WRideout
12-25-2019, 01:01 AM
I heard in interesting radio program the other day that caught my interest. It seems that in Turkey, which is mainly populated by Moslems, there is a tradition of Santa Claus that goes back to antiquity. It is well to remember that the original St. Nicholas was thought to come from Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey. In Turkey, Santa Claus is thin, not a rotund figure like ours; more a Father Christmas. Since they do not celebrate Christmas, Santa Claus comes to visit on the New Year. They even send cards to each other without the customary Merry Christmas, which say instead, Happy New Year. In our modern Western culture, I’m not sure we are entirely too far from that philosophy. A friend of mine who was raised in a Jewish home said that his family adopted the trappings of Christmas, put up a tree, and gave each other gifts. It was a very familiar ritual for him, and the only thing missing was the birth of the Messiah. Christmas music on the radio leans heavily toward Santas and sleighs, winter delights, and just plain romance. All of which is fun, but not too Christian.
You see, the first gift of Christmas was a child; the baby Jesus, who was born and grew in grace. God incarnate who came to us to hold and talk to, be close to and be instructed by. We poor humans can’t know too much about the nature of God. He is beyond our comprehension. In Genesis we read not only of God bringing the world into existence, but we also read of the fall of mankind, and our separation from the Creator. When sin entered the world, nature, which had been created good, was corrupted. Mankind could no longer walk peaceably in the garden with God. Unable to connect with the source of our lives, we struggled through the centuries to return to a right relationship with Him. It was only God’s action, in sending his son that brought us together, and gave us the right to be called, the children of God.
One of the names attributed to Christ is Immanuel, first given by the prophet Isaiah, which means God with us. The God, who created the entire universe, is more than we can grasp. Without Jesus, we have only a vengeful and punitive God. We must turn to the person of Jesus Christ, and in him we can know God. The great miracle is not that Christ died, but that he lived, and lives with us still.
Wayne
You see, the first gift of Christmas was a child; the baby Jesus, who was born and grew in grace. God incarnate who came to us to hold and talk to, be close to and be instructed by. We poor humans can’t know too much about the nature of God. He is beyond our comprehension. In Genesis we read not only of God bringing the world into existence, but we also read of the fall of mankind, and our separation from the Creator. When sin entered the world, nature, which had been created good, was corrupted. Mankind could no longer walk peaceably in the garden with God. Unable to connect with the source of our lives, we struggled through the centuries to return to a right relationship with Him. It was only God’s action, in sending his son that brought us together, and gave us the right to be called, the children of God.
One of the names attributed to Christ is Immanuel, first given by the prophet Isaiah, which means God with us. The God, who created the entire universe, is more than we can grasp. Without Jesus, we have only a vengeful and punitive God. We must turn to the person of Jesus Christ, and in him we can know God. The great miracle is not that Christ died, but that he lived, and lives with us still.
Wayne