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The Revelation Genesis Link E-Mail Series:
1-The Trinity of God

2 - God Belongs Everywhere-Thanksgiving Proclamation

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

Christmas Project
Letter 1-The Celebration of Christmas: A Full Blown Pagan Celebration

Letter 2-The Celebration of Christmas: First Four of Ten Commandments Broken-Part 1

Letter 2-Part 2

Letter 2-Part 3

Letter 3-The Celebration of Christmas:Looking Toward the Future

Revealing 
God's Glory
INDEX TO LETTERS

 

The Revelation Genesis Link
An E-Mail Series from Gariel Ministries 
December 2, 2006
 

Subject Area – Christmas Project E-Mail 2 (part 1) 
by Dorothy von Lehe

The "Celebration" of Christmas
 
Four Of The Ten Commandments Broken-Part 1

Thoughts went racing through my head as I began leading my first group of young second grade students through the historic Mayo House for the annual Christmas tour program in early December of 2005. These thoughts seemed focused on society dictates concerning what I could and could not talk about with these young children. The thoughts included this kind of utter nonsense: don't you dare talk about Jesus, don't even mention His name, and you know you must bow down to the idea of separation of church and state.  It was both the hardest and the worst tour I had ever conducted.  I struggled through the parlor program that includes sharing information with these little ones on the evolution of the “Christmas time gift-bringer, Santa Claus" and the cleaned up versions of "pagan religious traditions" that are embedded into today's "celebration" of Christmas. Before I even made it into the second room of the historic home, I knew in my heart this was it, no more; there would not be another Christmas tour program for children or a Christmas event done at the Mayo House.  No more Christmas tours if the focus cannot be on the true reason for Christmas, Jesus Christ. 

As this year (2006) has progressed, the Holy Spirit has planted in me the understanding that the "celebration" of Christmas breaks all of the Ten Commandments that serve as our moral guide on how God expects us to honor Him.  

Beginning with the First Commandment: 

I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt have no other gods before me.  Exodus 20: 2-3

Among the gods at Christmas, Santa Claus is clearly the most highly revered in the United States. This beloved man-created god emerged from the story of what we believe to be a loving and generous man named Nicholas who lived in the fourth century.  It is understood that Nicholas became the Bishop of Myra in the land now called Turkey.  Legends grew and spread over Europe about this saint named Nicholas and his generosity. These legends culminated into a false god whom we know as Santa Claus. Today, Santa Claus reigns in homes, schools, workplaces, and shopping malls and in the hearts, minds and lives of millions of people during the Christmas season.  Who is it that so many families await the arrival of on Christmas Eve?  Santa!  Who and what are in the minds of families, children and adults alike, as they wake up on Christmas morning?  Santa and gifts, gifts, gifts!

Many parents actually teach their young children to believe in Santa Claus and that he is the Christmas time gift-bringer.  What is it that parents and society teach about Santa? The attributes of the One True and Holy Triune God have been applied to this false god. (See next page.)   

Satan works hard to distract us and to draw attention away from Jesus Christ and who He is.  We need to understand what Satan is doing.  Satan loves to engage in perversion.  We need to stop our participation in this practice of idolatry.

Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them (false gods, graven images, idols), nor serve them for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.  Exodus 20: 5-6

Next page: The False God: Santa Claus

Go to Part 2

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Last Update: May 29, 2008