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Most Americans celebrate Christmas each year on December 25th; a day that is supposed to be set aside to acknowledge the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  However, the majority of the people celebrating Christmas don’t believe in Jesus or the Christian faith. For them, Christmas is a celebration that they just “participate” in. I believe that the disconnect has occurred on varying levels but mainly from the over commercialization of Christmas as well as the silence of Christians not sharing their faith with others.

Christmas is full of tales of Santa, gift giving and the stress of preparing for Christmas day gatherings. But outside of a church service, not much is mentioned about the fact that Jesus is the reason for the Christmas season. And that is where we are really lacking.

Let me apologize on behalf of my fellow Christians. I ask for your forgiveness for not doing a good job of sharing the good news about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We have failed miserably in that area. We have also done poorly in showing the love of Jesus Christ towards others and for that, I am sorry.

Christmas is a time in the Christian faith where we come together and celebrate the birth of our Lord and savior and reflect on His goodness, His mercy, His kindness and most of all, His love. Please allow me to take this time and offer you a proper introduction to the real reason for the Christmas season.

First, let’s start at the beginning. We have all seen the Christmas stories that depict the birth of Jesus. Well, the real story about the birth of Jesus can be found in Luke, chapters 1-2. (Online bible)

Secondly, I am going to solicit a little comedic help in telling you about the awesomeness of Jesus Christ. During a stand up routine, Steve Harvey gave an example of how he would introduce Jesus Christ, if given the honor. I think that he did such a great job that I would like to share his introduction with you:

What do you say after an introduction like that, but praise Him. It just continually reminds you of the goodness of God. Although the presentation was initially done in a comedic way, it still does not negate the awesomeness of God. So many think in order to be under the covering of Jesus Christ, you have to get your act together first; you have to be perfect and never sin. Those statements are so far from the truth. Allow me to share with you how to make Jesus your Lord and Savior.

Let’s begin by taking a journey down Romans Road which shows us how to receive the free gift of salvation, just as we are.  Follow me…

Who is good?

No one is righteous (good) (Romans 3:10-12)

Who has sinned?

All have sinned and come short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23)

The eternal cost of sin…

The cost of sin is death. (Romans 6:23)

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. (Romans 1:18)

Nothing you do can save you

Through the law we become conscious of our sins. (Romans3:20)

God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We’ve finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade.  (Romans 3:27).

God’s love has made a way!

Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.

Now that we are set right with God by means of this sacrificial death, the consummate blood sacrifice, there is no longer a question of being at odds with God in any way. If, when we were at our worst, we were put on friendly terms with God by the sacrificial death of his Son, now that we’re at our best, just think of how our lives will expand and deepen by means of his resurrection life! Now that we have actually received this amazing friendship with God, we are no longer content to simply say it in plodding prose. We sing and shout our praises to God through Jesus, the Messiah!

(Romans 5:8-11)

You must place your “complete” faith in Jesus Christ:

But in our time something new has been added. What Moses and the prophets witnessed to all those years has happened. The God-setting-things-right that we read about has become Jesus-setting-things-right for us. And not only for us, but for everyone who believes in him. For there is no difference between us and them in this. Since we’ve compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us, God did it for us. Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ. (Romans 3:22)

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

What we’ve learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We’ve finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade.  (Romans 3:28)

If you really believe that Jesus alone can save you….

…and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. Romans 4:21

….then pray and ask him:

For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13;

For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame” Romans 10:11

Congratulations, if you made those confessions, you are now saved! You have made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life. In order to cultivate your relationship with Christ, spend time in the Bible also known as the Word of God and find a good Bible-based church that will help you grow and mature in your new found relationship with Christ.

Even if you didn’t make the confession, hopefully you have a clearer understanding of who and what Christmas is really about.

May God bless you and your family! And as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, may your relationship with Him continue to grow stronger. He is truly the only gift you need.

God Bless!

Judi

Written by: Judi Mason for Elev8

Contact Judi: judi@judimason.com

Book: http://www.mychloechronicles.com

Website: http://www.judimason.com

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