Miscellaneous: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! - Ron

MERRY
The term means cheerful and lively. It is a description of joyful festivities. For many people, the holidays are indeed ‘merry’. But why? In Luke 12, Jesus tells of a man who was pridefully at rest in his wealth. This caused the man to relax and be merry. In other words, “I’ve got it made in the shade. It is time to rejoice over my wealth and myself.” In Luke 15, Jesus tells of a man who was excitedly rejoicing over his lost son. The purpose of his merry festivities rested in God’s goodness. “My son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.”

Merriment can be found in many things. But not all are worthy of our joy, and not many endure the harsh realities of life. If one is in Christ, he has been raised to life; lost and found. This is reason indeed to be merry. And not just during the holidays, but every day of the year.

CHRISTMAS
The incarnation of Christ was neither the beginning for the Son of God nor the plan of redemption. But, even so, Christmas is the stuff of beginnings. “A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices. For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!” The long awaited Messiah had come. For those who would see Him, like Simeon, hope could be held. God broke into the world in a new way when Christ was born. A glorious truth is this: the Son of God wrapped in humanity, tempted as we are yet without sin, is our faithful High Priest able to enter into our pain and struggle. Because it behoved Him to be made like us, God came in the flesh (Hebrews 2:17). Apart from Scripture we would never dare believe it. And yet, “He knows our need. To our weakness is no stranger. Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend.”(1)

Perhaps this year has seen hope fade in your life. Maybe your faith has faltered. Today, begin again in worship. We cannot hold Him in our hands, but we can hold Him in our hearts. Originally Christ Mass, or, the worship of Christ, the reason for the season is in the name.

AND
As a conjunction the word carries an important function. It means addition, as in, “Oh wait, there’s more.” Whether or not this is a welcome conjunction depends entirely on the context and circumstances. In the context of the holiday season, merry and happy because of Christmas and the new year. Is there a reason inherent in the passing of one year into the next for which we ought to be happy? Likely not. For many, New Year’s Day is synonymous with hope for change and improvement. And for most, the end of January marks the end of those hopes for change.

Jesus shows the variety of the word in John 10:10, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Here’s the deal, if your hope for happiness in the new year is resting in anything but Jesus, you are hoping in a thief. And this thief will steal. That’s not good, but there’s more! The thief will also kill. Not great either, but there’s more! The thief will destroy. Contrarily, you can put your hope in Christ and find life. But wait, there’s more! Life in Christ is, as Gill writes, “the life of sons: eternal life, and besides life, an abundance of grace from Christ, all spiritual blessings in Him now, and all fulness of joy, glory, and happiness hereafter.”

HAPPY
Has any feeling eluded more people, more of the time, than happiness? If there is one thing on which we can agree, it is that happiness is fleeting. In our English Bible, Jesus used the word one time. In John 13, Jesus washes His disciples’ feet as an example of true servanthood. An example that His followers are supposed to, you know, actually follow. But Jesus reminds us that happiness is not found in knowledge or mere acknowledgment. Happiness (or blessing) is found in life application (John 13:17). You want to set yourself up for happiness in 2022? Set out to be a servant!

NEW
“It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23).” Specifically, it was God’s mercy that Jeremiah had not died in prison and that Israel (as a people) had not been completely destroyed. F.B. Meyer adds, “If only we would turn from our griefs to the mercies, compassions, and goodness of the Lord, there would be light in our darkest dungeons. Let us be at least sure of this, that the Lord will neither cast out nor cast off. He may hide His face for a moment, but with everlasting kindness He will have mercy, according to the multitude of His compassions.”(2)

May God bring these truths to you in your time of need, and when you doubt, may the Holy Spirit preach them to you.

YEAR
In Luke 4, Jesus likens Himself to a priest announcing the acceptable year of the Lord. There is a time and a season for everything. Only you and God knows which ways He has been growing and shaping you. What you don’t know, however, is how long your windows of opportunity will stay open. If you’ve never placed your faith and trust in Christ, then today is the day of salvation. That window may close at any time on account of your death or Christ’s return. Maybe there is something God has been calling you to or from. There’s only time while there is time. Step out on faith and do what He has called you to do!

And so, merry Christmas and happy New Year!

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(1) Christmas hymn; O holy night; Contributor Names: Adam, Adolphe. Created / Published: Sudds, W. F., 1883, monographic.

(2( F.B. Meyer Bible Commentary, 1979, Tyndale House Publishing.