With only a few days to go until Christmas, my kids are getting amped up to see family, open presents and eat sugar. My daughter has even designed a calendar (pictured above) that looks like a Christmas tree. On it she’s put numbers that count down how many days are left till the big day. I’m excited too.
This year, however, I’m excited less about gifts (although I’m anxiously awaiting what my wife will unveil this year) and excited more about what Christmas represents. Christmas represents something I want to be a part of. Simply put, Christmas represents the end of religion. What do I mean?
John 1:14 says that the Word “became flesh and dwelt among us.” This is John’s nativity scene. Literally, this says the Word “tabernacled” among us. This is meant to refer us to the Exodus narrative where Moses wants to see God, but God says—“You can’t look at me or you’ll die.” (Exodus 33) So God comes up with a plan that was a foreshadow of the real plan: “Build a Tabernacle, and I’ll reside there. This way we can be together.”
Thousands of years later, Jesus shows up in the real “Tabernacle” of his body so that we could see His Glory, God’s Glory. (See John 2:19-22) This means the end of religion as we know it. Why? Because, unlike many other world religions, Christians have no temple – we have Jesus. We have no priest; we have Jesus. We have no sacrifices to make; Jesus was our sacrifice. All these religious methods are gone because we don’t get a religion. Christmas means we get a person!
In his book, The Barbarian Way, Erwin McManus writes, “Two thousand years ago God started a revolt against the religion he started. So don’t ever put it past God to cause a groundswell movement against churches and Christian institutions that bear his name. If he was willing to turn Judaism upside down, don’t think for a moment our institutions are safe from a divine revolt.” (p.114)
Isn’t this wild? God causes a revolt against the religion he started? How confusing, exciting, ground shaking – how threatening! Like C.S. Lewis said “He is not a tame lion.”
I’ve recently been enjoying a TV show on hulu.com called “Bully Beatdown.” Basically what happens is people write in and tell Jason “Mayhem” Miller (Mixed Martial Arts Fighting Champion) about the people who are bullying them. Miller then invites them to be on his show where he challenges them to a fight. If they win, they get a bunch of money. If they lose, their victims get a bunch of money, and they have to apologize at the end. The bully always loses.
Watching this show has taught me one thing. When a bully gets beat by an MMA fighter, he is always humbled. Why? Because the MMA fighter could kill him but he isn’t allowed to. It’s humbling when salvation comes from the place least expected.
Welcome to Christmas. How humbling: the all-powerful, almighty God humbling himself, making himself vulnerable (Phil. 2). What does this all mean? It means the end of religion as we know it. In Jesus we don’t only get a teaching to follow, we get a person to know. Even more humbling, in that person, salvation comes from a most unexpected place – a baby.
“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Romans 11:33)
Merry Christmas everyone!
David Achata
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