Sin Is the Reason for the Season

Christmas is a favorite holiday for many of us.  The religious and secular aspects combine to make a joyous, cozy, happy celebration.  There is much that is cheerful and bright about the season.  The church I worship at Christmas Eve is beautifully decorated with sparkling trees, deep red poinsettias, and glowing candles.

As I reflect on Christmas hymns and Bible readings, though, I am struck by a deeper aspect that we don't usually focus on but underlies the entire reason for the season:  Sin.  It's the reason the baby was born in Bethlehem.  It is present in the liturgy and hymns we sing at Christmas.  Behind the beauty and peacefulness of the holiday is a dark truth.  The baby came to save lost sinners in rebellion against God.

Oh, come, oh, come Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel
Shall come to you, Oh, Israel!

O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie.
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by;
Yet in they dark streets shineth the everlasting light.
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

We sing an older version of a verse of Away in a Manger:

Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,
And fit us for Heaven, to live with Thee there.

We aren't fit to live in Heaven until the Son of God makes us so through His sacrifice for our sin.  Christmas only makes sense with Good Friday and Easter.  Otherwise, it's just another birthday among billions.

Throughout the message of the Christmas account and carols is the hopeless condition we find ourselves in alone, without God.  But then God comes to be with us, Emmanuel, to pay our debt for us.  What relief!  What joy!

I was thinking ahead to the account of Jesus' presentation at the temple eight days after His birth when Simeon and Anna saw the Savior they'd waited for, and generations had waited for (Luke 2: 21-38).  Their responses, songs, express the great hope and relief at the salvation this baby would accomplish.  Their words echo my joy and relief that my sins are forgiven.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining
'Til He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, a weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees
Oh, hear the angel voices.
Oh, night divine,
Oh, night when Christ was born!

Comments

[Angie Burnham]

One that always brings tears to my eyes...
"Nails, spear shall pierce Him through, the cross be borne for me for you. Hail, Hail the Word made flesh..."
That beautiful Baby is our precious Savior...

[Amy]

Beautifully written, (Sin is the Reason . .). I made me cry in gratitude.

[RonH]

This 'sin' idea is rubbish.

It says suffering is inevitable.
It says suffering is deserved.

Yet...

It says suffering is secondary.
It says suffering is negligible.

Even...

It says suffering is good.*
It says suffering is beautiful.*

When in fact...

Suffering is none of these.

So, let's send 'sin' packing - like we did with 'aether.'

RonH

*Think of 'Mother Theresa' - someone who, when it comes down to it, let people suffer because she believed in 'sin'.

[Austin]

Ron,

"It says..."

What says? Sin? I wasn't aware that sin was capable of saying anything.

"Suffering is none of these."

And your reasons for that are...?

"So let's send 'sin' packing"

You seem to have this idea that you can choose whether something exists or not. How is it that you came to that conclusion?

"*Think of 'Mother Theresa' - someone who, when it comes down to it, let people suffer because she believed in 'sin'."

Really? Because I was under the impression that she devoted her entire life to ALLEVIATING the suffering of the impoverished.

Care to enlighten us?

[RonH]

Austin,

You are right: Sin says nothing. It's the Christian doctrine that 'says' things.

And, you are right: I can't choose something into or out of existence.

I don't believe sin is a real thing in the world. So, when I say send sin packing I don't mean deny the existence of sin, a real thing in the world. I don't even mean deny the existence of the doctrine of sin. The doctrine is real too. I just mean the doctrine of sin is a myth. Treat it that way.

As for the reasons you ask for, I have time to look at 'inevitable' and 'deserved'.

A child who isn't able to read in the first grade is more likely to be illiterate as an adult and also more likely to go to prison. You can confirm that.

So it looks like 2nd grade illiteracy leads some to prison. Keep that in mind when you consider whether a prison sentence is deserved. (Is all 2nd grade illiteracy deserved?)

Also, it looks like we can prevent some people from going to prison simply by teaching them to read in the first grade. Keep that in mind when you consider whether a prison sentence is inevitable.

You say it is your impression that MT devoted her entire life to alleviating the suffering of the impoverished. I get that impression as well - from the media.

I also get, from the media, the impression that she was interested in souls not suffering, and that much of the money sent to her didn't get spent on the poor, and that much of what was spent on the poor was spent in an amateurish way.

Can you find her "Missionaries of Charity" at charitynavigator.org? Can you find information anywhere about their finances? Do you know whether the Vatican sent MT money? The other way around? Neither? Why should this be a secret?

Suppose it were your suffering at stake in this clip of
MT stand up comedy.

RonH

[blanko]

"I also get, from the media, the impression that she was interested in souls not suffering, and that much of the money sent to her didn't get spent on the poor, and that much of what was spent on the poor was spent in an amateurish way."

Wow RonH, I'm not necessarily a fan of the Catholic Church, but it seems like MT was able to assist with your education and suffering concerns, while focusing on souls. If this is amateurish, then what secular person is doing the professional job? Or is this more propaganda?

“Initially she started a school in Motijhil; soon she started tending to the needs of the destitute and starving.
Her efforts quickly caught the attention of Indian officials, including the prime minister, who expressed his appreciation.

Teresa wrote in her diary that her first year was fraught with difficulties. She had no income and had to resort to begging for food and supplies. Teresa experienced doubt, loneliness and the temptation to return to the comfort of convent life during these early months. She wrote in her diary:
Teresa received Vatican permission on 7 October 1950 to start the diocesan congregation that would become the Missionaries of Charity. Its mission was to care for, in her own words, "the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone.” It began as a small order with 13 members in Calcutta; today it has more than 4,000 nuns running orphanages, AIDS hospices and charity centers worldwide, and caring for refugees, the blind, disabled, aged, alcoholics, the poor and homeless, and victims of floods, epidemics, and famine.”
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Mother_Teresa