Happy Holiday Hoobee Whatee?

By Greg Stier, Op-ed Contributor Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Apparently there's some kind of "war on Christmas" going on ... blogs and articles and protests – oh my! I know from my experience that I don't know all that this whole deal involves, but I do know that it reminded me of another "war on Christmas" that is not two months old, but 2000 years old.

It's a very different look at the birth of Christ than the one we are used to. I mean think about it - your average Christmas card is a sweet looking and sometimes sappy scene dripping with tranquil landscapes and cute, cuddly animals with the bright eyed look of Dakota Fanning.

And then you open it up to be treated to the common sentiments of the season - peace, good will, etc. and a quick signature from a family, which then makes you go "Doh! I forgot to send them a card!"

Now of course I don't think there's anything wrong with this picture of Christmas, but you need to know that it is incomplete and not entirely accurate.

In Revelation 12:1-7 we find the curtain rising on a radically different nativity scene.

Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance. I saw a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out in the pain of labor as she awaited her delivery.

Suddenly, I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. His tail dragged down one-third of the stars, which he threw to the earth. He stood before the woman as she was about to give birth to her child, ready to devour the baby as soon as it was born.

She gave birth to a boy who was to rule all nations with an iron rod. And the child was snatched away from the dragon and was caught up to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place to give her care for 1,260 days.

Then there was war in heaven...

This sure isn't something you see on Christmas cards - a woman screaming out in pain with an evil dragon hunkered down, ready to devour the baby Jesus alive...or a family running into the desert for their very lives with the backdrop of a cosmic war breaking out in heaven.

But that's because we want to keep Christmas safe and sterile.

But it's not. There was a war started on the first Christmas day. It's a war on the hopelessness and injustice that Satan had been wreaking on planet earth since the Garden of Eden, and won't officially end until Judgment Day.

So this Christmas, or holiday season, or whatever you want to call it, remember that we live in a world of two realities: a physical one and a spiritual one. Because of that, we are in the midst of a cosmic struggle of good vs. evil. So my question to you is – what role will you play in this "war on Christmas?"
________________________________________________

Founder and president of Dare 2 Share Ministries, International (D2S) Greg Stier has made an impact on the lives of tens of thousands of Christian teenagers across the country through Dare 2 Share conferences, where he equips youth workers and leaders to be effective in sharing the gospel. For more information on Dare 2 Share Ministries, please visit www.dare2share.org. Find out how Dare 2 Share Ministries and Focus on the Family® are working together to capture the hearts of this generation of teenagers, visit www.capturetheirhearts.com. Send feedback to greg@dare2share.org.