Life is filled with ironies. It seems that things are often just the opposite of what we expect. We are now in the time of year when most of the world at least makes a pretense of acknowledging the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas movies and specials fill the TV log, and holiday music seems to be coming from every corner of the mall as well as the local eatery. People scurry about trying to find that last bargain or the perfect gift for the last person on the Christmas list.

            We understand that the Bible is silent as to the day of the birth of Christ, and in fact it seems that the early Christians paid much less attention to His birth than they did to His life and teachings and especially His death. And that is the way it should be today as well.

            But here is the irony of today’s situation. We get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season just as much as anyone else, and while many will emphasize the “religious” aspects of the holiday, we, who understand the real significance or the birth of Christ may be so busy with cooking, shopping, opening gifts and entertaining family, that we forget all about the One Who is the “reason for the season.”

             Without buying into the mythology of the holiday, shouldn’t we, of all people, especially remember that “when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Galatians 4:4)? How wonderful to know that God loved us so much!

The Reason for the Season

by Bob Prichard

www.oxfordchurchofchrist.com