Rediscovering Christmas: When the Party Overshadows the Purpose
The lights are strung, the carols are playing, and our calendars are filling with festive events. In churches everywhere, choirs are rehearsing, stages are being built, and programs are being polished to perfection. It’s the most wonderful—and busiest—time of the year. But in the whirlwind of tinsel and tradition, a quiet, essential question risks being drowned out: What are we actually celebrating?
The sermon "Why He Came" invites us to step back from the noise and return to the stunning, subversive simplicity of the first Christmas. Using the poignant critique of Isaiah 57, it draws a startling parallel between ancient Israel’s exhausted religious performances and our own modern Christmas celebrations. The people in Isaiah’s time were busy—making more sacrifices, climbing higher mountains, adding more rituals—all while their hearts grew distant from God. They were weary but wouldn’t admit it was hopeless, mistaking activity for intimacy.
Sound familiar?
We, too, can become weary in our well-doing. We plan, we decorate, we perform, all in the name of celebrating Jesus’ birth. But have we, like Isaiah’s audience, subtly replaced heartfelt worship with external production? The sermon challenges us to examine five critical imbalances that can shift our focus from the cradle to the crowd:
The Reversal of Gift and Demand: We can unconsciously act as if God needs our magnificent celebration to feel honored. Yet, the first Christmas was not a demand from heaven but a gift toearth. He came not to be served, but to serve. Are we throwing a party for God, or are we humbly receiving His incredible gift?
The Shift of Focus: Success metrics quietly change. Is it about the perfection of the choir harmony, the number of seats filled, or the liveliness of the atmosphere? When these become primary, Christ’s birth moves from the center to a mere theme.
The Misplacement of Resources: Contrast the manger’s poverty with the sometimes staggering cost of our celebrations. The question isn’t about spending but stewardship: Do our expenditures help people gaze in awe at Christ, or merely at the spectacle we’ve created?
The Alienation of Participants: For many in our congregations—especially our youth—Christmas memories are not of grace and joy, but of duty, performance pressure, and backstage fatigue. When participation becomes "event production" labor, the soul’s chance to receive is lost.
The Dilution of Spiritual Essence: Christmas can easily degrade into a warm, familiar cultural festival. We enjoy the feast and the fellowship but leave untouched by the shocking mystery: The infinite Creator became a vulnerable baby. Awe is replaced by sentimentality.
So, what is the way back?
The path isn’t to cancel Christmas but to re-center it. The sermon doesn’t end with critique but with a hopeful invitation to find balance:
Reposition the Celebration: Let it be a "grateful response to God’s gift," not a "performance for God."
Redirect Resources: Could part of our Christmas budget extend Christ’s love to the poor and lonely in our community?
Redesign Participation: Create spaces for quiet reflection amidst the busyness. Let young people understand the story, not just perform it.
Simplify to Deepen: Sometimes, a small, thoughtful gathering can stir the heart more than a grand production.
The true meaning of Christmas lies in a divine reversal so profound we can never fully grasp it: eternity entered time, glory wrapped in humility. The most splendid part of that first night was not any human activity, but the divine act itself: "God became man."
This year, as the carols ring out, may they call us back to the core. Our calling is not to outdo last year’s celebration, but to be freshly undone by the Savior’s love. The best way to celebrate the One who made Himself small is not with our biggest show, but with our most humble, grateful, and open hearts.
May this Christmas change us once again—not because of the party we threw, but because we paused long enough to remember why He came.