What Did You Say?

Why do some atheists embarrass themselves year after year trying to eradicate  Christmas from American culture? Why do they make themselves societal  hemorrhoids during this hallowed season? Is it because they are crusaders for  equality, secularism’s saviors and humanism’s heroes? I’m sure that’s what they  tell themselves when they’re pouting on their couches all alone on Christmas Eve  after every single one of their friends has dumped them for being a rabid  jackass.

I believe, however—and I could be wrong—that the reason some rage against the  machine is that they hate God and love their sin, and bringing up Jesus in  December is not the way they wanted to finish off the year. Indeed, Christ  really rains on their parade … and they love their parade.

Christmas, if you really get down to the brass tacks of it, isn’t about  reindeer, elves, iPhones or Lindsay Lohan punching a gypsy, but about mankind’s  sin problem and what God did to remedy it by sending His Son.

I know the chief facet most people focus on regarding Christ’s birth has been  the peace on earth and good will toward men stuff, but if you dig around in the  gospels a tad you’ll quickly see that the “peace on earth” thing is an ancillary  perk to the main reason the second person of the godhead donned an earth suit  and decided to hang out with us dunderheads. The core cause that necessitated  Jesus’ incarnation was our jacked up carnality. Yep, Hambone, it was our sin.  There, I said it. Sin. Yours, mine and ours.

Transgression was the reason for the season.

This is why El Diablo didn’t pass out cigars at Jesus’ birth. Happy he was  not that the Son was not only going to address our sins but He was going to  eternally and temporally salvage those who believe from sin’s fetid effects.  This is why slewfoot energized Herod to put a hit out on the Nazarene when He  was a wee little baby and why Satan’s demon inspired ilk are anti-Christmas to  this day. Jesus’ birth equated to Satan’s demise.

This is not good news to some, though. Indeed, many atheists are up front  about it and don’t want to leave their wantonness. As Jesus Himself said, they  prefer darkness to light and don’t like to be reminded of their personal  accountability for their sin—and thus their need for salvation—and therefore we  should not expect them to be stoked about Jesus’ birthday party. (John 3:19-20)

This is easy math, folks: A person who has no remorse and thus no desire to  repent from their sins is probably not going to be a big advocate for the  celebration of the person who reminds them they’re wrong and calls them to  repent and believe.

Call me goofy, but I’m forever grateful for Jesus’ birth, His attesting  miracles, His sacrificial death, burial and resurrection. While most atheists  this Christmas will be drinking to forget, I will, as Martin Luther said, drink  to remember the One who was and is and is to come.

About the author: Doug Giles