Christmas is a celebration that separates Christianity from mere 'religion'

Christmas is one of the two most celebrated days on the Christian calendar. As Easter marks the death and resurrection of Christ, Christmas celebrates the first coming of Christ to our sinful world as the evidence for God’s love for us, and that act is the first of many that separates Christianity from monotheistic religions.

Christianity is a faith based on a single doctrine: the salvation of man’s eternal soul, gained from acknowledging Jesus Christ as one’s personal savior, along with the admission of sin and asking forgiveness from those sins. Just “believing in God” and following some version of church law and ritual is not sufficient for redemption, which again differentiates Christianity from “religion.”

It has been said in many ways, but in short, religion is man’s attempt to reach God, but Christianity is God’s attempt to reach man. That is the true meaning of Christmas.

Over the years, many have falsely tried to water down Christianity by equating it with the plethora of religions man has created. For instance, there are philosophers, theologians, politicians and even the Pope who have suggested Christians, Jews and Muslims all worship the same God. Such a statement is either borne of ignorance, political expediency or outright dishonesty, and that can be easily explained, so read on.

Christianity, unlike Judaism, is a 'triune' faith

Christianity is unique in that it is a “triune” faith that recognizes a godhead of three elements, the father, the son and the holy spirit. Religions, on the other hand are constructed around belief only in one God. Even Judaism, the “Abrahamic” religion of the forbearers of Jesus Christ, falls short of the mark, because it rejects Jesus as God.

An excellent article by Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, explains this in depth. While Mohler’s article concentrates primarily upon the differences between Christianity and Islam, it also discusses the split between Jesus and the Pharisees, who represented Judaism.

The Pharisees clung to their belief in the laws of Judaism as contained in the Torah but ignored the prophecy of the Messiah contained therein. In an encounter with the Pharisees, described in John 8:56-58, Jesus said: "Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad … Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." Earlier, after Jesus proclaimed that he was the “light of the world” and Pharisees rejected him as the Messiah, Jesus said "If you knew me, you would know my Father also".

The message was simple: the old had been replaced with the new, and that there was no way to come to God other than through his son, Jesus. Of course, this was a threat to the old power structure, and led to Christ’s crucifixion by the religious establishment, where they unknowingly fulfilled another part of prophecy and established the basis for the Christian faith.

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No genetic link between Christianity and Islam

The claim that Muslims and Christians worship the same God is also false. Although Judaism, Christianity and Islam all look to Abraham as a principal figure, both Islam and Judaism reject the divinity of Jesus. In John 8:39-59, Jesus denied that salvation comes merely by being merely one of "Abraham's children".

As Dr. Mohler explains, in terms of both history and theology, there is no genetic link between Christianity and Islam. The Koran claims that to confess Jesus Christ as the divine Son and the second person of the Trinity is to commit blasphemy against Allah (the Islamic name for God). It might also be noted that Pope Francis has also seemed to embrace the dangerous notion that someone can be saved without an explicit faith in Christ.

To sum it all up, Christmas is a time to acknowledge the gift of Jesus Christ to a sinful world, and that’s the reason Muslims, Jews and people of other religions don’t celebrate it, because they don’t worship the same God as Christians. Mainline establishment churches may try to dispute this fact in order to compromise with the secular world, even as they are losing millions of congregants in the process, but their position is contrary to scripture.

While most enjoy the trappings of Christmas, such as the parties, lights, Christmas trees, and gift-giving, it is only Bible-believing Christians who deeply hold the real meaning of the holiday.

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It’s fine to celebrate, but when you do so, remember “the reason for the season”, the birth of Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!

Dwight Weidman is a resident of Greene Township and is a graduate of Shepherd University. He is retired from the United States Department of Defense, where his career included assignments In Europe, Asia, and Central America. He has been in leadership roles for the Republican Party in two states, most recently serving two terms as Chairman of the Franklin County Republican Party. He has been an Amateur Radio Operator since 1988, getting his first license in Germany, and is a past volunteer with both Navy and Army MARS, Military Auxiliary Radio Service, and is also an NRA-certified firearms instructor. In his spare time, he dabbles in genealogy and learning new languages.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Celebration of Christmas separates Christianity from mere 'religion'