›Considering Christmas
›Reflections
Concerning Christmas
– It is now the time of year to reflect
– Memories during this time tend to become a little more cherished, a little more heartbreaking
– Why do we celebrate Christmas during this time?
– Was Jesus born during this time?
– Is there a difference between when Jesus was born and when we celebrate His birth?
– In the earliest accounts we have of Christmas comes from about 200AD and during that time there was speculation
– Even from this early on there was debate as to when Jesus was born
– The earliest discussions had Him being born in March, April or May
– The most likely calendars used was either the Hebrew Calendar or the Roman Calendar
– Right away we are entering into waters which, despite being traversed, are still as questionable as any uncharted
– Speculation is the helmsmen in such situations
24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. 2:1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem…”
(Matthew 1:24-2:1, ESV)
“5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.” (Luke 1:5-7, ESV)
7 The first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah, 8 the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim, 9 the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin, 10 the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah, 11 the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah, 12 the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim, 13 the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, 14 the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer, 15 the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez, 16 the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezkel, 17 the twenty-first to Jachin, the twenty-second to Gamul, 18 the twenty-third to Delaiah, the twenty-fourth to Maaziah. 19 These had as their appointed duty in their service to come into the house of the LORD according to the procedure established for them by Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him.
(I Chronicles 24:7-19, ESV)
8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” … “24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”
(Luke 1:8-17, 24-25, ESV)
Concerning Christmas (2)
– We learn this was not a Holy Day but a normal rotation week
– We learn Zechariah was of Abijah which means he would be serving the 8th and 32nd week
– According to Exodus 12:1-3 “The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household.”
– There are those who surmise we could assume that Zechariah was serving in either May-June (the 8th week) or November-December (32nd week)
– Thus, there are those who would argue John was conceived around this same time
– This is still speculation but based upon current knowledge this is an educated guess
“26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
(Luke 1:26-38, ESV)
Concerning Christmas (3)
– The 6th month does not mean the 6th month of the year, but the 6th month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy
– There are several things we can speculate
– The first is that if we assume John the Baptist was conceived sometime shortly after Zechariah was at the temple, then the 6th month would be either November/December (for the 8th week) or May/June (32nd week)
– Great! What does this have to do with Jesus being born!
“39 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
(Luke 1:39-45, ESV)
Concerning Christmas (4)
– When describing John the Baptist being conceived it was “After those days”
– Now it is “In those days”
– At this point she is pregnant with Jesus as John the Baptist in the womb of Elizabeth leaps for joy
– Jesus’ conception according to this timeline would be November/December (8th week) or May/June (32nd week)
– 56 And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home. 57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.” (Luke 1:56-57, ESV)
– If John was conceived around May/June then this would put his birth in Feb-March
– This is very interesting, but we are still interested in Jesus’ birth
“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be registered, each to his own town. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6 And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”
(Luke 2:1-7, ESV)
Concerning Christmas (5)
– Based upon our speculations Jesus would be born 6 months after John the Baptist
– This would mean either August-September or February-April
– When was Jesus born?
– Why December 25th?!
– Using calculations similar to what we have done they came to their own conclusions
– It is also possible cultural festivals influenced when Christians celebrated Jesus birth
– However, even this is speculative!
– Personally, I haven’t always taken much stock in certain holidays
– First: We do not know when Jesus was born
– Second: We are not told in Scripture to celebrate certain holidays
– The term “Christmas” is never used in the New Testament
– There is no evidence the first Christians celebrated Jesus’ birth
Concerning Christmas (6)
– One of the dangers the reformation attempted to deal with were traditional that led to belief in holiness
– Holiness is not going to be found in practicing traditions, nor is it going to be found in putting ga thin veneer of Jesus over cultural habits
– Am I saying we shouldn’t celebrate Jesus’ birth?
– No
– We just need to be cautious about how and why we are doing it
– If we are going to celebrate it, let’s celebrate it for the right reason and the right way
– If we are to discuss “when” we celebrate, I am unsure
– There is something to consider from this
– If Jesus was born in the fall (which is most likely) then that means he would have been conceived in December
– The conception of Jesus is just as miraculous as His birth
– Jesus being conceived in December is beautiful, as in the darkest most dreary time, the Light of the world truly dawns in His mother's womb
Concerning Christmas (7)
– This to me would be worth celebrating
– Everything is speculative
– It is wise to consider these things
– To, perhaps, distinguish Holy Days from holidays
– Holy Days are clearly defined in Scripture, whereas holidays are based on our traditions
– I do not know with certainty the when
– I do know Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary
– I know angels foretold this event, that an infant filled with the Spirit rejoiced in the womb before anyone knew, and that angels proclaimed with loud voices the birth of Jesus
– Regardless of when we celebrate, let us celebrate with them, and remember the joyful coming of Jesus the Light of the World, and our Living Hope, into this world
Come, then, let us observe the Feast. Come, and we shall commemorate the solemn festival. It is a strange manner of celebrating a festival; but truly wondrous is the whole chronicle of the Nativity. For this day the ancient slavery is ended, the devil confounded, the demons take to flight, the power of death is broken, paradise is unlocked, the curse is taken away, sin is removed from us, error driven out, truth has been brought back, the speech of kindliness diffused, and spreads on every side, a heavenly way of life has been implanted on the earth, angels communicate with men without fear, and men now hold speech with angels.
Why is this? Because God is now on earth, and man in heaven; on every side all things commingle. He has come on earth, while being Whole in heaven; and while complete in heaven, He is without diminution on earth. Though He was God, He became Man; not denying Himself to be God. Though being the impassable Word, He became flesh; that He might dwell amongst us, He became Flesh. He did not become God. He was God. Wherefore He became flesh, so that He Whom heaven did not contain, a manger would this day receive.
He was placed in a manger, so that He, by whom all things are nourished, may receive an infant's food from His Virgin Mother. So, the Father of all ages, as an infant at the breast, nestles in the virginal arms, that the Magi may more easily see Him. Since this day the Magi too have come, and made a beginning of withstanding tyranny; and the heavens give glory, as the Lord is revealed by a star. To Him, then, Who out of confusion has wrought a clear path, to Christ, to the Father, and to the Holy Spirit, we offer all praise, now and forever. Amen.”
(John Chrysostom, 386 AD)
