But while we remember and rejoice that Jesus came, we must also call to mind the reason for His coming. Jesus was born because we are broken. He took on flesh because we are consumed by it. He descended to earth because we have all, every one, delved into the depths of depravity. Sin is the reason Jesus came to die and before we can truly experience the love, joy, peace and hope of the season, we must acknowledge our dire and desperate need for Him.
Yes, Christmas is very much about love, joy, peace and hope, but it is also about sin. Without the cataclysm of sin, there is no need for the coming of Christ. You see, sin isn't an action problem. It's not as simple as changing a few behaviors and doing some good deeds. Sin is in our very nature. And if sin is not a simple problem, then it doesn't have a simple solution. We can't fix sin with education, social reform or personal morals. Politics and policies will not avail us. The only solution, the solution God determined from the foundation of the world, is the cross of Jesus Christ.
At its very core, sin is dissatisfaction with God. It is this dissatisfaction that prompted Eve to reach for the forbidden fruit and that drives us to make gods of money, careers, possessions and other people. We are unsatisfied with God and so we seek to satisfy ourselves. Sin makes us creatures of lust, cravings, jealousy, envy, prideful ambition and strife. We comfort ourselves with food, drink, sex, entertainment and experiences only to find that their satisfaction is short-lived. As quickly as it comes it is gone, and we are left emptier than before. In our rejection of God, we are left seeking the gifts without the Giver and we find that apart from Him, all life's pleasures, adventures and blessings are meaningless.
Sin has twisted our minds so that we love and believe lies instead of the truth. It causes us to despise God Himself and treat His greatest gifts — His Son, His Spirit and His Word — with contempt. Sin leads us against God's will and makes us blind to His power. It drives us to despise His righteousness and commend iniquity. It is the single most powerful influence in the mind and heart of unregenerate man. All the actions of sin flow from the sinful attitude of dissatisfaction toward God. Put simply, we do not love Him as we ought. And all the good deeds in the world do not make up for this absence of love for the One who created us and gave us life.
This is the bad news that makes the good news of Christmas all the more glorious! Christmas is the celebration of the best news ever invading the worst situation possible. It is a story of redemption realized, of rescue, of reconciliation. God, spurned by His own creation, willingly entered into it knowing that humanity's rejection meant His inevitable betrayal, torture and death. And yet, even in the face of such evil, Christ chose to love the world, to give His life in order to bestow the gift of forgiveness, and to offer precious grace as the fuel of faith for His followers.
Christmas may mean a myriad of things to many people, but if we will take the time to push back the commercialized, materialistic frenzy we will find that the truest love is the love God has shown to sinners. The greatest joy is found not in temporal things, but in a relationship with the Heavenly Father. The most lasting peace is found not in freedom from suffering, but in the reconciliation to God purchased by Jesus' suffering on the cross. And the one and only hope we have is found not in satisfying ourselves with the things of this world, but in finding our greatest and most supreme satisfaction in God alone. Let us celebrate this Christmas with eyes and hearts open to the profound gravity of that baby in the manger and what His birth truly means for the world and for every seeking soul.