“……….The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”
1 John 3:8
Christmas in the Burt home is an extremely big deal. We have Christmas traditions you’d expect like attending Christmas Eve service, praying together Christmas morning and possibly reading the Christmas story as a family. We have other not so traditional things we have been doing since the girls were little; on Christmas Eve you get to open one present from under the tree. This is nerve racking because you don’t want to pick out your best present the night before and wreck Christmas morning! On Christmas morning we all open our stockings and then collectively sin as a family by indulging in ‘Sin-A-Bon’. Yes, I know it’s spelled “Cinnabon”, but c’mon, my spelling is much cooler!
For all the laughter and joy of Christmas, I’m sure we all have a few Christmas moments we’d like to forget. For example, one year my daughter Cassie and I were on our annual Daddy/ daughter date to shop for Mom. Christmas tunes were blaring in the car, we were singing and laughing, we were in full on Griswold Christmas mode as we were driving to the mall, when suddenly-BAM!! ….. the car in front of us struck a deer that had darted out into the street. Screeching of brakes, screams of horror as we had to watch this deer die a slow death in front of us. Talk about a buzzkill!
OR, have you ever received a BAD Christmas gift? One year my wife of 30 years, (who by the way ‘GIFTS’ are her ‘Love Language’) bought me motorized nose hair trimmers! And I do mean motorized. The thing was so big I believe it was gas powered with a headlight on the front. Nothing says I LOVE YOU like nose hair trimmers. Thank you??!!
I do want to share one Christmas story though. The first Christmas that was particularly bad for one individual. The book of Genesis records the story of Adam and Eve believing the serpents lie and ultimately forfeiting a relationship with God for a piece of fruit. But before humanity was thrust from Eden, God gave a promise, “the seed of the woman would one day crush the serpent’s head. (Gen 3:15)” A heavenly hit was put out on Satan from almighty God Himself! I’m guessing that put a bit of angst in the heart of Satan. Years of waiting to be destroyed by the seed of the woman. Would it be Eve’s first son Cain? Cain too, would be deceived by sin and kill his brother Abel. Years later, a righteous man named Noah would come on the scene. Noah means ‘rest’. Would this be the seed of the woman that would bring God’s people rest? Sin would get Noah too, as towards the end of his life we find him drunk and naked. Maybe it would be Moses? His name means ‘drawn out’. Would he be the chosen one, drawn out by God to crush the serpent’s head? Moses would prove unworthy and unstable. Fast forward hundreds of years to another hero, David. His name means ‘beloved of God’. Although he could slay giants, he couldn’t control the lustful sin in his own heart, and he too would be found unworthy. Sin won again.
This pattern would continue for hundreds of years. From the last book of your Old Testament, Malachi, to the first book of the New Testament, Matthew is 400 yrs. 400 years of silence, no great prophet, no great hope. Just silence. Had the devil won?…….
SPOILER ALERT: The deafening silence would be shattered one silent night in a little town of Bethlehem. With the scream of a newborn child born in a manger, the heavens ripped open and the angelic heavenly hosts appeared and cried out. ‘Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests’. The seed of the woman had arrived to destroy the works of the devil, to crush the serpent’s head. Jesus would live the perfect life others could not, He would die on the cross in our place, and rise the 3rd day………but I think I’ll save that part of the story for Easter.
Merry Christmas Every Nation!!