Christians all over the world are observing today as Christmas. It is the commemoration of the birth of our Lord and saviour of mankind, Jesus Christ. Christmas is one of the most important festivals for Christians.
Observed with great pomp and pageantry, Christmas which marks the end of Advent season is a moment of sober reflection. Jesus Christ was born at a time when ignorance, superstition, greed, hatred and hypocrisy prevailed upon the land. Also, at that time, purity was forgotten and morality was thrown to the winds.
However, in the midst of these unfavourable but prevailing conditions, Christ was born and he worked a transformation in the lives of the people, who came across him. Following these developments, he gave a new spiritual turn to the lives of man, which brought a change upon the land.
Jesus Christ brought a new way of life -a new era dawned on the world with the birth of Christ. Before He was born, people had no thought of God or higher spiritual life. They lived life of lust, anger, greed, delusion, attachment, pride and jealousy.
In truth, the real Christmas is when the divine element begins to express itself in the heart of men. From then, light begins to shine into darkness. The significance of Christmas is that Jesus Christ was not born in a grand palace. He was not born to very wealthy or learned parents, but in a simple lowly place, a corner of a stable. Jesus Christ was born to humble and poor parents, who had nothing to boast about, except their own spotless character and holiness.
This significance aptly tells us that the spiritual awakening comes to the seeker, who is perfectly humble, meek and poor in spirit. The quality of true humility is one of the indispensable fundamentals of a Christian life.
However, the basic message of Christmas is the announcement that God, the Almighty creator of the universe, has come into the world in human form. This is the news of God’s incarnation in human flesh. The apostle John gives the appropriate meaning to this historic event in his statement that “no one has ever seen God, but God the one and only”.
Though the gifts of the Magi that were given to Jesus, Mary and Joseph in their act of worship, or the gifts that are shared between family and friends in this Christmas festival, should be recognized and emphasized in our celebrations, the primary and most important gift is God’s gift of His one and only son, whom he sent into the world to save mankind.
Without the message of God’s incarnation in human flesh and the gift of His son, Jesus, for the salvation of the world, the celebration of Christmas by Christians or anyone else is just another secular festival among many on one’s calendar of annual holidays. Truly, there can be no peace on earth or real joy in a human’s heart apart from the spirit of Jesus Christ.
Actually, the gifts of these blessings, through the birth of Jesus Christ, are worth celebrating and the sharing of God’s love to the world is worth repeating over and over again in gifts and contributions. All the same, Christians need to make sure that our Christmas celebrations are for the Glory of God and nothing else.
After all said and done, Christmas should bring, not only families together, but also the entire ethnic groups in Nigeria. As one of the holiest times of the year, the season for the commemoration of the birth of Christ should be a time for sober reflection, a time to say no to terrorism, armed robbery, prostitution, religious bigotry, Satanism and kidnappings.
As Nigerians expect good things in 2024, our prayer is that the birth of Christ will bring peace, healing and solution to us by making our leaders continue to make policies that will touch lives in addition to saving the country from its numerous challenges.
Merry Christmas and Happy New year!
Written by VEN SAMUEL OKONKWO
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