Christmas and the Christian

By Lewis Kiger

Would it surprise you to learn there is a segment within Christianity that does not celebrate Christmas? Now to be clear, I am not referring to various faiths that also choose not to participate in the Holidays that are sometimes wrongly labeled as Christian. I am talking about devout Bible believers that love Jesus, but don’t want anything to do with the observance of Christmas. As odd as that may sound to some, these individuals should not be labeled as grouchy Grinches, or some extreme fringe of Christianity whose minds are filled with endless conspiracies and legalistic tendencies. Instead, these are God-fearing, church-going, born-again believers, who love the doctrine of the Virgin Birth of God’s Messiah, yet refuse to participate in anything related to Christmas. These godly folks are convinced that many (if not all) the traditions and festivities surrounding the Christmas Holiday are anything but Christian. And the truth is – they are not all wrong, as surprising as that may be for you to hear.

Yet, because of their beliefs, these individuals do not exchange gifts, decorate their home or even wish others a Merry Christmas. I know this non-celebrating, Scrooge-sounding group exists, because I was once one of them … and still have some deep-rooted reservations about our family fully observing the Holiday.

You may be completely unaware, but there is actually a significant divide and debate within some Christian circles over the matter of observing or not observing. I have friends who hold to strong convictions on either side of the argument. My aim in this article is not to isolate either group, but to ask each side of the “observe or not observe” debate to be gracious towards one another. And perhaps even consider, Bible-loving believers can disagree on this (and many other issues) without being disagreeable.

I am not petitioning for pity, because I don’t need any, but I was brought up in a family that didn’t celebrate Christmas. When I was very young, my parents came to the conviction that participating in Christmas wasn’t the right thing for them to do, so one year – Santa stopped coming. We didn’t get any gifts that Christmas morning or any Christmas morning thereafter. And yet, somehow, we all survived! To this day, my father still doesn’t celebrate Christmas and I respect him for it. If someone believes it is inappropriate to join in these type festivities, then Biblically speaking, they shouldn’t (Romans 14). Those who are convinced not celebrating is the God-honoring thing to do, should absolutely abstain. But at the same time, those who feel at liberty to participate should be able to do so without fear of being strung up with garland or beaten with a yuletide log, by the non-observing crowd.

I simply cannot emphasize enough the importance of a proper understanding of what Scripture has to say about this topic. No, the Bible doesn’t mention Christmas one way or another. However, there is plenty to be said about the subject of soul liberty. The 14th chapter of Romans deals specifically with issues like the one I am writing about. If you are a confessing Christian, this is a topic and text of which you should be keenly familiar.

Admittedly, this is an over-generalization, but it seems like the pro-Christmas crowd is blissfully ignorant of the questionable past attached to the Holiday. While the anti-Christmas crowd is intentionally ignorant of what the Bible has to say about the subject of Christian liberty. Again, I confess that is something of an over-simplification of the issue, but I do think it gets at the heart of the problem. It seems, both sides only hear what they want to hear, and don’t listen to each other at all.

Yes, there is likely some irreverent ancient rituals connected to some of the modern traditions and festivities surrounding Christmas. But not any more so than the ugly history connected to some of the feasts and celebrations of those Gentile Christians in Rome that came from polytheistic pagan areas of the uncivilized world. Yet, the Apostle Paul did not condemn either Jew or Gentile for continuing to participate in some of those observances. Instead, as long as their aim was to honor God by observing, or not observing, the Apostle instructed the church of Christ not to judge each other in these matters. Instead, they were to give one another liberty to celebrate or not celebrate and were expressly commanded not to condemn one another either way.

Just because someone has a Christmas tree in their home, doesn’t make them an idolater. Any more than someone having a calendar on the wall, of which the days and months are named after celestial bodies and false gods, makes one guilty of worshiping those fake deities. Don’t pretend to be God by judging what is in another person’s heart. I implore you, don’t condemn others of idolatry and participating in pagan worship just because they don’t share the same scruples as you. 

No, we don’t actually know on what day Jesus was born. It is unlikely it was December 25th. However, I could argue, on whatever day it was; the angels, shepherds, Mary and Joseph all rejoiced and praised God. Therefore, I cannot find fault with those who also choose a day to magnify the birth of the Messiah.

Yes, there is way too much revelry, commercialism and extra-Biblical ideas attached to Christmas. Yet, the same thing could be said of numerous Holidays. Just because some persons abuse the liberty God has given, does not mean others cannot rightly enjoy it.

Whatever your preference or position; whichever side of the tinsel and mistletoe you find yourself, I truly hope you know the real significance of the virgin birth of Jesus. Christ’s coming was certainly not about Santa or sleighbells, but about reconciling sinners. The Christ child wasn’t born to encourage us to exchange gifts, but to give us the gift of eternal life.

Jesus came to bring God to men and to bring men to God. He lived, died, rose again and is coming back – as King!

Let me close with a final thought – regardless of how you feel about Christmas, this should not be a test of fellowship among brothers and sisters in Christ. Neither those who observe, or those who do not observe, ought be considered unorthodox Christians. Rather, those of us who have truly experienced grace ought to be quick to extend it to others.

God bless you and yours with a wonderful New Year and a M …. (sorry, couldn’t resist)