Celebrate!

Christmas is a special time, most of us agree with that. There are a lot of different views about why it is special, how it is special. If you watch TV, you might think that we celebrate the fact that we have money, there is much we can buy, and we should buy a lot. Or, some think that we celebrate family, or even that we celebrate peace, love, and harmony. Some people do not believe that we are to celebrate Christmas at all, because it is not in the Bible, and we do not know when the actual birth date of Jesus is.
True, the Bible does not give the date of Jesus birth, and does not tell us we are to celebrate it by giving gifts and decorating our homes in lights. But, the story of the birth of Jesus sure shows a lot of celebrating.
Just look at these verses that are from events surrounding the birth of Jesus.

Luke 1:13-14
13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,

Luke 1:30-33
30 And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

Luke 1:41-42,44
41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry,"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 

Luke 1:46-48
46 And Mary said,
"My soul magnifies the Lord, 47  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.

Luke 1:67-69
67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
68 "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
 in the house of his servant David,

Luke 2:8-14
8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. 10 And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest,  and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

Luke 2:20
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Luke 2:27-32

27 And he (Simeon) came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29 "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,  according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31  that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32  a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel."

Luke 2:38
38 And coming up at that very hour she (Anna) began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

Matt 2:1-3,11-12
2 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." 

11 And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

So, as you go about our busyness this week, shopping, cooking, preparing, attending special programs, remember this truly is a time to celebrate. And, as you become frustrated by the commercialism, the indulgent spending of our society, the abuse of this season, still, remember that it truly is a time to celebrate.


We have reason to celebrate.
Don't stress about gifts, don't get sucked into overspending, don't be distracted by the advertising...but DO CELEBRATE! Jesus has come! That is reason to celebrate.