Some Christmas Music Lies
There are many things that bring comfort during the Christmas season: family gatherings, Christmas parties, shopping, gift-giving and gift-getting, special foods, Christmas carols, church services, and holiday cheerfulness. All of these are good gifts. They are wrapped in cherished memories, and year after year we often try to recreate them—hoping to feel the way we once felt at Christmastime.
But the truth is, things are different now. Many of the people who made the holidays special are gone. The places we once called home may be far away. The golden memories of Christmas past are nearly impossible to reproduce, and when we try, we often come up disappointed. Instead of feeling joyful, we feel let down. We begin to sympathize with the old “bah, humbug” attitude and wonder why we can’t seem to feel the magic of Christmas anymore.
The Christmas doldrums many of us experience come from trying to recapture things that are beyond our grasp. Scripture reminds us that “you do not know what tomorrow will bring” (James 4:14), and that even the best moments of life are fleeting. Memories are a gift—but they were never meant to be our source of hope.
In his song “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” Andy Williams recalls nearly all the best Christmas memories:
With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings - When friends come to call. It’s the hap-happiest season of all!
It’s a snappy tune—but it misses the point of Christmas.
Andy leads us to believe that if we just host enough parties, toast enough marshmallows, and sing enough songs in the snow, the real spirit of Christmas will come flooding back. Don’t hold your breath. Nostalgia is a poor substitute for joy. Scripture tells us, “Hope that is seen is not hope” (Romans 8:24), and hope that rests on circumstances will always disappoint.
Christmas really is the hap-happiest season of all. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year—but it has absolutely nothing to do with mistletoe, glowing hearts, or even the nearness of loved ones. Christmas is wonderful because of the gift of God’s presence.
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (Matthew 1:23), which means, God with us.
Christmas celebrates the coming of Jesus, our Savior. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). Christmas is not about recreating a feeling; it is about receiving a Person. Christmas is God with us. Christmas is Jesus!
If the jolly holiday spirit eludes you, seek instead the real reason for the season—Christ Himself. And if you must dwell on “the glories of Christmases long, long ago,” go all the way back to the very first Christmas. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son” (John 3:16). Consider the love God showed you by sending His Son into this Scrooge-filled world so that you could belong to Him forever.
Reflect on this staggering truth: “Though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). God Almighty took on flesh, was born in Bethlehem, and lived—and died—for you.
The true wonder of Christmas is captured far more accurately in the words of “Mary, Did You Know?”
Mary, did you know That your baby boy Is the Lord of all creation? And the sleeping Child you’re holding Is the Great I Am!
Scripture affirms it plainly: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given… and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).
God’s gift to you is Jesus. He is with you. “I am with you always,” He promises, “to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). His presence is the best present of all time.
May the grace and peace of this holy season be yours.
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:2).
Pastor John
