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Home 3-God's Word Provides Proof: Each Day of Creation a Literal Ordinary Day 4-God's Word Provides Proof: Genealogies Show Creation of Adam Happened 6,000 Years Ago 5-Creation:
For God's Glory, To Display His Character and His Attributes Letter 3-The Celebration of Christmas:Looking Toward the Future Revealing
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The
Revelation Genesis Link Subject
Area–Christmas
Project E-Mail 2 (part 3) The
"Celebration"
of Christmas Exodus
20:7 Thou shalt not take the name
of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that
taketh His name in vain. Many think the use of the name of
God, Jesus or Christ in a profane manner is what this commandment means.
Such use is only a small part of what it entails.
According to the Webster
Dictionary, the word vain means: 1) having no real value or significance;
worthless, empty, idle, hollow, etc. 2) without force or effect; futile,
fruitless, unprofitable, unavailing, etc. 3) lacking in sense; foolish.
In vain means: 1) fruitlessly; vainly.
2) lightly, profanely. The
“celebration”
part associated with Christmas and in general today’s “holiday
season” are two
of the very best examples of what it means to take the name of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ in vain. Through
lack of understanding, indifference or actual intent, virtually all of us play
some part in rendering The Name Above All Names
what is described in the definition of vain and in vain. Exodus
20:8 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Looking
through God’s Word, we do not find birthdays being celebrated. However, in the
fourth century when the Church of Rome placed Christmas on the church calendar,
whether it is or is not the actual birth date of Jesus, Christians
in effect were announcing to God that a special day was
being set aside for the purpose of honoring the birth of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Churches today continue to place Christmas and the Season of Advent on the
church calendar. Most
assuredly, Christmas Day (and the days leading up to Christmas) falls into the
category of Sabbath Day, a day (and time period) to keep holy. A
few weeks ago, I watched a program on the History Channel titled Christmas
Unwrapped: The History Of Christmas. It
was an interesting and educational summary of Christmas. As I viewed the
program, it became apparent that Christmas has never been kept holy in
the eyes of God from the time of its worldly conception. The word Christmas
comes from the Roman Catholic’s Christ Mass.
From the beginning, the celebration or “Feast Day of The Nativity”
took on the flavor of pagan feasts with a carnival type atmosphere that included
raucous partying, immoral sexual behavior, gluttonous eating and
drinking, gift-giving . . . . One
commentator described it as similar to a modern day Mardi Gras or New Year’s
Eve Bash. The documentary focused in on England and the problems the country has
had with the “merrymaking” of Christmas.
When the Puritans came into power, Christmas was literally banned in
England. But, as soon as the
Puritans lost power, Christmas and it’s sinful “merrymaking” returned. Christmas was outlawed among the Puritans in America.
I found it interesting as Europe’s traditions started making their way
to America, it seems that a toning down of the “celebration” of Christmas
actually took place. However, as one commentator stated, the celebration of
Christmas in America was not particularly religious. The Victorian Christmas of
the 1870s with the inauguration of Santa Claus was intended to turn the focus
toward family, especially the children in the family. According to legend, St.
Nicholas was known for giving gifts to the poor and to children.
He gave his gifts in secret. Santa
Claus became popular utilizing the thrust of giving gifts to children.
Exchanging
of Gifts-
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| Last Update: May 29, 2008 |