We left Starbucks as trendy young professionals and employees all shouted out to us “Merry Christmas!” – at their own initiative, with smiles on their faces. Secular teenage and twenty-something employees – tattoos, body piercings, strange dyes in their hair, unusual makeup-- people who have been saying, at best, “Happy Holidays” but, usually, “Have a good day”-- wishing us a joyful and “Merry Christmas!” How did this come about????
Well, the 23rd of December is a big day for us. On this day, Eleanor and I go around and give our outreach Christmas bags to merchants and individuals we have been cultivating throughout the year and, especially, the last three months.
It is always easier to tear down than to build up. It is always easier to criticize and complain, than to praise and witness for Christ. God the Holy Spirit specifically teaches us in Proverbs 16:24 “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Again, God the Holy Spirit teaches us in Proverbs 15:1-2 “A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, But the mouth of fools spouts folly.”
Did you know that one of the difficulties I have faced in this project is the harsh words Christians have begun to say to merchants during the Christmas season? This is a relatively new phenomenon. It is true that Christmas is about Jesus. It is also true that secular governments and merchants are moving away from a Christ-centered Christmas. It is equally true, though, that neither governments nor merchants are responsible for the doctrinal purity of the Incarnation of Christ, nor are they responsible for the proclamation of the Good News of salvation which this Incarnation made possible. Both of these roles are the sole responsibility of the Church and of individual Christians. The key to keeping Christ in Christmas is not forcing Muslim, Hindu, Jewish and secular pagans to say “Merry Christmas” and to celebrate the birth of Christ against their will. The key to keeping Christ in Christmas is for Christians to lay the groundwork for sharing the gospel through love and an exemplary life (which includes speech) and, then, to build upon this groundwork at Christmas and throughout the year by sharing the gospel.
Now I understand and share the frustration of satan’s successful hi-jacking of the celebration of the Incarnation of Christ and turning it into a riotous holiday. More alcohol is purchased Christmas Eve than any other day of the year. More debt is incurred in the name of Christmas than for any other holiday. Movies, TV shows and the internet are flooded with licentiousness, immorality, riotous living, violence and profanity – all in the name of Christmas. The application to this frustration, though, is not to lash out in anger at the non-Christians around us. These poor souls are not the enemy – satan is the enemy. God the Holy Spirit clearly teaches us this truth in Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” The non-Christians around us who so abuse Christmas do so because they are the enslaved population of satan – again, God the Holy Spirit teaches us in Ephesians 2:1-2 “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” Our response is not anger and wrath (that will come soon enough if they are not led to Christ by a caring and compassionate Christian). Instead, our response should be the loving proclamation of the Gospel of Christ. God the Holy Spirit teaches us this in 2 Timothy 2:24-26 “The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”
The question that should be asked, both reflectively during our daily quiet time alone with God, as well as from the pulpit, Sunday School class or Bible study is not “When was the last time you forced a non-Christian merchant to say ‘Merry Christmas’?” The question is not “When was the last time you rebuked a non-Christian merchant for not saying ‘Merry Christmas’?” The questions we should all be asking ourselves are “When was the last time you, in gentleness and patience, shared Christ with a merchant with whom you frequently do business?” “When was the last time you asked a merchant, ‘Would you like to pray now to receive Christ as your Lord and Savior’?”
Now we return to Starbucks on December 23rd. I arrived with evangelistic gift bags for all the employees. This is why, not only the employees were celebrating, but those in the store were also touched by our remembering these baristas on this busy shopping day. In addition, we visited merchants whom we frequent, dropping off our Christmas evangelistic bags. We visited the local military recruiting station and dropped off our Christmas evangelistic bags, along with coffee break goodies. We visited neighbors to drop off a Christmas evangelistic bag. We included those who perform services for us. It is our hope that, because of this, they will receive Christ, be born again and proclaim Christ through the market place, because of their thankfulness to the Savior for their new life in Christ.
Now you may ask, “What is this bag”? We have posted pictures on our GCI Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/gciweb It is a Christmas bag, decorated with festive tissue paper. Inside is a New Testament, a Four Spiritual Laws booklet, a Christmas tract, a candy cane with story attached and an evangelistic book – this year each will contain Josh McDowell’s “More Than a Carpenter” or Lee Strobel’s “Case for Christ.”
Board member Dan McCollum and his wife Judy made sure that all those who perform services for them throughout the year received an evangelistic Christmas gift bag. Board member Rich Smith shared with me that his wife Cathy keeps a bag of candy canes with the story of the candy cane attached and hands them out whenever she goes through a drive-through line at the bank, fast-food store, cleaners or toll booth. What a testimony and what a great idea!!
I tell those in my Bible studies that whoever complains about the commercialism of Christmas has to give all their gifts to the poor. However, that is not the best application. The real application is to praise God that, during this season, we are employed, we can afford to buy gifts for family and friends, our country is blessed with prosperity and the viability of many a store and shop is assured because of a good ending to the year in terms of sales.
In the same manner, I encourage those who have spent the last few weeks rebuking non-Christians for not proclaiming Christ to repent. Begin to use kind words to create openings for the Gospel. Give generous evangelistic gifts to the lost and appeal to them in gentleness and kindness to turn from their sins and be born again.
Remember the angels did not say to the shepherd, “You are all going to Hell because you are not at the manger worshiping the Savior!!” Instead, God the Holy Spirit reveals to us in Luke 2:8-15: 8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, " Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 " This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 " Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased." 15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us."
Christmas is past but the New Year is upon us. It is not too late to change the Christmas evangelistic gift bag to a New Year’s gift bag. Won’t you prayerfully make a list and then share the Good News of Christ with those merchants whom you frequent? This is such a wonderful time to proclaim Christ. I encourage you to not let such a natural opportunity pass you by.
By His mercy, II Corinthians 4:1 Rev. John S. Mahon Director – Grace Community International
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