This is my third December as your preacher.  Each year up until now, at this particular week of the year, I've brought my lessons centered on the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I've not done this as an honor to His birthday, but as an honor to Him.  It's OK to remember His birth, life, and death and resurrection on any day of the year (even if the world calls that day Christmas).

This year, the lessons do not center on the birth of our Lord.  Therefore, I've opted to make my "Christmas commentary" here.

In the Church we have knowledge that December 25 is an unlikely (yet not impossible) date for the birth of our Savior.  Furthermore, we have knowledge that there is no commandment in scripture that a special day be set aside to exclusively honor the birth of Christ.  Yet I believe that there is something of Christmas that we as Christians should embrace.

I guess that the thing that we find difficult at this time of the year is that so many lost souls are naming the name of Christ!  Some of the lost even dare to do good to honor Christ at this particular time of the year!  This makes us so uncomfortable that our response to "Merry Christmas" is often simply "It isn't really His birthday."  (If we don't say it, we at least think it)  There is a message for the Christian in the truth that so many honor Christ (though ignorantly) at this time of the year.  We sometimes think that God only loves or cares for the Christian.  While the Christian has a special relationship with God, He loves the whole world.  (Jn 3: 16)  He's not willing that any should perish.  (2 Pt 3: 9)  He wants all men to be saved.  (1 Tm 2: 4)  Also, as Christians we seem to find it easy enough to believe that God is working in our lives, and in His church.  We need to remember that he is working in the rest of the world as well.  (Mt 5: 45 cf.)

Brethren, I find it mind boggling that through religious error our God has managed to bring about and perpetuate a special day of the year when virtually everyone in the world names the name of Christ!  If that's not a big deal, why are the Atheists so upset about it?  Beloved brethren, if we find ourselves on the same side as the atheists, we're on the wrong side!  We have knowledge concerning the birth of Christ.  But let us not become "puffed up" with that knowledge.  (1 Cor 8: 1)  Our Father, who wants everyone to be saved, has brought about a day when even the lost are thinking about Christ.  When one of them says to us "Merry Christmas", we just have to say more than "It's not really His birthday."  How about "Wouldn't you like to know more about him?"  or  "Have you experienced His saving grace?"  It just seems a shame that at a time when God has brought so many souls so very close to Him, that we can't seem to lend ourselves to be instruments of His hands to bring at least some of those souls the rest of the way.

Maybe, if one of them says "Merry Christmas" and we can't think of anything else to say, we could simply say "Merry Christmas.  Isn't this a joyous time of the year?"  Who knows, maybe someone might just see our light shining and glorify our Father.  (Mt 5: 16)