Now that’s worth celebrating!

I remember those words being said on the very rare occasion I actually did something worth celebrating.

I think one time was when I was managed to convince my wife to actually say I do and not run screaming back up the aisle!

Of course the ten pounds of concrete I put in her shoes helped as well but I digress.

Back in the day, whatever day you pick, let’s say Saturday. Saturday December 12, 1986, the day Stella married me. I married her too but I wasn’t the pretty one!

That day we celebrated! There was food, music, dancing, and fun.

We celebrated other life’s milestones and achievements. Whatever the reason, we always knew why we celebrated.

Now I think the art of celebration is gone. We celebrate for the sake of celebration. We even celebrate Fridays! Or cheap wing nights!

We don’t save it for significant milestones or events.

Like the two greatest events of all time.

Christmas and Easter are the birth and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is God’s salvation plan. You can’t separate the two. You have to be born in order to die. You have to die in order to be resurrected. You have to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior in order to be saved.

Did you know that when a sinner repents and accepts the gift of salvation, the angels rejoice? Luke wrote that in chapter 15, verse 10. It appears that God likes celebration. But he doesn’t like foolishness.

The difference is in what you believe.

Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of Christ. But many cannot see Christ the baby as the powerful God of the universe who will deliver us from evil. Most do not even see Jesus at all except for a few Christmas carols. Drive around on a dark night close to Christmas and you can easily see Santa, Star Wars, Minions, and Snowmen. I bet somebody even has Christmas Zombies!

Then there’s the ads promoting the holiday spirit. Which is either a liqueur you put in your coffee or is available only at selected malls. They call it a season of giving. Let me tell you though, it is really a season of getting!

Okay, I’m not talking about the toys and stuff. They’re great to receive. Even that Christmas tie that lights up and sings Jingle Bells. I love that tie by the way.

We get the best gift of all. The Creator of the entire universe chose to be born. His birth has always been part of the plan for salvation even way before Eve shared her apple with Adam.

You see Satan does not want us to see this. So he tries to distract us with presents and parties, and drinking. Why else would anybody have inflatable Christmas bears and dogs?

If he can’t distract us into believing it’s all about gift giving and family shows, then he convinces us that the birth of Christ is nothing but the birth of a tiny helpless baby.

“Isn’t that cute!” Poor little baby Jesus. Jesus the victim of a poor birth to a very young woman in a place of strangers.

What a minute! Jesus is God! It says that in the Bible. Jesus is not the poor little victim. He chose to be born. He chose the time and place of his birth. He chose to become a man so he could offer himself as cleansing for our sin. He chose to die on the cross and he chose to resurrect himself. And he chose to love us enough to offer this gift of salvation to us.

And it gets better! Or worse depending on your choice.

Jesus, the God and king of everything gave us the choice to accept him or reject him. Now I’m not saying that if you have an inflatable Pluto in your yard that you’re evil. But let’s choose this Christmas to really see what it is all about.

Jesus our savior chose to be born. For us.

Now that’s worth celebrating!