Many people think that the first gifts of Christmas are gold, frankincense and myrrh. May I suggest that they were not. The first gift of Christmas was the Christ-Child, himself. "For God so loved the world that He gave (when someone gives us something is it not a gift?) His only begotten Son that whoso should believe in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For Christ came not to condemn the world but that through him the world might be saved."
This sheds light on the gifts of the magi. Their gifts were not only gifts of honor but of gratitude...to the one who was given to us to save us.
That is the WHY of Christmas. We should not give gifts for any reason but out of gratitude for those in our lives we love and cherish.
You may ask..."What about the stranger".
God gave His Son because of His love for ALL of us...His children and of His desire that we return to Him. Therefore the commandment to love one another. In God's eyes and in the beginning there were no nationalities or races....just God's children. His commandment to love all people as we love ourselves answers who we should care about...everyone. When we see people in need we help...out of love for them as our brothers and sisters and out of gratitude for all that God has blessed us with.
Many people say they have obtained their wealth and good fortune on their own and that God had nothing to do with it. Really? God gives us health and strength to work, protection from harm, etc....if you don't think so get on your knees and tell God you don't need Him or recognize that He has done anything for you and see what becomes of all of your daily "blessings".
In celebrating Christmas we should be as the reformed Scrooge and give of ourselves and means freely to all in need. In this we are saying.."Thank you, God for everything and especially for the gift of your Son".
Do we get rid of Santa and all of the "Christmas legends or traditions", no. They can assist us...make the season more enjoyable and make it easier to teach children about giving.
I like the way the Christmas Season is celebrated in Holland...or the way it was when I lived there 35 years ago. "Santa (Sinter Klas) came on December 5th and gave goodies and toys. December 25th was set apart as a day to worship Christ and to be with friends and family. It made the gift giving fun....but made more sacred the day we celebrate Christ's birth.
However we celebrate may we do so out of love, honor and respect and treat one another as God would have us.
Merry Christmas.
