What really matters

This will be the last post before Christmas. I wish all a Merry Christmas and my prayer is Jesus is your reason for the season.
As we approach the Christmas event of the year let us stop for a moment to consider what all this is about. Surely we aren’t serious about a peasant boy being born in a stable some 200 years ago. We had better be serious. For that was the greatest Christmas gift ever given to this entire world. The creator of heaven and earth just gave this world His only begotten son. He gave him to us knowing full well some 33 years later he would be hung on a cruel cross giving us a second gift of greater magnitude. There this carpenters’ boy son of the living Go would give his life so that we might be saved. He also knew that gift of the life of His son was the only way we would ever be able to come into His presence. So that was the reason for the season. God gave a life so we might have life and that life more abundantly.
Somehow we have managed to twist that into something that I am not sure even God recognizes any more. Originally the name Christmas meant Christ Mass or a religious ceremony to celebrate the birth of the Christ child by the Catholic church. It was a church service not a political event. I was a solemn event and one of great joy and celebration.
For today's Christian, the origin of Christmas is, and should be, the birth of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Bible. Nothing more and nothing less. However, most of what we witness on December 25th each year has absolutely nothing to do with that blessed day, which probably occurred in late summer or early fall about 2,000 years ago. In fact, most of the customs and traditions of Christmas actually pre-date the birth of Jesus, and many of them are downright deceptive in their meaning and origin. . Here are a few examples:

The date of December 25th probably originated with the ancient "birthday" of the son-god, Mithra, a pagan deity whose religious influence became widespread in the Roman Empire during the first few centuries A.D. Mithra was related to the Semitic sun-god, Shamash, and his worship spread throughout Asia to Europe where he was called Deus Sol Invictus Mithras. Rome was well-known for absorbing the pagan religions and rituals of its widespread empire. As such, Rome converted this pagan legacy to a celebration of the god, Saturn, and the rebirth of the sun god during the winter solstice period. The winter holiday became known as Saturnalia and began the week prior to December 25th. The festival was characterized by gift-giving, feasting, singing and downright debauchery, as the priests of Saturn carried wreaths of evergreen boughs in procession throughout the Roman temples.

Variations of this pagan holiday flourished throughout the first few centuries after Jesus Christ, but it probably wasn't until 336 AD that Emperor Constantine officially converted this pagan tradition into the "Christian" holiday of Christmas.
The question now arises: How did all of these customs find their way into contemporary Christianity, ranging from Catholicism to Protestantism to fundamentalist churches?
The word "Christmas"itself reveals who married paganism to Christianity.
The word "Christmas" is a combination of the words "Christ" and "Mass.
The word "Mass" means death and was coined originally by the Roman Catholic Church, and belongs exclusively to the church of Rome.
The ritual of the Mass involves the death of Christ, and the distribution of the "Host", a word taken from the Latin word "hostiall" meaning victim!
In short, Christmas is strictly a Roman Catholic word.
A simple study of the tactics of the Roman Church reveals that in every case, the church absorbed the customs, traditions and general paganism of every tribe, culture and nation in their efforts to increase the number of people under their control.
In short, the Roman church told all of these pagan cultures, "Bring your gods, goddesses, rituals and rites, and we will assign Christian sounding titles and names to them.
When Martin Luther started the reformation on October 31st, 1517, and other reformers followed his lead, all of them took with them the paganism that was so firmly imbedded in Rome.
These reformers left Christmas intact.
In England, as the authorized Bible became available to the common people by the decree of King James the II in 1611, people began to discover the pagan roots of Christmas, which are clearly revealed in Scripture.
The Puritans in England, and later in Massachusetts Colony, outlawed this holiday as witchcraft.
Near the end of the nineteenth century, when other Bible versions began to appear, there was a revival of the celebration of Christmas.
We are now seeing ever-increasing celebrating of Christmas or Yule, its true name, as we draw closer to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In both witchcraft circles and contemporary Christian churches, the same things are going on.
As the Bible clearly states in Jeremiah 10:2-4, "Thus saith the Lord, learn not the way of the heathen; and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven. For the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain. For one cutteth a tree out of the forest. The work of the hands of the workman with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold. They fasten it with nails and with hammers that it move not."

What Really Matters?
The true origin of Christmas is filled with controversy and compromise. A quick study will reveal a number of disturbing roots that we haven't been able to cover in this brief article. In short, the Christmas holiday we celebrate today is indicative of Christianity's willingness to absorb the world's customs and traditions, and forget its simple roots in the historical reality of Jesus Christ. Christmas should be nothing more than a simple, yet wonderful reminder of Christ's humble beginning as a human child in this world. His birth merely set the stage for the power, glory, and salvation that would be revealed in His life, death, and resurrection! Whether it's December 25th, sometime in late September, or any other day of the year, we should use each and every opportunity to reflect on Jesus Christ and His message of hope for all of us.
Let us reflect on the manger that shows humility. Jesus had a humble beginning and his life was one that taught humility and caring. The story told to the shepherds on the hill side shows God was excited about His son and the gift He was giving to the world. The host of heaven proclaimed his birth and the heavens rang with their song. God’s gift was given to all. Kings and common alike came to see the Christ child. Each brought gifts to give to Jesus. Each brought their very best. The bible says they opened their treasures; the Kings brought gold, frankincense and myrrh. Notice one very important thing each person who came to see the baby in the manger did before they gave their gifts. The all fell down and worshipped him. For each knew who he was and why he came. God placed that on each heart. He in effect gave each a gift that night a gift of love and hope for a better world to come.
So then we have a picture of what and how we are to give gifts this Christmas. On His birthday we are to fall down and worship Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords the savior of the world and our eternal souls. Then we are to offer the best we have to give. We should give Jesus ourselves for that is what he came for to save. What will you give Jesus this Christmas day?