Holy Holidays
As we enter the holiday season it seems fitting to remember where this whole idea of a holiday (holy day) originated. Everything has its roots. However, those roots are often forgotten and sometimes that forgetting lays hard on the ones who forgot. We are a forgetful people. We are not alone. The human race is a forgetful people. The Israelites were forgetful people, and for Christians, they are us—the true Israel of God.
Our spiritual ancestors were commanded to celebrate three feasts each year; the feasts of Passover, the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Booths (Deuteronomy 16). These national holidays were to be marked by celebration and feasting. God’s people were to remember that God brought them out of Egypt where they had been slaves. They were to be thankful for their liberty and God’s grace toward them. This is worth remembering, that they were commanded to feast and celebrate as a nation.
Here we are several thousand years later entering what we call our holiday season. Our holy days have been compromised and torn down by the surrounding humanist culture and by our own inattention. Like Israel we have three holy days that are generally celebrated by us nationally, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter (which our church now calls Resurrection Day in an excellent retaking by the redeemed). The unredeemed culture around us works continually to remove any Biblical significance from these days. Thanksgiving is called Turkey Day, Christmas has become an inflated Santa, and Easter is little more that an egg hunt that extends to the White House lawn. Turkey with trimmings, zirconious gifts, and chocolate bunnies, have replaced humble contrition with thanks to God, remembering the Christ Child, and contemplation of the cross. Instead of celebrating the bounty of our God and the liberty He brings we celebrate our stuff. As a nation we are a fickle and shallow people.
To God’s people I am saying let us not forget the great things, the mighty things, the eternal things. Our forefathers were told to celebrate and not to forget. We too must never forget the wonderful grace He has shown us and the liberty that was once ours. If we return to Him He will return to us. His promises are sure. Maybe like Israel we need to travel a day’s journey into the desert to worship our God. We need to create space between us and the suffocation of the surrounding—everything. We need to be done with our worship of the world and its treasures. I am thinking now, during these holidays, we will celebrate our God and His Christ. Let the world celebrate their stuff.
For Christian Civilization,
Don Schanzenbach
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Suspender Man™, Don Schanzenbach, has long been an outspoken advocate of recapturing culture for Christ. He holds a MA in applied Biblical studies and a doctorate in applied theological studies in the field of political philosophy and government from New Geneva Seminary. He has been thinking, writing and speaking on Christian culture for two decades.
Super-Duper site! I am loving it!! Will come back again – taking you feeds also, Thanks.