On the first day of Christmas my true love revealed to me, Jesus was not born on December 25th., but rather that is the day pagans celebrated in worship of the sun long before His birth.
On the second day I learned my beautiful Christmas tree has a long history of being an object of heathen idolatry, of ancient tree worship! God mixes no words and clearly warns His followers not to copy this ritual of cutting a tree out of a forest, putting it on a stand and decorating it (Jer. 10). The "green tree" is associated with false worship (1 King 14:23).
On the third day I wondered why I should give gifts to everyone but Jesus, who is supposed to be the "reason for the season". This is probably why the merchandisers get into the "spirit of giving" long before everyone else and I see the hypocrisy of packing that spirit away with the ornaments each year.
On the fourth day I found that history plainly shows not only the pagan origins of this curious holiday but how all through the ages reformers have shown disdain for it's observance, even our beloved Pilgrims forbade it under penalty of fines.
On the fifth day it occurred to me our nostalgic traditions we add - Frosty, Rudolph, Bing and Jimmy are harmless sentiments we build on a foundation of sand.
On the sixth day I learned that God hates it when people try to worship Him using heathen customs (Ex.32). Honor the Druids with mistletoe, holly, and yule logs- and honor God the way He wants to be honored, with obedience (1Sam 15:22).
On the seventh day I noticed Santa Claus is more popular with the kiddies than Jesus! Santa is the fictional creature we created to receive credit for giving of gifts when in fact Jesus is the One we owe for everything (James 1:17).
On the eighth day I read that Jesus is no longer that helpless babe in the manger but a glorified spirit being (Rev.1). He is not amused at our quaint customs and traditions we so dearly hold. His message is clear- repent, or fight Him at His return.
On the ninth day I discovered the Madonna and child is an old concept of worship not only depicted as Mary and Jesus but also Semiramis and Tammuz, Shingmoo and child, Isis and Osiris, Isi and Iswara, Virgo-Patitura, Fortuna and Jupiter-puer and so on. In ancient cultures they were both to be worshiped. Is there a subtle hint Mary and Jesus are to be worshiped as one?
On the tenth day of Christmas I heard the reports of the fallout of Christmas. Overspending have hurt families, and strained marriages. The maxed-out credit will keep people paying for months. The season of "joy" is also the most depressed time with the most suicides and alcohol abuse. People's unrealistic high expectations cannot be met.
On the eleventh day I realized the futility of putting Christ back into Christmas, as He never was in it in the first place.
On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love, Jesus Christ, allowed me to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth, not with the empty shadows of bygone cultures that were against our Creator, but with the true and acceptable ways revealed in his holy word- the Bible.
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