Christmas 1 and Christmas 2
For better or worse, we’ve developed a naming convention in my family for helping parse out the various events and sentiments of the Christmas season into two buckets. We use the phrase “Christmas 1” when we’re referring to the traditional or historical Christmas, the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the Son of Man who came to save sinners. When we are referencing the cultural expression of Christmas, music, lights, shopping, food, etc., we say “Christmas 2”. At the outset of the season, I’ll begin this conversation with my eight and ten year old sons to make sure they remember the designations accurately and then we’ll make our way through the holidays classifying the different experiences we have. Over the years, they’ve become pretty skilled at identifying whether Christmas 1, Christmas 2, or both, are at play.
In the car driving through a neighborhood so well lit with Christmas lights it can be seen from space: “Boys, Christmas 1 or Christmas 2?” “Christmas 2, Dad.” Attending a candlelight Christmas service where the gospel is proclaimed and God is worshipped: “Boys, Christmas 1 or Christmas 2?” “Mostly Christmas 1 with a little of 2 mixed in, Dad”. Binge watching Christmas movies with mom and hot chocolate: “Boys, Christmas 1 or Christmas 2?” “Definitely Christmas 2, Dad”. And so it goes. While there are some downsides to this way of thinking, we’ve definitely found that it helps us as a family sort through the assault of experiences and events that the season brings with some level of consciousness about what is actually taking place. While we don’t make it a point to talk down Christmas 2, we do make it clear that Christmas 1 and Christmas 2, in their contemporary expressions, don’t have a lot to do with each other.
Or do they? On Christmas day we were preparing to establish a new family tradition — going for a short run together as a family. We’re all fairly active so this is not a physically taxing undertaking for any member of our tribe. Getting the boys to change into running attire and out the door, however, was like asking the Grinch to smile for a photograph with the Whos… Grumbling and complaining about why we had to go for a run as a family on Christmas day gushed from the same mouths that had, just the night before, sang the praises of our Savior who sacrificed his life for us. The same hands that had received generously given gifts were now being thrown up with sighs of despair. In fact, the groans were so excessive that we had to have a “family moment”. You know, the kind where Dad stops everyone on the threshold of the front door to make some profound observation on the condition of his children’s hearts.
In the two seconds I had to prepare my justification for why I had allowed the family to become jammed into the small space in front of the door of our apartment only to make them pause to listen to some “Dad diatribe”, it dawned on me that we had been missing an important connection between Christmas 1 and Christmas 2. It was this: One of the greatest gifts of Christmas 2 is that it inevitably puts on grand display our need for Christmas 1. It is almost certain that, for adults and children alike, some aspect of Christmas 2 will set us up to fail in some way that exposes the continual self-ward nature of our hearts. It might be the sharp words exchanged when your expectations for a “perfect” Christmas dinner unravel upon discovering on Christmas morning that your husband forgot to get the eggs on the shopping list. It might be the nagging feeling of being under-appreciated borne along by the sense that the gifts you received didn’t reflect the same level of carefulness and intentionality of the gifts you had given. It might be the anger that only your overly-critical father can spark when he comments on the poor behavior of the children during the family Christmas celebration.
Whatever it is, Christmas 2 has a way of poignantly reminding us that we are still in need of all that Christmas 1 offers. We need a savior to rescue us from the bondage of our own sin and foolishness. We need a savior to help us endure well when we are sinned against. We need a savior to supply us with abounding grace that we can freely give away. While the cultural force that is Christmas 2 threatens to obscure all that is Christmas 1, for the believer, there are redeeming elements. As uncomfortable or unpleasant as it may be, Christmas 2 brings along multiple opportunities for the light of the gospel to penetrate even further into the recesses of our heart that may be illuminated only a few times a year.
In preparation for this season, it may be a helpful exercise to pray through Ephesians 5:1–21. Just as Paul called the Ephesians out of a culture that was characterized by darkness to walk in the light, at Christmas we have a unique opportunity to carefully examine our own hearts for the darkness yet to be dispelled by the light. Enjoy Christmas 2 and as you do, keep an eye out for the unlovely things it will almost certainly reveal in your heart. When it does, instead of decrying the secularization of the holiday, use it as an opportunity to allow Christmas 1, the celebration of the incarnation of the son of God, Jesus Christ, to do what it was always meant to do — save us.
