in the middle of the winter

On December 21, we experienced the shortest day of the year. That is, on no other date of the year is the time between sunrise and sunset as short as on this day. From that date, the days will lengthen, again. For that reason, long before our era, people have celebrated, around these days, the midwinter festival and the solstice.

When Christianity took over the Roman Empire, all kinds of customs and also this feast, were Christianised. The tradition that Jesus would have been born on December 25, “in the middle of the winter night”, in any case, does not stem from the Bible. The same goes for most traditions around Christmas. Have you ever read, in the Bible, of a stable where Jesus was born? Or of hay and straw in which He was laid? Or of an ox and a donkey standing by? Or of three kings who came to visit? No indeed, these elements, known from performances and songs, have sprung from the imagination of people.

The Solstice in December did not at all need to be Christianised. Because the message issuing from this time of the year, in all of its simplicity, already referred to the Creator, to Him, who shines the light of His promise into a world of darkness. Since Adam, the promise of “the seed of the woman” that would come, and would bruise the head of the serpent, has steadily sounded forth. The 48 signs of the Zodiac, in detail picture this promise, from the constellation Virgo to the constellation Leo. Yes, indeed, “the heavens declare the glory of God” (Ps.19:1)!

The midwinter solstice bears witness of the light that overcomes the darkness. However dark and cold it might be in the world, GOD has spoken. Light, and thus Life, is stronger than darkness and death. The symbols of this midwinter festival refer, on the one hand, to light (lamps, candles and fire) and on the other hand to life: the evergreen tree full of fruit. Behold, the Good News Message in a nutshell! As darkness is associated with death (“shadow of death”) so is light related to life. “The light of life.” It speaks of Life which came to light in the early morning, when the large stone in front of the tomb was rolled away. Is it not marvelous, precisely in the darkest days of the year, to be reminded of this victorious Light?! The whole world is locked up in sin and death. That is a statement of fact. In Adam all are doomed to be sinners and mortals. But there is Someone greater than Adam, “the last Adam” (1Cor.15:45)! He is the guarantee that all mankind (“each in his own order”) will be justified and be made alive (Rom.5:18; 1Cor.15:22)! Joyfully celebrate that light and let it shine!

Delen: