QUESTIONS ABOUT CHRISTMAS SEASON & CELEBRATION ANSWERED.
SHOULD CHRISTIANS CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS?
For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. Jeremiah 10:2-3
Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen...
For the customs of the people are vain...
Jeremiah 10:2-3
Christmas is a pagan holiday. Its roots come from occult satanic witchcraft practices like the Saturnalia festival of the Romans. The christmas tree has its origins also in the pagan yule tree. The ornaments represented the spirits of the dead and pagan gods.
There are thousands of articles on the web explaining the numerous pagan roots of christmas. Research on this. For now, mine is to look at questions that arise about christmas and answer them from a biblical perspective.
I did such an article last year and a certain pastor convicted and judged by the Holy Spirit, attacked me in the comment section. After attacking me, I gave him scriptures that show nowhere are Christians to celebrate Christmas. On seeing that he lacked credible ideas on his argument, he threw in the "touch not the anointed" card on me in my inbox. I say to him not to touch me either, because I'm anointed of the Lord and I've seen God fight for me because I give myself unto prayer. I promote holiness and righteousness in my page and blog. If he's failed in his calling to promote holiness and righteousness, he should go and deal with God not me.
I respect men and women of God who genuinely labour day and night for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Though I know such are few, I know they're there.
Jesus was not born on this date of the year neither did He leave precise instructions for us as Christians to celebrate Christmas. The Apostles of Jesus in the early church did not celebrate Christmas and if it was such an important celebration as we make it to be, it would have been documented within the scriptures as something of great importance to be celebrated. Jesus only instructed us to celebrate the Passover in remembrance of Him not to celebrate him as a baby. His finished work on the cross and His New Covenant with us is of much importance.
And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
Luke 22:19, 1 Corinthians 11:25
In the church today, christmas has been sensetionalised and it seduced many into vanity. It boggles my mind that they even put a fully decked christmas tree on the pulpit. It grieves me that pastors do not call it out and condemn it to their congregations. As I always say anyway, many pastors are wary about losing their congregats therefore a lot of truth is always swept under the carpet so as to keep people coming and to keep the money flowing. If a pastor doesn't know things like pagan holidays perpetuated to be Christian, it's really sad because it questions his relationship with God. Does the pastor really hear God? And if he does, why doesn't he preach the truth?
In all my life only one pastor ever stood up to condemn Christmas. He asked the church to seek God and to increase in prayers during the holiday season since people have lots of free time in this festive season. I applaud him for this confidence and may God bless him for refusing to be conformed to the standards of this world.
◆What about the charity work in this festive season? It's for a good cause.
Charity work shouldn't be on Christmas only. Charity work should be of importance from January to December. It's hypocritical to visit the poor and the sick only in December and forget about them the rest of the year. Charity work is work! It's not supposed to only make you to feel good. Charity work is keeping track of the people you've helped, and whenever you can, complementing your giving with preaching the word of God too. The people you're "helping" know that you don't really care if you forget about them the rest of the year. Go visit them in mid January too, when there are no festivities going on and when there's no "good cheer" in the air. See how hard it is to put together a cheerful group of people to accompany you mid January to visit the poor.
Give to the poor on Christmas, that is okay. Infact, it will be good to also sacrifice the money you would have used to throw parties. Go and prepare food for the hungry. Sell your vain decorations and the abominable christmas tree (it is a satanic phallic symbol) and use the money to give to the poor.
◆What about meeting with extended family and engaging in the festivities?
The question is, is it necessary even? Especially when you know that the meetings are just vain family practices that add no value in your life. If meeting with a loved one is only possible during this season, it's okay to meet with them and if you know that your purpose is not the festivities, then your conscience will be clear.
One of the true tests of maturity and true discipleship is when family doesn't come between you and your walk of salvation. "What about my family?" is not a question that a mature Christian would ask. Many people in the bible had to go against family to walk with God. I have Muslim relatives in my extended family and at no point would they even consider forfeiting their faith to "fit" into our Christian beliefs. It's always the wishy washy Christians who feel that they have to compromise their faith to fit into other people's activities and beliefs. Soon you will see that it's not God's will that you attend such things in the first place. You're a Christian, you should live a life of sanctification (separation) even if you will seem weird to other people, including your family.
This is why the bible describes us Christians as peculiar, meaning odd, in the eyes of the people of this world. Of course do not be rude and have a holier than thou attitude towards others. Be gentle and kind, but also be firm, in describing your faith to your family and friends. As a Christian, family should not come between your relationship with God. If you find it difficult to separate yourself from ungodly things that your family does, do deliverance in breaking ungodly soul ties that you have with your family. A soul tie is when your soul (mind, will and emotions) are tied to someone or something and it's difficult to break away from them. It is a spiritual matter. Only the blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Ghost can break ungodly soul ties.
The Holy Ghost will show you how to live a sanctified (separated for holiness) life, even apart from your family. Jesus said His gospel came to bring a spiritual sword which because of their faith, His followers will have to separate even from their families
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Matthew 10:34-37
◆What about my children? How will I tell them that there's no Christmas this year considering they've always had it every year?
I've learnt something in parenting in my 6 years of being a parent. A child puts importance to what YOU as a parent teach them to put importance to.
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6
If you make them think christmas, birthdays, expensive holidays and outings, expensive clothes and toys are important, they will make them important and become vain about it. They will fuss, cry become depressed and even rude when they don't have the things that you told them were "important". Their esteem will come from the things of this world instead of coming from what God placed in them and who He created them to be. Where your heart is, there your treasure is, Matthew 6:21.
We do not celebrate birthdays with my son. I can buy him a cake any time of the year because it's just a cake, no happy birthday messages. I appreciate him by taking him out on a trip or to his favourite restaurant. I told him birthdays are not important (they have pagan roots too) and that I love him every single day and not only one day of the year is special. Surprisingly he's beginning to understand. He appreciates things genuinely without vanity. I really admire his simplicity.
If you feel that you are losing something on christmas day, your children will equally feel the same. If you make them think christmas is this huge important thing in their life, they will feel that way. If you keep feeling that you're unfortunate for not going on expensive holidays or buying many gifts, you have an esteem problem that needs deliverance. Your children will begin to be vain and tie value to material things to make them feel better. Your authority is above everyone else's in your child's life. They know they've got something good when you make your home a happy, peaceful place all year round. Not just segregating some special days whereby your children feel entitled to have certain things because you trained them that way.
Granted, it is difficult to follow Godliness in this world when almost everyone around us is following vain traditions, but this is something that you should bring to God in prayer. Every single Christian faces this battle because the word of God says that we're not of this world. That is why we are told to carry our crosses daily and follow Christ. This means that as long as we are in this world we face situations daily and we have to remind ourselves that we belong to God and we should bear our Christianity with perseverance.
And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. Luke 9:23
And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.
Matthew 10:38
Pray for your children to understand what you teach them. Even if they are sad, it will just be for a moment. Fill your home with happy times where values that last are esteemed. Values like good behaviour, Godly morals, bible study etc. Soon God will even elevate your children among their peers because they follow God's commands and separate themselves from the standards of this world. Again, it is why the bible describes us Christians as a peculiar people, meaning odd in the eyes of the people of this world.
In these last days, it gets more difficult to raise a child, Matthew 24:19. There are so many evils that we will have to warn our children about and tell them to separate themselves from. Train them from when they are little how to be sanctified, it will be very beneficial to them in the future.
◆What do I gain in not celebrating christmas and other pagan holidays?
Ask God this question.
Study the scriptures as to why God always commanded His people to separate themselves from the practices of this world. It had always been of importance to God towards the Israelites. It is still important to God that we do not be conformed to the standards of this world but to have our minds transformed and renewed that we may prove what is good and acceptable, and perfect will of God.
We sanctify ourselves (separate for holiness) from the practices of this world, not to become rich, not for popularity, not for our selfish fleshly desires. We sanctify ourselves to gain Christ and to receive more measure of the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Philippians 3:8.
We gain wisdom, knowledge and understanding that God graciously grants us with when we sanctify ourselves. We grow and mature spiritually when we begin to die to flesh and to the things of this world. The things of this world and their fashion thereof passes away, 1 Corinthians 7:31.
We sanctify ourselves to have more power in the spirit and grow in our spiritual gifts. For example, you will not be like an ordinary minister of deliverance when you sanctify yourself, the demons will see your sanctification and the blood of Jesus upon you. Daniel and his three friends sanctified themselves from the food and ways of the Babylonians and God elevated them to immeasurable levels in the king's service.
We sanctify ourselves to seek God earnestly.
We sanctify ourselves to chasten ourselves and to hear God more clearly. We sanctify ourselves to fast and yield powerful results. The benefits of sanctification go on and on and they are documented from Genesis to Revelations in the encounters of people in the Bible.
And if you want to hear about riches and wealth, Job the richest man of the east, lived a life of sanctification. Job 1:5 KJV.
◆Is it possible really to sanctify (separate for holy purposes) ourselves from every single thing that is ungodly in this world?
Prophets like Elijah, Elisha, John the Baptist, Jeremiah, lived lives of total sanctification. That was their calling and their choice to heed to the calling. They were totally separated from people and lived in secluded places so that they could seek God undistructed. They chose singlehood, the clothes they wore (animal skin) and the food they ate (locusts, honey, food provided completely by God eg ravens bringing food to Elijah) made them very sanctified. This is why they operated with great power and could command even physical elements like water, air, fire and the earth. They needed to operate like this and it was their calling but they also CHOSE to live like that too. They knew the benefits of sanctification.
So what about the rest of Christians who are not mighty prophets of God? And putting it to mind that already much of things we are in contact with everyday are contaminated by paganism and satanism.
(By the way many are mighty prophets of God but they do not know and are not operating in their unction because they do not hear God)
The Bible still strongly calls for sanctification for "regular" Christians. The way we dress, the way we carry ourselves, who we associate with. The New Testament has many chapters and verses that tell us how to sanctify ourselves in the things of this world.
It is a daily battle to separate ourselves because of the way the world is structured today. It is a battle and a cross Christians face and bear daily. Your true rest from this flesh will come when you die in the Lord or when you get raptured during the days of tribulation. If you think it's difficult now to live in this world, pray that you're not caught up in the tribulation days because during that time, for a Christian to even exist will be a crime. Christianity will be a criminal offence and punishable by death and many will go into hiding in caves and forests. Matthew 24. No true Christian at that time will be thinking of holding on to worldly things, let alone the way we are now fighting and justifying to keep worldly things close to us.
We are able to live in sanctification by following Paul's instructions of not being engrossed and taken by the things of this world.
For example, mobile phones are very worldly gadgets and every time new inventions and apps are added to them to ensure people are gripped by them, addicted to them and drawn away from God. People have had to get deliverance from phone or social media addiction. On the contrary, you need this same phone to get emails, run businesses, keep in touch with your loved ones etc. This calls for Paul's rule:
And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away. 1 Corinthians 7:31
This means if we have to use the things of this world, we should not be engrossed by them, addicted, attached, and dependent on them. It is not necessary to even make full use of them. It is not necessary for example to use all the apps in your phone just because they are there or they are trendy.
That is sanctification. Do not seek to gratify this flesh. If you know that you do not need certain worldly things, cut them off. This is sanctification. That is why Paul said that the things he has lost or had to forfeit are as dung; they are worthless to him. Gaining Christ through sanctification is of far much worth than the things of this earth.
Whatever you choose, you get. So you will not be fooling anyone but yourself if you refuse to sanctify yourself in whatever area God leads you. It is wise to choose Sanctification and reap the power of the Holy Spirit in your life. If you choose this world and to become a friend of this world, you are not a true child of God.
This is something that you have to regularly bring to God in prayer. It has been difficult for me to let certain worldly things go and sometimes I've had to do deliverance to get full freedom. But remember Daniel was called the beloved of God because of his love for God and how he would readily sanctify himself to gain God.
