Christmas is one of the most celebrated Christian holidays of the year, but what is the true meaning of Christmas? It is the celebration of the beautiful birth of Jesus Christ our Savior .. but is there more?
Christmas appears zero times in the Bible. But in the New International Version of the Bible, “Christ” appears 453 times!
In order to understand the word CHRISTmas I decided to look at the two syllables that make up this word we have grown to celebrate annually...
The word is a shortened form of "Christ's mass", or "Cristes Maesse" as it was first recorded in 1038.
Christ was the title given to Jesus. It was not His given name. It actually comes from the Greek word Christos which means "anointed one" or "chosen one.".
The second syllable “mass” comes from The English word “Mass” which comes from the Latin word missa, which means to be “sent.” This Latin word has been used since the 6th or 7th century. The mass is the gathering of people to celebrate the life of Jesus. This practice is the ritual we know as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper.
So to summarize the word CHRISTmas: it is a word that was given to a Christian event that has celebrated the birth of Jesus since Dec. 25, 336 AD.
It is the annual celebration of “anointed” one. The style of this celebration is the drinking of wine and eating of bread to remember our beautiful Savoir.
So how and when did this monumental day become so commercialized? When did we decide to give this “gift“ an annual birthday celebration? Do we even celebrate its true significance? Or do we get caught up in all the materialistic trappings?
This tiny newborn life that we celebrate on Christmas, comes from the very essence of God our Creator. We know Him as the son of God. This beautiful soul came to earth to live and taste life. He wanted to understand first-hand man's journey and how to live life as a human. He wanted to teach us a value system that would bless our lives... He is our living example of how to conduct ourselves with others... He allowed men to take His life in order to offer us a way home and to clean our transgressions before our Heavenly Father... He came to us as a gift with a mission...
So as we break bread, and pour the wine in celebration ... Take a few moments.. and put those shiny new gifts aside.. and let’s bow our heads ... and truly thank Him for being the reason we are blessed to gather today... He is the reason we celebrate life... It’s because of Him that we have been able to share in God's human anointing... We can further discover in 1 Samuel 16:13; Matthew 25:1-13 that the act of anointing symbolizes the Holy Spirit.
So are we to understand CHRISTmas... Is Jesus Christ the anointed one.. He is God, the man, that has been sent to us as the deliverer and He reigns as promised under the title of Messiah.. the expected king.
Mass is the gathering of the masses.. To share in the beautiful gift of life. I can only bow my head and thank Him ... The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit for His abundant love. His abundant grace and His patience as I unravel the many clues He has given us.
It makes me smile when I see how He has woven every celebration, every word, every gift... to Him... Because He knows that our lives are much like a butterfly ... We come to earth and stay in the dormant state of our cocoon... Until the day, His love breaks our spirit free and we become alive... This transformation begins our migration home to Our Creator.
Today I celebrate His life, His Love. His gift of the anointed one Jesus Christ... He is my masterpiece of splendid wonder... I appreciate Him beyond this life... He WOWs me...
It’s Him, It’s always Him
Merry CHRISTmas
Hmm, 🤔 More clues to this amazing heavenly puzzle? ...are we ready??
Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; Revelations 19:7 ESV
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). Matthew 1:23
“Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne. “Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.” Revelation 3:21-22 NLT
Photography & Written by Lori Garner
Bible Verses from KJV, ESV / Sinner's Prayer
Inspiring music from YouTube
You're Here Francesca Battistelli - Mary & Jesus Christmas Music Video
