This is just pure insanity! I don’t care how great these ministers are!

I’ve just added the Blog Fire & Hammer to my blogroll, because reading this post on that blog just reminded me of a very important post, that I am very sorry I forgot to make, in the flurry of other matters covered here.

Churches are actually debating having service on Christmas this year, because it falls on a Sunday.

I must say, I usually love Charles Stanley’s ministry. My own mother listens to him on the radio all the time. I’ve got good friends that attend his church. I even considered joining myself once, but I found another (small) church I enjoy that is closer to my home. Having said all that, I think Pastor Stanley is totally, totally, totally wrong for not having service on Christmas Sunday. We are talking about the day we celebrate the birth of Christ! Not the 4th of July or something secular. Because for me, the fact my Lord came to Earth to actually give his life for my sins is bigger than the birth of this nation! Every churches doors should be wide open on Christmas Sunday. All these mega churches with billboards and TV advertisements (yea here in Atlanta the churches advertise on TV and billboards), they all should be advertising that we are celebrating the fact Christ was born.

Although December 25th was not the actual day Christ was born on Earth in the form of a man, it is the day on which we celebrate. What better way to do that than at church on Christmas day? A “Christmas eve” service is not good enough! Excuses about people seeing family just are not acceptable either. Potential low turnout is also a poor excuse. Nothing should excuse us from wanting to worship in church on a day when everyone should.

Words can’t express my actual anger over this, so I’ll do it graphically ->

Everyone should be asking their family to join them at church on a Christmas Sunday, not deciding to stay home to engage in the more commercial aspects of the holiday. I’ve got no problem with people buying gifts and I’ve got no problem with stores promoting Christmas. In fact I like it! But we must maintain focus on what Christmas is really about. Which is to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. On Christmas we ultimately should not be thinking about what we can give each other, but what we can give THE LORD. We cannot give him anything of this material world, because the Earth is the Lord’s. We can only ultimately give him our enduring worship and praise. Which is best done collectively. And to do it on Christmas Sunday is a great day to worship.

Now I must say that despite all the talk about how Jesus rose on Sunday and now we consider Sunday to be the Sabbath. History proves worship on Sunday was done to better appease people who favored worshiping on Sunday, because they were former Sun worshipers. So Saturday is the true Sabbath, I don’t care what anyone says. (And no I’m not a 7th Day Adventist. I’m all the way Baptist, with a little holy roller Pentecostal twist . For those who know I’m probably best described as a Free Will Baptist. If you want to speak in tongues, dance and shout I’ve got no problem with it.) Regardless, we are free to rest on Saturday and keep it holy, but most Christians attend church services on Sunday. So to close church doors on this coming Sunday is simply ridiculous.

And I must add, our youngest baby boy will be getting blessed this Sunday, as we dedicate ourselves to raising him to know the Lord.

update (12/24/2005 10:24PM ET): Obviously churches and church members taking the day off is not going to help win over any converts to the faith. Christians taking the day off from church worship on Christmas, what an oxymoron! Shay over at Booker Rising is unsaved and trying to figure this mess out.