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Putting Christ Back In ChristmasWhen I was a child there was a movement, communicated of course through bumper stickers that said, “Put Christ back in Christmas!” I remember asking my father, “Dad, what does that bumper sticker mean?” He said, “That bumper sticker is aimed at us Jews. Christians want to make sure that Christmas is not celebrated by anyone other than Christians.” I later learned that was not precisely the meaning of the bumper sticker, “Put Christ back in Christmas.” I think the slogan was a response to the tendency to reduce the word “Christmas” to “Xmas” and to substitute Santa and Boughs of Holly for Jesus.But putting Christ back in Christmas is not enough. We need to make sure we have the real Christ and not a Christ of our own inventing. There are any numbers of false Christs wandering around America today that are counterfeits of the real Christ. For example, in America we have: 1. The Inoffensive Christ – Churches have become aware of negative criticism by outsiders to the Christian faith regarding church and common sermon topics such as judgment and hell. In response to outsiders’ negative perceptions, many churches have promoted the “Inoffensive Christ” – an irrepressibly positive Jesus, who came into the world to help us to feel good about ourselves, to boost our self-esteem, and to encourage us to live extraordinary lives right now. The trouble with the inoffensive, completely positive Jesus is that it is difficult to understand why such an inoffensive and positive message would get someone nailed to a wooden cross. 2. The “Create Your Own Savior” Christ – Americans are the ultimate consumers, “Give me a Vente Extra-Hot, Non-Fat, No-Whip, Extra-Caramel, Caramel Macchiato, and make sure the caramel is sugar-free.” It is that consumer mindset that has created 350 brands of cold medicines and the 5-7-9 Clothing Store that sells women’s clothes in only sizes 5, 7 and 9. We then apply this consumer mindset to Jesus. “I just love it when Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, ‘Neither do I condemn you’ (I am not particularly interested in the rest of his statement, ‘Go and sin no more!’). And I love when Jesus skewered the Pharisees, especially about their hypocrisy. But I am not particularly enthusiastic about what Jesus said regarding divorce and remarriage. So I think I will remake Jesus with only the features that I want and create my own Savior.” 3. The Political Christ – In the most recent election, the incumbent governor of Kentucky was running for re-election. He was behind in the polls because of corruption scandals in his administration. In a move that many people saw as a desperate last-minute courting of evangelicals, the Kentucky governor decided to post the Ten Commandments in the State House. In other words, he attempted to use biblical symbols to gain political power. He lost! Whenever Christ is used to promote a political agenda, we lose. I find more and more people both inside and outside of the church turned off by both the political right and the political left. And yet, amazingly, both inside and outside the church, people are excited about the agenda of Jesus. He tilts towards the marginalized; he bridges racial divides; he cares for creation; and, he works for peace. We Christians are always called to promote Jesus and not our political biases. 4. The Fault-Finding Christ – Jesus is represented by many Christians as being quick to point out the faults and moral failings of others, particularly those who are gay, who have had children out of wedlock, or who have failed in their marriages. I have found that a critical distinction between being judgmental or instead, being lovingly righteous has to do with whether I focus upon an issue or I focus upon a person. Someone recently wrote to me and asked, “How in the world can you be suggesting that we promote peaceful coexistence with Islam? Don’t you know that Islam is a false religion?” They then pointed out the errors they believed were present in the Islamic faith. I wrote back and said, “Frankly, I’m not terribly interested in Islam, although I was a comparative religion major. But I am very interested in Muslims and I believe that Jesus is very interested in Muslims.” I am becoming less and less interested in debating homosexuality, but I know that Jesus is passionately interested in bringing gay men and women into relationship with himself. We frequently hear people on Christian radio say, “Well, really what we Christians must do is hate the sin, but love the sinner.” Whenever someone says that, I know the person is probably going to bash both sin and sinner in the next sentence. I want to hear Christians say, “Really, I am passionately interested in helping people find Jesus. He is responsible to save them from their sins!” Imagine if at Christmas this year you and I embraced the real Christ. Who is the real Christ? 1. He is the Compassionate Christ – Compassion, as you might know, is a compound word. It is made up of the root “com” which means “with” and “passio” which means “suffer.” Jesus is compassionate because he suffers with us. He draws near to suffering people and does not turn away from them. Following the compassionate Christ this Christmas might mean that we choose to spend a portion of our gift giving not on ourselves, or on our already well-supplied loved ones, but on the poor. Here is a suggestion: How about if you got in touch with www.heifer.org and together with family members purchased a water buffalo, or a llama, or a flock of chickens for a poor family in a third world country. That gift will change a family’s life for a generation and it will cost less than an X-Box or another piece of jewelry. 2. The Fearless Christ – The fearless Christ is not afraid to go into the most difficult situations so that he might restore and heal the most broken people. The most difficult situations include prisons, nursing homes, homeless camps, foreign countries, and biology classes at universities. Is there any place on earth that Jesus is asking you to go this next year that will require you to share his spirit of fearlessness? 3. The Relational Christ – Christ wants to draw each of us into a deeper relationship with himself this Christmas. He wants us to know him more deeply than we do right now. He wants us to fall in love with him and to have him at the center of our lives. Embracing the relational Christ means that it is not enough for us to set out a manger scene or decorate our homes or our Christmas trees. Jesus wants us, not just our houses. Putting Christ back in Christmas is more than a slogan. It is a radical challenge! The only question for you and me is which Christ is going to be at the center of our Christmas holidays: the real Christ or a pretender? |
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