It is Christmas Eve! What a great day to be in church. I love Christmas. Many people do! Spending time with family, giving gifts, watching kids open gifts, eating together, making memories, etc. It is meant to be a season of joy, peace, love, thankfulness, and faith. It is the season in which we celebrate the birth, or conception, of Christ.
Today we will be looking at the Christmas story from a different angle. Over the past month we have been going though a series on the Armor of God. We are looking at how we as Christians can be prepared for the spiritual battle that is happening around us. With that said, I wanted to continue in the same vein and look at the Christmas Story through that same lens. Jesus has already been born. Lets take a look at the account in Matthew.
Matthew 2:1-4 ESV
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.”
Let’s keep reading…
Matthew 2:7-12 ESV
“Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.”
It is important that we keep Jesus at the center of Christmas.
Matthew 2:16
“16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.”
Wow, what a sad outcome for Bethlehem and the towns surrounding it. A moment that was meant to be about the joy and peace that was brought through the birth of Jesus became about the envy and jealousy of Herod. So much so that He was willing to do anything and everything to eliminate what he believed to be a threat to his throne. He did the unthinkable. How sad.
What would drive him to do something so evil? What would drive anyone to do something so destructive? In a season where peace on earth and goodwill to all men had become a reality, what would drive someone to be that evil? The answer is simple. God has a plan, but so does the devil.
God’s plan was that the son of God would be sent to the earth, born of a virgin, live, die, be buried, and then raised from the dead, alive. His plan was that this little child would bring forgiveness to all mankind. His plan was that this child would open the door for all to be saved. However, the devil had a plan as well. His plan was to do everything he could to remove Jesus from the picture. So what did he do? He enticed Herod. He influenced him. He made him believe that this newborn child was a threat. He made him believe that the best way to protect his throne was to eliminate this child, even if it meant killing quite a number of children in the process. Herod was not fulfilling God’s plan. He was fulfilling the devil’s plan.
As I mentioned before, along with the gifts, food, spending time with family, etc, Christmas is meant to be a season of joy, peace, love, thankfulness, and faith. It is the season in which we celebrate the birth of Christ. That is what Christmas is about.
However, it doesn’t take much for Christmas to become a season of stress, complaining, jealousy, envy, impatience, complaining, anger, etc. It has the potential of bringing out the worst in us. The Christmas traffic, the rush into stores, gifts being out of stock, people being rude and short out of frustration, so on and so forth.
How is it that the Christmas season that is meant to be filled with peace, joy, and faith becomes a time of stress, frustration, and anger? The answer is simple. God has a plan for you and your family this season, but so does the devil.
God has a plan for you. He has a plan for all of mankind. His plan for us this season is that our eyes would be pointed to Jesus. To bring peace in your home, joy to be in your heart, faith to rise up, goodness, and patience. His desire is that His spirit would rest in your home. His desire is that there would be peace in your family and your relationship. God’s desire is that you would be blessed this season.
However, the devil wants to do the opposite. He wants to do everything he can to take our eyes off of Jesus. He wants to blind us from God’s blessings in our life. He wants us to feel cheated, to feel wronged, mistreated, like everything is going wrong. He wants to give us reason to take our eyes off of Jesus and focus on the bad, the negative. He wants to flip and twist what Christmas is all about. Why? This is what he does.
As I mentioned before, we have been going through a series on the Armor of God here in the first service. We have learned that as Christians we are encouraged to put on armor because there is a spiritual battle taking place all around us. It takes place in the spiritual realm. This battle is for the souls of men. The devil’s desire is to do everything he can to lead people away from God. Reading this Christmas story, we can see the same spiritual battle taking place then as well. The devil tried to destroy Jesus, he tried to tempt Jesus, and he tried to kill Jesus. Even then, satan was waging war against God.
Now, the devil was defeated at the cross. One day he will be destroyed, and he wants to take as many people with him as he can. He does this through deception. His goal is to keep as many people from knowing God as possible. What a terrible reality.
However, he has been doing this since the beginning:
Creation of man - serpent in the garden
One God - The setup of idols
New bloodline of Israel- devil tried to destroy it
It is no different in the Christmas story. Jesus was sent to the earth, was miraculously conceived in Mary, and was born in Bethlehem. This was the Son of God, the one who would take away the sins of the world. He was born as a child. Peace on earth! Joy to the world! The savior of the world was born. Shepherds, inspired by God, went to see Jesus. Wise men, inspired by God, went to see Jesus.
Herod, inspired by the devil, tried to kill Jesus. What was a moment of joy and peace turned into a time of mourning and pain. The devil was at war with God then, trying to destroy what God meant for good.
However, the devil would not win. Jesus went on to grow in stature, began His ministry, went to the cross, died, rose again, and ascended into heaven at the right hand of God. He paid for our sins, He defeated sin, death, hell, and the grave. Namely, He defeated the devil.
Today, this Christmas, the devil is still trying to destroy God’s plan. He wants to remove Jesus as the reason for the season. He doesn’t want peace in your life. He doesn’t want you to experience joy in your home. He wants you to hold on to bitterness, to recall unforgiveness, to be frustrated, etc. He wants you to forget all about the reasons why we celebrate Christmas. You see, the devil has a plan for your life this Christmas. However, God has a greater plan for you.
His desire is that Jesus would be at the center of your life.
His desire is that Jesus would be passed down to your children.
His desire is that Jesus would be passed down to your children’s children.
His desire is that you would have peace in your relationships.
… that you would have joy in the midst of your circumstances.
… that you would experience the love of God this season.
… that you would be blessed.
Matthew 2:13-15 ESV
“Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod…”
God will always provide and protect His plan for your life.
God provided a way for Joseph and Mary to protect baby Jesus from Herod’s evil rule. The devil wanted the baby dead, but God wasn’t going to let that happen.
What is God’s plan? That Jesus would be the center of it all.
He is the reason for the season.
Takeaways:
This Christmas, let us:
Romans 8:28 - “28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
This Christmas, realize there is a spiritual battle happening around you. The devil wants to remove Jesus as the reason for the season. However, he wasn’t successful then and he does not have to be successful today. Work with God to keep Jesus as the reason for the season, give to God what the devil meant to destroy, and allow God to use you to fulfill His plan in your life and in someone else’s life as well.
