The Reason For The Season: A meaning that transcends time

With all of the hustle and bustle of the festive season, you’d be forgiven for thinking Christmas is all about adorning your house with colourful lights, littering your floors with gifts, and even leaving cookies and milk out overnight for Santa.

However, the reason we celebrate Christmas is far more meaningful. We catch glimpses of it through the carols we instinctively sing and the odd nativity display we pass in a shopping mall, however the true origin can easily become buried under all of the material mayhem.

Peeling back the layers to get to the core of Christmas, we can see the holiday revolves around the birth of Jesus Christ and the meaning that surrounded his arrival into the world, and what it still represents for millions across the globe.

The nativity scene is familiar to many, but many fail to realise it’s not just about the birth of a baby boy under extraordinary circumstances, but that this child was sent by God himself to be the prophesied Saviour of the world.

In a deeply flawed world, where everyone was engulfed in their sin, he would grow up to become a miracle worker and teacher who inspired hope with every step he took; whose sacrificial death upon a wooden cross and astonishing resurrection slashed the divide between God and man; and who absolved all sin by shouldering them himself, granting everyone salvation and the chance to live eternally through the simple belief in him and his promises.

The birth remains a momentous and joyous milestone in the Christian calendar and is a key cornerstone of the faith. It marked a time of worship as the choirs of angels loudly sung praises; a time of reflection as all, even the shepherds of low social class, hit pause on their daily lives to visit the saviour and commemorate his birth; as well as a time of generosity, love and kindness with the wise men travelling from afar to shower the child with gifts.

Although this event happened over 2000 years ago, it’s a great model we can follow today. We can use this Christmas and holiday season as a time of selfless giving, devotion and introspective reflection together with loved ones, while spreading love and kindness to everyone we encounter; following in the footsteps of the greatest gift humanity ever received: Jesus and his unwavering love and grace.