Why Christmas?

With things that are familiar and such a part of our lives that we do them on autopilot, it's a good mental exercise to take a minute and remind ourselves what it's all about, or else we get to taking it for granted. We just had our annual reminder of the things we have to be thankful for, and now it's almost the climax of the Christmas season; a much bigger deal in terms of the hoopla most Americans devote to various events of partying, shopping, eating and gifting. All the more reason we have to be careful not to forget why this holiday came about to begin with.

Jesus came into our world in exactly the way God knew He needed to come, to fit the need of a problem between God and the human race. And only the right solution would address the particular problem that, according to the Bible, separates mankind from the relationship with God He created them for.

If the problem was man’s ignorance of God, then we would have needed a Teacher. But people fail in many things they know they should do/shouldn’t do. Knowing may be important, but it doesn't trump unwillingness.

If the problem was man’s own inability to please God, then we would have needed a Helper. But people often fail to please others, but not because they can’t; more like because they would rather please themselves.

If the problem was man’s errors in offending God, then we would have needed an Expert. But the greatest expert can't make people learn from mistakes, and even promises and vows won't guarantee a person won't repeat the same mistake.

If the problem was man’s stubborn attitude toward God, then we would have needed a Counselor. But people can be told again and again about their misdeeds, and, despite insights and lightbulbs in the mind, many don't change.

If the problem was man’s rebellious nature toward God, then we would have needed a Ruler. But people disobey their human rulers all the time, and even crucified the King of heaven when He came.

The real problem is man’s sin against God’s Person, a simple choice to do what we want to do, rather than what He wants us to do. And we do it, not because we don't know better, not because we just can't seem to get it right, nor because we're weak and incompetent. We disobey God, in spite of what we put into our memory cells and recite when prompted. We choose to prefer our own way because of what's in our hearts, not because of the content of our minds or the culture of our society or the training of our families. Simply put, we do it because we think it will benefit us in some way, and that's more important to us than anything someone else, including God, tells us is good for us.

The problem is sin, and so we needed a Savior, One who is a great Teacher, our Helper in trouble, an Expert in righteousness, a Wonderful Counselor, and the Ruler of all. But unless He came to save us from the penalty and power and corruption of our sinful hearts, all the rest would have been insufficient to solve the real problem. So the angels said to the shepherds, "Today is born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord!" I hope He's your Savior at this Christmas season!

The "apple" bites back

Many people, including some who take the Bible seriously as the Word of God, regard the story of Adam and Eve's encounter with the Tree of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden to be a piece of allegory or mythology. Those who prefer the theory of evolution over the stories of Genesis put the whole Eden scenario into the same category as the Greek gods. Others who accept some of the Bible's history have a hard time seeing the incident at the tree, complete with a talking snake, as anything other than a figurative tale to explain how mankind got into the mess of this world, with death, disease and innumerable sorrows.

But, there are a number of reasons to consider the story of Eden as being exactly as presented by Moses, not the least of which is that Jesus and various inspired authors of Scripture regarded the events of Adam and Eve's fall into sin and death to be just as described in the Bible's opening chapters. That would seem reason enough for anyone who thinks of the Bible as more than a collection of religious tales and moral lessons, with no more claim to divine inspiration that the fables of Aesop. If the Bible is truly a cohesive Book, "God-breathed" and useful for equipping servants of the truth (2 Timothy 3:16), then we have to take seriously the unified voice of its many authors, who attest to the actual events of the Fall of Man.

But in addition to this, perhaps the most compelling reason, in view of what we know of our world and its persistent troubles, is that we would have no way to account for the universal presence of certain harmful, malevolent and destructive traits of the human personality, such as are found in humans of every nation, culture, language and stage of sophistication. From the most isolated tribe in the jungle to the denizens of urban concrete jungles, there has always been in human behavior a capacity for cruelty, violence and disregard for the welfare of others. Adam and Even went for the satisfaction of their desires with that "apple", but the apple bit back in a big way!

The fact that we often describe behavior that is particularly violent with the adjective "inhuman", is evidence that we also find in ourselves a nobler motive, a desire to lift ourselves above the merely animal behaviors of the wild creatures. But this too would be impossible to explain apart from the revelation that humans are not, as evolutionary doctrine would make us, a product of nothing more than "natural selection" and the genetic mutations of whatever happened to arise from the ooze of naturally occurring chemicals.

True, it is not every person on earth that acts out such natural passions that lead to violence and inhuman treatment of their fellows. And many act, for the most part, in ways that are gracious and generous to the well being of others. But that doesn't negate the fact that the tendency to act in gross selfishness is present, in those of great education and refinement as well as in those of humble and simple means and lives. When we see habits and lives marked by kindness and "good will to men," it is nonetheless in great distinction to the kind of "inhuman" deeds that our news channels report to us daily, and with increasing frequency.

What makes the difference then, if the capacity for cruelty and selfishness is indeed universal? Generically speaking, the belief that there is something greater than ourselves, a goal greater than our own well being, a reason for living that is larger than our small ambitions for self-improvement, each of these is capable of lifting men to a greater level of moral behavior in regard to their fellow men. So the committed Buddhist or the faithful Jew or the "peace-loving" Muslim may find reason in their philosophies for loving at least some of their neighbors.

But, for my money, all of these lack the power to overcome the universal nature of man's heart toward selfishness. When we choose actions that gratify our selfish nature, we put aside the noble convictions of mind in favor of the more pressing desires of the heart. And this is what separates the religions of Man from the redemption of Christ. Only He can change the heart and give men daily strength to walk by His Spirit, so as to put aside the desires of human nature. When that happens, humans are able to live up to the nobler aspirations of their hearts, which are there only because Man is created in the image of a noble, good and gracious God.

And that's what Christmas is about. God came personally into our sad world, with the intention of offering in the death of His Son a way out of the death and sorrow of Eden. Evolution has no credible explanation in its godless and random science for both aspects of man's nature, the dark and the light, the violent and the kind, the "inhuman" and the noble. Only the Bible yields that explanation, as well as the solution in God's own way of redemption, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) Merry Christmas!