Many feel that Christmas marks Christ's birthday
and that it honors Him. After all, can 2 billion
professing Christians be wrong? At the same time,
some few Christians don't observe Christmas,
believing that Jesus didn't sanction it and that it
dishonors Him. Who is right—and why?
One day, years ago, someone asked
me why I kept Christmas. "The Bible
says to keep it," I responded.
"Somewhere in the Gospel of Luke, it
speaks of the nativity scene. An angel
told some shepherds that were
keeping their sheep in the fields at
night that the baby Jesus was born in
Bethlehem. I think they went to see
Jesus at that time.
"That was the first Christmas! And
that's why I keep Christmas, because
the Bible supports Christmas, the
birthday of Jesus Christ."
"That's not true and here's why," my
friend replied.

I soon learned that the Bible didn't teach Christmas. I also
found that its origins have nothing to do with the Bible. It
was an important lesson about things I'd long assumed to
be true.
Just because some 2 billion people—roughly 1 billion
Catholics and another billion in Protestant faiths—observe
Christmas, does that make it right? Does it really matter one
way or the other?
Why do so many people observe it?
If you were asked, "Why do you celebrate Christmas?" how
would you respond? Many would say Christmas honors the
birthday of Jesus. Others feel that Christmas is a good
Christian family get-together. Many do it simply because
they've always done it.
Christmas can appear tantalizing to the eye and ear. People
appear happy, generous, full of good cheer. Twinkling lights
decorate many houses. Santa Claus and his reindeer are
pictured as poised to lift off from snow-covered front yards
or rooftops, although in the southern hemisphere and
tropics there is no December snow. The colorful, peaceful-
appearing Christmas scene can be intoxicating, addicting.
Shoppers pack stores, browsing for gifts they hope to buy at
bargain-basement prices. Soaring strains of "White
Christmas," "Silent Night" or "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed
Reindeer" resonate everywhere.
The December weather of the northern hemisphere might be
frightful outside, but the feeling and warmth inside is
delightful. Christmas trees with twinkling lights and bright,
sparkling ornaments create a mystical and glowing
environment. Entire families want to experience the special
mystery that only comes with the Christmas season. There
is no religious holiday quite like it for the millions
everywhere who observe it.

hmmmmm na

Was Jesus really born on Dec. 25?
But stop and ask yourself: Was Christ really born on
Christmas Day? After all, the Bible nowhere tells us the day
of His birth.
In fact, most credible secular historical writings tell us that
Christmas, more than 200 years after Jesus' death, was
considered sinful: "As late as A.D. 245 [the early Catholic
theologian] Origen . . . repudiates as sinful the very idea of
keeping the birthday of Christ" ( Encyclopaedia Britannica,
11th edition, 1910, Vol. 6, p. 293, "Christmas".
In A.D. 354, a Latin chronographer mentioned Christmas,
but even then he did not write about it as an observed
festival (ibid.).
There is no biblical evidence that Dec. 25 was Jesus' birth
date. In fact, the Bible record strongly shows that Jesus
couldn't have been born then.
For example, Luke tells us that the shepherds were keeping
their sheep in the fields at night when Jesus was born. "And
she [Mary] brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped
Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because
there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were in
the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping
watch over their flock by night" (Luke:2:7-8 , emphasis
added throughout).
But late December is Judea's cold and rainy season. Would
shepherds actually keep their fragile flocks out in the open
fields on a cold late-December night near Bethlehem?
No responsible shepherd would subject his sheep to the
elements at that time of year when cold rains, and
occasional snow, are common in that region.
"The climate of Palestine is not so severe as the climate of
this country [England]; but even there, though the heat of
the day be considerable, the cold of the night, from
December to February, is very piercing, and it was not the
custom for the shepherds of Judea to watch their flocks in
the open fields later than about the end of
October" (Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons, 1959, p.
91).
Luke also tells us that Jesus was born at the time of a
census ordered by the Roman emperor (Luke:2:1-3 ). The
Romans were brilliant administrators; they certainly would
not have ordered people to journey to be registered at a time
of year when roads would have been wet and muddy and
traveling conditions miserable. Such a move would have
been self-defeating on its face.
The belief that Jesus was born on or around Dec. 25 simply
has no basis in fact, even if 2 billion people have accepted
it without question. As the famous playwright George
Bernard Shaw said, "If 50 million people believe a foolish
thing, it's still a foolish thing."

Does Christmas really honor Christ?
If the Christmas holiday is an important celebration to honor
the birth of Jesus Christ, why is it nowhere mentioned in the
Bible? Why didn't Christ instruct His closest followers, His
12 chosen apostles, to keep Christmas? Why didn't they
institute or teach it to the early Church?
Before you answer, consider that Jesus gave great authority
to His 12 apostles, assuring them that they will hold
positions of great importance and responsibility in His
Kingdom (Matthew:18:18 ; 19:28; Luke:22:29-30 ). But
since Jesus never taught His apostles to keep Christmas,
nor did they ever teach it to the Church though they had
years of opportunity to do so, shouldn't that make us
question whether Christmas is something Jesus really
wants or appreciates?
So how did Christmas become such a widespread practice if
the Bible doesn't sanction it, if Christ didn't observe it and if
He never taught His disciples and the early Church to
celebrate it?

A matter of whether, not what
The purpose of The Good News magazine is to share with
you the living truth of Jesus Christ. A true Christian cannot
decide what he will obey, only whether he will obey God's
truth.
We strive to publish God's pristine truth; people who read
that truth have to decide what to do about it and whether
they will honor it. Our commission from Jesus Christ is to
teach the truth of God and to welcome as disciples and
fellow workers those few who hear and obey the truth. We
hope the truth about Christmas starts you on the road to
true happiness and God's purpose for you.
History shows that Christmas does not represent Christ. It
misrepresents sound biblical teaching and is in opposition
to God's truth. God wants us to worship Him in truth
(John:4:23-24 ), not fable.
In Deuteronomy:12:28-32 , God told His people to worship
only in the ways He commanded, telling them "Whatever I
command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to
it nor take away from it." He explicitly ordered them not to
copy or adopt the religious practices of the pagans, calling
such practices "abomination [ s ] . . . which He hates."
Yet hundreds of millions of men, women and children
unwittingly observe Christmas, not knowing or caring from
where it came. They assume that 2 billion Christians can't
be wrong or that it doesn't matter how we worship God so
long as our intentions are good. But why should we think
we honor God or please Him when we worship contrary to
His commands?

Crucial questions only you can answer
The crucial question is, do we worry more about what
others think or about what God requires? Also, can other
human beings give us salvation? If honoring God's truth
determines our salvation, then why honor men over God?
Jesus Christ said to those who appeared religious but
denied the power of His true teaching, "But why do you call
Me 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do the things which I
say?" (Luke:6:46 ; compare Matthew:7:21 ). Since Christ is
opposed to Christmas, why would any thoughtful Christian
observe it?
Walking in Jesus' footsteps in a world that doesn't is never
easy. But it is much better and eminently more rewarding
than following the empty ways of the world.
God tells us in 1 John:2:15-17 : "Do not love the world or
the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of
the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust
of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not
of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing
away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God
abides forever." GN