Jesus is Reason for the Seasons
“In the beginning was the Purpose, and the Purpose was with God, and the Purpose was God. Jesus was with God in the beginning. Through Jesus all things were made; without Jesus nothing was made that has been made. In Jesus Christ was life, and that life was the light of all humankind. The light shines in the darkness,and the darkness has not overcome it.” -John 1:1-5 (Pastor Haig Translation)
Jesus is not the reason for the season; he is the reason for everything! Yes, I said everything! Simply, referring to Christmas as Jesus’ birthday and not the fulfillment of God’s plan for creation undermines the reason why we celebrate Christmas. I love that in the Armenian tradition we do not greet people with a Happy Holiday or a Merry Xmas but rather we have a call and response that helps us understand the magnitude of the birth of our Savior:
Քրիստոս ծնաւ եւ յայտնեցաւ (Christ is born
and revealed). The response is: Ձեզի Մեզի Մեծ
Աւետիս (Good news to you and to us!).
This is amazing news because Jesus Christ’s birth reveals God to us, reveals humankind to us, and he reveals God’s plans for us.
The Son of God Reveals God
I have come to the understanding that when people speak about God, they often have various understandings of what or who God is. This often leads to confusing conversations. As Christians, we need to make sure that the starting point for speaking about God must be the God-Man. Jesus reveals who God is to us in a personal way. The Good News is that God is love. God’s love is not some theoretical concept, but one of sacrifice and redemption that took place in history. Christmas marks the beginning of God suffering with us. The cross is where God suffered for us. The resurrection of Christ is God telling us the suffering will one day come to end. God the Father is love and that love is found in his only Begotten Son who was born on Christmas day.
The Son of Man Reveals Man
Jesus’ shows us our potential as humans. His life is the example in which we must all follow. The new command of Jesus is to love others as he loves us. Christ sets the standard in which we are to live. When we look to his life we look to one who was always obedient to the Father’s command. When we see Jesus we see perfection walking on earth. The Good News is that God does not just want to forgive our sins but wants us to be a part of his family. With the Grace achieved by Jesus on the cross, with the help of the Holy Spirit to guide us, and with the willpower to want to do the Father’s will, our lives will start looking like Jesus. When the world starts acting like Jesus, the world will become a better place.
The Alpha and Omega Reveals God’s Plan
Christ reveals God’s plan for creation from beginning to end. The Good News is that we are not left alone in the viscous cycle of sin and death. On the cross, we have God saying an eternal “no” to everything wrong with our world. On Easter Sunday, God gives us the eternal “yes!” Jesus reveals that death is not the end but a doorway to new creation. God is not done with us, but is in the business of redemption by sending his Son to save us. Jesus, our Risen King, arrived on Christmas to reveal God, humankind, and the purposes of God. This is Good News for us!