus for Him.  Gospel writers say “Out in the fields, an angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds who were tending their flocks of sheep by night. The angel announced that the Savior had been born in the town of David. Suddenly a great host of heavenly beings appeared with the angels and began singing praises to God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

After that, the Shepherds came to honor Him.  The Jews Priests knew from the Scripture that He was coming. Simeon, the just and wise man in the Jerusalem temple took Jesus in his arms and blessed God and said “Lord….my eyes have seen your salvation…which you have prepared before the face of all people. Rulers like Herod the king learned of His birth and became fearful and afraid. Anger filled their hearts. The murder was conspired and executed. Fearful of losing their power, they sought his death by every possible means. Jerusalem was troubled, Demons trembled and all hell was allied against Him. But God was watching and He lived in spite of all. The remarkable prophecies, occurrences, and subsequent proceedings were the evidence that Jesus Christ is the most unique personality ever lived in all history.

Napoleon Bonaparte said "I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every other person in the world, there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius upon force. Jesus Christ founded His Empire on love, and at this hour millions of men would die for Him." Throughout history, the influence Jesus had on the lives of people has never been surpassed. No other great leader has inspired so many positive changes in the lives of his followers. Jesus is the central figure of all history and was the greatest missionary of all time.

In fact, He left heaven and His exalted position there to come down to earth on the greatest mission trip of all time. His mission was to redeem the earth and save mankind from the fatal results of Adams fall. He stayed long enough to finish the work of redemption. His coming into the world was not the beginning of Jesus. He was the word that was in the beginning. He came from eternity. He always was and is eternal God. He came from glory, the glory that was before the world ever was (John 17:5). He temporarily laid aside His glory and took a body, through the Virgin Mary, to live in long enough to die for the sins of the world. “The Infinite became an infant”

 The question, “Who is Jesus?” obviously still matters. Against all odds, the historical influence of Jesus continues to expand throughout the world. He lived a traditional Jewish life in Nazareth, working with his father as a tradesman for thirty years. During this period, all of Israel was under Roman control. When Jesus was about 30-years-old, he started his public ministry around the Sea of Galilee. He was known for powerful teaching and a series of recorded miracles. Over the next three-plus years, his reputation spread throughout the region, although he tried to keep a low profile. The Roman rulers of the Jewish provinces and the religious leaders of the Jewish people kept an eye on him. For some reason, Jesus became more and more of a perceived threat to the “organized religion” of the day. As a result, the Jewish leaders asked the Roman leaders – who were in control at the time — to execute him. There were official trials, but the Romans determined that Jesus was innocent of any crime against Rome. The religious leaders persisted with political arguments and ultimately persuaded Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of the area, to approve the execution.

Jesus was mocked, tortured, and hung on a wooden cross just outside Jerusalem. His simple followers scattered. Three hours later, he was dead. It would seem that the historical account of Jesus – and any long-lasting historical influence – should end right there… with his death... But, it didn’t. We know that something happened – something caused his scattered followers to reconnect – reengage — spread the word about Jesus again. Within a couple of months, there were thousands in and around Jerusalem that became his disciples. Within a couple of centuries, there were hundreds of thousands in the Mediterranean region that called themselves “Christians” – or followers of Jesus Christ. In 325 AD, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Emperor Constantine. Within 500 years, Greek temples to pagan gods were being converted to Christian churches all over the Roman world. What could have happened to cause such a powerful movement in the name of one simple man?

 We returned to the meaning of Christmas. For many, it will be a time of celebration, presents and family get-togethers. For believers, 2 Corinthians 9:15 Paul describes “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift” God gave us when He sent His Son into the world, it should be a time of intense gratitude, praise, and worship. This verse is about giving thanks to God for His gifts to us.  It begins with Thanksgiving and ends with Christmas “His unspeakable gift”.  What kind of gift would it have to call Jesus "indescribable?" I think there are reasons. The Reason is the Nature of the Gift Itself. First of all, I believe that Paul calls Jesus "indescribable" because it is the gift of God’s Son for our salvation. How do you describe a baby born of a virgin? How do you describe God in flesh, walking upon our earth & reaching out to the hurting masses of humanity(Philippians 2:6-7 ) who being in very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped but made himself nothing taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. If we really understand and appreciate the indescribable gift God gives us, our lives will be saturated with gratitude. Jesus Christ, the Gift beyond description

No words can compare how much. He offered everything just to make us free from the bondage of sin. Jesus Christ, the Gift beyond Description. The gift is indescribable not only because of who Jesus is but also because of what He has done. Jesus came to provide salvation for us by his sacrifice on the cross, and we cannot adequately describe that either. God has given us terms by which to understand it. We have words like, sacrifice, atonement, propitiation, and reconciliation. The nature and work of Jesus Christ are beyond our understanding, therefore, also beyond our words of description.

Paul needed a word to describe the great riches that have been given to us in Jesus, but he did not possess a suitable word in his entire vocabulary. So, Paul invented a word. The word Paul uses means “indescribable”. When Paul speaks of the gift God gave us when He gave His Son, he says “Jesus is a gift so good, so great, so wonderful that He really can’t be described.” The true meaning of Christmas is God came to be with us in a way that totally identified Himself with us, as human beings. Jesus' birth was the incarnation of God on earth, opening the door to new hope and eternal life. Nobody has changed the world the way Jesus has. He was not a man who became God, which is impossible, but God who became a man. So why did Jesus come to earth as God in human form? C. S. Lewis said it well: "The Son of God became a man that men might become sons of God." God became a man so that you might become God's child. Now that is true Christmas and something worth celebrating.

  Right at the heart of Christmas laid the central purpose of God - which made all the difference in the world. Christmas stands for the presence of God with us (Immanuel) to meet the pressures of life as they come to us day by day. When our hopes crush, & dreams collapse, the Grace and Presence of Jesus is designed to relieve and to bring hope to us. And the result is life everlasting, peace instead of restlessness, acceptance rather than guilt, love in place of lust or hate, the power to replace weakness, joy for mourning, beauty for ashes, hope for despair, courage in place of cowardice, and cleansing from all dirt and filth of spirit. Jesus said Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father, the one in the heavens” (Matt. 6:16).

 Christmas is a time for hope, peace, and reconciliation. In John gospel 3:16, a Christmas message and it has something to do with the manifestation of the greatest love and the greatest gift the world ever has seen. God is giving his only Son to the world. Christmas becomes more meaningful when we give than when we expect to receive. Remember, It is the Lord’s birthday we are celebrating. The true spirit of Christmas is Christ-spirit must take its birth within our hearts. That is the real Christmas when we accept Christ as our personal savior and Lord and dedication to serving those in need, to giving hope to those in despair, and to spreading Love, peace, joy, and message of hope in the world.  Jesus is the light of the world and he is our living, breathing a sign of the immeasurable love that God has had for all of us from the very beginning.  It’s a love that never stops shining. Let Jesus Christ be the center of your Christmas celebration.