Miles McNair

Let me just say I love Christmas music, around Christmas time that is, and I love the classics. It has to be crooners and most assuredly it is not Mariah Carey. I enjoy the trees, lights and the traditions. I’m a sucker for nostalgia. But most importantly, and I know you can probably guess what I’m going to say, we are able to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. However, we often celebrate the birth of the savior just like we celebrate everything else that is part of the season. We love singing old Christmas hymns, we enjoy lighting the candles at Christmas Eve service, and we are suckers for a good message on the little baby Jesus being born in a manger surrounded by all the farm animals.

My question to us is this: When we approach our worship this time of year do we approach it in a manner that is rooted in nostalgia or in a way that is rooted in worship of God manifest in the flesh? It is easy to get carried away with all that the Christmas season brings — like I said I’m a sucker for nostalgia — but we must never forget that the reason for the season is Christ coming to redeem, and that took the death of the only son of God. So when we are enjoying the holidays let us do so in a manner that keeps in mind not only the birth but why Jesus was born. He is the king of kings who humbled himself, took on flesh and lived among men. When we celebrate Christmas we celebrate the coming salvation of man and all creation.

We like creation, we groan for that salvation and yearn for Advent, a second Advent, our blessed hope. As we celebrate the first coming, let us keep an eye towards the second, the final deliverance bought through the blood of Christ.

(Miles McNair is the connections pastor at New Life Church of Powell.)