Tradition vs. Salvation

“…a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”  Luke 2:11 (NIV)

 Props: any number of things that symbolize “traditional” Christmas celebrations (e.g., Santa Clause/reindeer, presents, Christmas tree, decorations, lights, candy, fireplace setting, etc.)

 Make the things you use interactive.  You may want to do any one or more of the following, or come up with your own ideas:  Read portions of “’Twas the Night Before Christmas,” by Clement Clarke Moore.  You can have “Santa” come out and have a few workers question him (How could he be at 3 malls at the same time?).  Decorate the Christmas tree, wrap presents or hand out pieces of holiday candy as you talk.   

             I was doing a little research about Christmas lately and I was surprised by what I learned.  Many of the holiday traditions we have at Christmas began long before Jesus was born.  Lighting “yuletide” fires, parties and celebrations in late December, giving gifts to one another and other traditions all have a history in other religions and cultures around the world.  Many of the things we do at the holidays have nothing to do with Jesus.  They’re just things that people do to have fun. 

            I hope I’m not the first to tell you, but Santa isn’t real.  Reindeer don’t fly.  There is not toy factory at the North Pole and elves don’t exist.  They’re all just a part of our holiday traditions and fun.  But it’s important to remember the reason we have to celebrate; Jesus is the reason for the season.

            Long ago some church leaders decided that they didn’t like all the celebrations in December, because not only did they have nothing to do with Jesus, some of the traditions thousands of years ago were evil.  Some of them even celebrated other gods.  So the church leaders decided to celebrate Jesus’ birth in December while everyone else was celebrating false gods and evil.  Over hundreds of years, all of the old traditions mixed in with the celebration of Jesus’ birth.  Then new traditions—like Santa Clause—were added.  So today we have one big mix of old traditions, new traditions and the celebration of Jesus’ birth.

            Our traditions and celebrations are fun, but the problem with traditions is that they are all centered around a short season and made up stories.  If all you celebrate is Santa, presents, candy, trees and lights, you’ll be disappointed.  These things won’t make you happy forever.    

 Traditions can bring fun and happiness for a short time; Jesus brings joy that lasts. 

Traditions last for a season; Jesus’ love goes on all year.

Traditions change; Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.

 You can have fun with all these traditions, but remember that Jesus is the reason for the season.