Easter… Undoubtably the biggest weekend on the Christian calendar. It’s the weekend that our Savior died a criminals death, a price he did not owe, on our behalf. It’s a weekend we celebrate the moment he rose from the grave. Defeating death so we could have life eternal with him.
Just typing this out gets me excited! I love Easter and all it represents.
Christmas… Also a huge weekend on the Christian calendar. It’s the season we pause and reflect on the gift God gave to humanity. His son. Who came as a baby. Born of a virgin. To bring peace, hope, joy, and love to all humanity.
It’s also hard to type that out without a smile on my face.
The problem… We tend to let Easter bleed over into Chritmas.
Don’t get me wrong… I’m so very grateful for the work of the cross. Without it… Jesus was just another man walking the earth. But during this season… Let’s leave Jesus up on the cross. He will be just fine there until we get to Easter.
We can get so focused on his death… That we forget he was even alive. He is Immanuel… God with us! Who gave up heaven to dwell among us. What an incredible moment. The birth of God!
And that’s what the first century population was looking for.
The people of the first century were looking for a Messiah. Which means “rescued by arrival.” They wanted someone to show up who was stronger than Caesar and establish a new kingdom on earth. A kingdom that didn’t leave them oppressed and hurting.
They wanted a Messiah… Not a Savior! They knew the game was changed the moment he showed up… Not the moment he died!
God was here!
Have you ever walked into a bathroom stall and saw where someone decided it would be a good idea to let you know they were there at some point? In the dirty truck stop restroom you read Johnny was here. Timmy was here. Brady was here. Cindy was here. Which is weird because it’s a guys bathroom. So why was Cindy there?
Through Jesus… God decided to sign this world. Claiming to all… He was here. And it was in the moment he showed up on the scene… That’s when everything changed.
We can so easily miss the fact that God was here. We can get so caught up in the end result that we forget to celebrate his life.
Most Christmas Eve services I’ve attended felt more like funerals than celebrations. And we claim it’s because we are being reverent. That’s crap! The truth… You’ve never had permission to party!
This is your permission to party! Celebrate Jesus! It’s his birthday for crying out loud.
This is the season to celebrate the Messiah! To understand that we were rescued the moment he showed up. As a baby in a barn. That baby was here to save us!
There will be plenty of time to celebrate the Savior! The one who died so we could live. But that’s a few months away.
So please… Stop getting the two mixed up!
After all… Who wants to celebrate the day they died on the day they were born? That makes for a weird celebration.
Christmas Eve at Coastal Virginia Church…
This coming Thursday night at 6pm… We will be doing just that. Celebrating Jesus. The service is called “Recapture The Wonder!” It’s all about being in awe of this God who showed up to rescue us. And it’s going to be a blast!
Again… This isn’t a funeral. It’s a celebration. So be prepared to have a good time. We’re asking kids to wear their pajamas if parents are ok with that. We’ve got something special for them.
If you can’t make it out… At least tune in online at CovaChurch.com!
And let’s celebrate the birth of Christ together.
Recent Comments