Christmastide: A Word that Doesn’t Mean Anything
Is Christmas morning the end of the story? Or is there something more?
That’s it?
We planned for weeks, bought for months, and then, on one morning, all the Christmas magic is gone?
We did our best to make it about Christ, but in a flurry of stockings and packages, it became about gifts. And…they’re open now. Already a stain on a new sweatshirt; already a lego in the dog’s mouth; already trips to retailers to return and exchange.
That’s it? One day? And back to the slog of dreary commercialism?
I sure hope not. And that’s why Christmastide is so important.
Perhaps this is a word that doesn’t mean anything to you, but it’s become an important one to me this year. Christmastide is the term for the twelve days of celebration that run from Christmas to the Feast of the Epiphany, where the traditional celebration is the appearance of the Wise Men to worship Jesus as the One True King and Son of God.
And so it sense that the 12 days of Christmas are a celebration of continued giftgiving. I think it answers the question in our souls that we often feel after Christmas....that's it? What do you do when you feel that vacancy, that space, that emptiness on the far side of something you've been looking forward to and anticipating for weeks? What do you do when you feel a letdown after a spiritual high?
One of the highs I've felt at Christmas this year has been the anticipation we've felt through Advent and then an amazing Christmas Eve candlelight service, and finally one amazing Christmas Day to celebrate at home with friends and family. Tara and I actually really look forward to gifts--we enjoy thinking about what everyone would like, we enjoy looking at lists but also taking the challenge of finding something even better than they thought possible. I even enjoy giftwrapping!
A few Sundays ago, I gave an Advent practice of Intentional Giftgiving, and Tara really hit it out of the park this year. I’d just love to share one example–She found some crocs for our oldest son that were styled like Lightning McQueen, remembering Roman's childhood favorite movie Cars. You're never too old for your childhood favorites, I don't think. In this way, a gift given with intentionality shows what the gift giver thinks about you and who you are. For example, my grandfather was streamlining his home this year and at Thanksgiving blessed me with an amazing heirloom chess set. He knew that I was the boardgaming nerd in the family, and I felt seen and known and blessed by this.
a gift given with intentionality shows what the gift giver thinks about you and who you are
I think there are several reasons that we celebrate intentional giftgiving at Christmas, but one of the most key has to be that this is what the wise men did when they journeyed to find Jesus. Matthew 1 will give us a window into that story-
Matthew 2:1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men[a] from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
Matthew 2:9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
Now, I just told you that giving a gift reveals part of your identity--who these people think you are. And look at these gifts that Jesus received: First, Gold. In Jesus' day, this was a thing reserved for royalty. Kings would gilt their palaces, and it's part of the instructions that God gives when the temple is built. It's a precious thing, reserved for kingly, priestly figures. So what the wise men are saying with their gift of Gold is that Jesus, you are a king. The king of kings is here!
Secondly, they include Frankincense. This is a bit of an unusual word, but it's just a particular type of incense. Incense, of course, is a thing you would burn as a way of symbolizing God's presence, and this is an activity usually done by priests. So by giving Jesus incense, these Magi are saying, God's presence is here! This priest, this person who will mediate, connect, interface between God and humankind, he's here in the flesh! The true high priest is here!
And lastly, they include myrrh. This is another unusual one, because myrrh was most often used as a burial preparation. What sort of a gift is that to give a new born baby? What are the wise men saying about this as a part of Jesus' identity? Well, they're saying that they know his purpose. It's to be a sacrifice--to die for the sins of all humanity. His death on the cross is not a Plan B, or something that just happens later as his ministry causes people to lash out, but rather, this is part of the purpose all along. Jesus' identity as King, as Priest, and as Sacrifice is made clear with these gifts.
I love that these Magi practiced intentional giftgiving. I mean, they had seen his star from far away and journeyed to worship him. That has to be a journey of anticipation, just like Advent. And it took some time--even though our nativity sets usually have wise men there (and that's my favorite part of any set), that's a bit of an anachronism. They're out of place there. Their journey likely had them arrive when Jesus was more like 2 years old. But if anyone wanted to journey to give me gold, and frankincense, and myrrh, it would be something worth waiting on.
For Mary and Joseph, this is likely more wealth than they had ever seen in their life. There was a sense like that where they had hit the Christmas gift jackpot. And that is just like the 12 days of Christmas song, isn't it? That Jesus was born, on Christmas, and yet we keep on reading about gifts he received, and the true love that Jesus had for us, and even some of the echoes that such a song has for us--five golden rings, jus like these gifts here, and a partridge in a pear tree, which is just like Jesus, on the tree, the cross for us. I can't think of any more of a spiritual high than this one.
And then the Magi left. The gifts remained. But Mary and Joseph are back to their regular life. Back to work. Back to finding childcare. Back to changing diapers. Back to wondering, what's next? Just staring out at an unknown future--how do I raise this child, the Messiah, the savior of the world?
And maybe that's a bit of how you feel on this after-Christmas. Christmas was great. But now it's back to work. Back to finding childcare. Back to changing diapers. Back to wondering, what's next? Just staring out at an unknown future--how do I make this child, this Jesus, this Messiah, the savior of the world the center of my life?
Christmastide is the gift that we receive. It’s a reminder that Jesus wasn’t a gift ripped open one time on one Christmas morning, left behind to get stained and dog-eaten. He’s alive; He’s here with you; and He desires relationship with you each and every day. He’s sustaining, restoring, and blessing you all along the way.
And, if a gift says something about what the giver thinks about the recipient, what does the gift of Christmas say about us? I think it says that we are deeply, truly loved. I think it says that we were worth paying everything. I think it says that we are enfolded back into a relationship with the Creator. And I think that’s worth celebrating for more than just one day.
So maybe Christmastide doesn’t mean anything. Or maybe it means more than we have ever been aware of.