Thirty-seven years ago on July 19, 1969 Luaine and I were married. Do you know what happened on July 20, 1969? Apollo 11 made its moon landing and Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon. Remember, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”?
When those first astronauts walked on the moon, President Richard Nixon exclaimed, “This planting of human feet on the moon is the greatest moment in human history.”
Later, Billy Graham corrected him, “The greatest moment in human history was not when man set foot on the moon, but when the infinite and eternal God set foot on earth in Jesus of Nazareth.” Every Christmas we celebrate the Eternal God setting foot on earth.
Remember the Christmas poem, “Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse”?
We are all familiar with this old Christmas poem. It is true that on most nights before Christmas no one is stirring, perhaps not even a mouse. But this was not the case on that first Christmas night.
Remember the shepherds of the Christmas story? The sheep were bedded down and the shepherds were huddled around their fires for warmth when suddenly…
Luke 2:9 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
That tranquil pastoral scene was shattered when an angel appeared to the shepherds and the glory of the Lord burst forth. That they were terrified is an understatement.
In v. 10 the angel had to calm them down. “Do not be afraid.” The he delivered the glorious message that gave them joy and peace.
Luke 2:11 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. What did it all mean? For one thing, “today” meant right then. Shepherds, the Savior has just been born. You are invited to come meet him in his manger bed.” What an honor.
The angel also said that the Savior “has been born to you.” This Savior was for them and us and all people everywhere. It was a message of hope and deliverance because God became one of us.
This had never happened before and it would never happen again. When the angel told the unwed virgin, Mary, that she would carry God’s Son. Mary knew that was impossible. She had not had sexual relations with a man. Disturbed and troubled by the angel’s revelation, she asks, “How can this be?” (Luke. 1:34)
The angel told her why and who the baby was. Don’t you love her response! Sure she still had many unanswered questions. Yet in complete acquiescence, Mary replied, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). What a girl.
On the one hand Mary was just a girl, an immature and frightened girl who had the good sense to believe what the angel told her in what must have seemed like a dream. On the other hand, she was the mother of the Son of God, with a faith to move mountains, to sing about the victories of her Son.
Likewise Joseph, her fiancé was also special—handpicked by God to raise God’s only Son. But when Mary told him of her pregnancy he was dismayed. She must have been unfaithful. So the angel also to explained to him, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (Matt. 1:23).
And Joseph, too, was obedient to the light given to him. He didn’t nor could he understand it all. He became the stepfather to the Savior of the world. What can be more human than this—a young couple, an unplanned pregnancy, facing family, friends, parents? This is real life.
That night of light means that God became one of us, and He came into this world in a very human way. That’s the incarnation. But the night of light also means redemption.
The angel told Joseph, Matt. 1:20-21 “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
God knew what Joseph was thinking, so, through the angel, he assured him that Mary had been faithful, and that she was carrying the Son of God.
God also knew that Joseph was wondering “why me?” When the angel said, “He will save his people from their sins,” Joseph knew this was the promised Messiah. It's the most glorious proclamation ever spoken.
Salvation is through Jesus Christ, and only through Him. We who believe in Jesus Christ have personally experienced His presence in our lives.
We have been redeemed—saved for all eternity because God personally stepped into our world. Is it any wonder why we celebrate the birth of Jesus with heartwarming carols! Is it any wonder why we proclaim the joy of Jesus Christ! Pageants and musicals and parties celebrate Christ’s birth all this month.
But there is a dark side to Christmas:
This is the real reason Christmas is so important to every believer.
We see that first Christmas through rose-colored glasses. But on that first Christmas…
When Christ was born, in a very real sense, all hell broke loose. As the heavens burst with the blaze of the angelic presence, the doors of darkness opened and the evil forces of night moved across the landscape.
The Light of the World, Jesus Christ, had been born and the forces of darkness were bent upon His destruction. We can even read about what was going on in the spiritual world in this Revelation passage about the nation Israel:
Revelation 12:1-4 “A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. (2) She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. (3) Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon . . . . The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born."
The attacks on our Lord began from His earliest moments on this earth. Remember the Magi, the astronomers from the east who came to worship Jesus? King Herod wanted them to tell him where Jesus was. But God intervened and they left without telling him. This did not make a happy King Herod. And he took drastic action.
Matthew 2:16 16When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.
If this is not all hell breaking loose, I don’t know what is. The forces of evil were at work. King Herod was willing to slaughter every two year old male and younger in order to seek out and destroy the Light of the World. Throughout his life Jesus was attacked. As an adult the religious establishment—the Pharisees and Sadducees—and the political arm—the Sanhedrin—constantly attacked Jesus.
Some of the most difficult came from his own family. They didn’t understand and, on at least one occasion tried to get him to give up his ministry.
The night of darkness culminated with Satan’s finest hour, when the Messiah, the Creator of the world, the God of the universe, hung on a cross, killed by hands which were the tools of Satan.
But something happened. Jesus didn’t stay in the grave. By the power of God He was brought back to life. The resurrection proved God’s power over Satan, evil, and death, and must have shocked Satan.
At Christmas time it is easy to assume that our world is fundamentally good and right. Christmas is a feel good time.
We spend most of our time focusing on the joy of redemption and the good things we have in Jesus Christ. These are the things that are integral to who we are in Christ. We rejoice that we are not in bondage to the forces of darkness.
Yet, we must also be realistic and fully aware of all we are up against; we must remember the massive power of the kingdom of hell. Paul described our struggle as being against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil (Eph. 6:12).
Satan, is still bent on the destruction of Christianity. But, through Jesus Christ, we have already won the victory. The birth of Jesus…
When Christ was born he probably thought, “I’ve got him right where I want him. He’s in my territory now.”
Then when Jesus died on the cross Satan knew he’d won. For three days following the death of Jesus Satan and all the legions of hell celebrated their victory.
But then, the sovereign power of God reached down and touched the tomb, and the dawn eclipsed the night. Christmas is God’s dawn against the darkness. The dark side of Christmas is this battle between good and evil. Throughout Jesus’ life Satan tried to destroy him, but failed every time.
This is what Christmas is about—it’s victory won over the powers of Satan. The victory was won when God became one of us. Celebrating Christmas means celebrating Christ’s victory—not only His victory over sin and death 2000 years ago, but also victory in the daily circumstances of our lives.
Every time we say no to Satan—every time we stand up to temptation—every time we bring the power of God’s presence in us against the onslaught of our adversary, we are celebrating what Christmas is really about.
Every time we feed the hungry man and comfort the lonely and respond to the desperate needs of people everywhere, we are acknowledging the victory won by Christ 2000 years ago.
Every time we do these things Satan is reminded that he didn’t win. We are soldiers in the victorious army of Christ. As His soldiers we do not carry guns and bombs. We go into our world with love and compassion and understanding.
Christmas reminds us that victory is ours, that the victory has been won. Christmas reminds us that all the forces of darkness could not stop or even delay the emerging dawn. Twas the night of victory!!!
But we know from experience that Satan is still active in the world. We live every day with the consequences of the Fall and sin coming into the world.
But Christmas assures us that ultimately and finally Satan will be defeated. In that day we will celebrate eternally the Messiah in the manger. We will sing the refrain from Revelation 5:12 – 13
12In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
This is what Christmas is all about. It is about Jesus Christ. Let’s rejoice at what we have been delivered from. Let’s rejoice in our victory. Christmas twas the night of our blessed Savior’s birth.
The old hymn declares, “Victory in Jesus.” It is the theme song of every believer. Remember the truths of Christmas, incarnation, redemption, and victory over Satan and sin. These are the real meanings of Christmas.