A Christ Exhalting Christmas
by Christopher Hendrix
The smells of chestnuts roasting and frittelle frying around this time of year signals that Christmas is just around the corner. The season's beauty, wonder, and glimmer inject a spark into society. A sentimental feeling swells as people are friendlier, busier, and looking forward to December 25th. Of course, as believers in Jesus Christ, Christmas holds more than warm fuzzies but a sense of climatic worship. Our Eternal King arrived on this Earth in a virgin's womb, through a natural birth, and with all the joy of a baby being born. This tender baby grew into a Righteous Ruler who fulfilled the law of God perfectly. He achieved perfect righteousness through obeying every letter of God's Law in the Pentateuch. He claimed that He did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17), and fulfill He did.
Watch Pastor Chris Hendrix’s sermon on Deuteronomy 4:9-14.
So then, when we read the law of God, first and foremost, we must recognize that it speaks of Christ's righteousness. Every sacrifice told every commandment listed, and every requirement put forth were all fulfilled in Christ. Christmastime reminds us of the coming of the King who grew to love the law. We see when he was twelve, he demonstrated this love by participating in temple worship and asking questions about the Scriptures (Luke 2:46–47). Jesus knew the law. Then, when confronted by the temptation of Satan, Jesus quoted the law in rebuttal to Him (Matthew 4:1–11). Jesus obeyed the law. Jesus kept the Passovers according to the Law (Matthew 26:17–19). Jesus fulfilled the law and kept it perfectly. Thus, Christ earned righteousness.
Yet, we recognize that we cannot keep the law. A simple reading of the Ten Commandments reveals this. Have we lied before? Then, we've broken the ninth commandment and are liars. Have we stolen? Even so much as a toy when we were young? Then, we have broken the eighth commandment and are thieves. Have we wanted something someone else had before? Then, we have broken the tenth commandment and coveted it. The list goes on, but it shows how far we are from the righteousness of the law. We are sinful beings in need of righteousness.
Yet, Christ forgave us of our sins and imputed His righteousness! Another way to say it is that our account has been credited with His righteousness. We owed an unpayable debt, but His forgiveness made our account zero. Then, His righteousness was added to our account, and we now have a valuable wealth. We have the righteousness that Christ earned gifted to us. This occurred through his resurrection. The righteousness He stored on Earth was then given to us through His resurrection.
So then, when we think about the Law of God in Exodus–Deuteronomy, is it of any value to us? Of course! Positionally, we are made holy by Christ. We are saved! Experientially, our lives must match up to our position. Our lives must look like we've been given righteousness. So then, the law directs us on how to live as Christians. It guides us to live out of the overflow of Christ's work in us. The love Christ demonstrated to us causes us to love Him, resulting in obedience.
The law applies to our hearts, our spouses (and even how to find a future spouse), our children, our careers and jobs, our free time, our hobbies, and our government. We ought to apply the law to both our daily lives and significant. It must be applied to how we think about the world around us, how we view God, how we treat one another, etc. We ought to apply the law to society in such a way as to call the government and organizations to act holier, demand and vote for those who campaign for biblically just laws, and preach the message of repentance and belief to those who sin.
So, this Christmas, take time to read the Law of God. Think about Jesus fulfilling it for you as a believer. Think about His Spirit enabling you to live it. Think deeply about the principles undergirding them. Then, talk to other brothers and sisters about it. Let the law fill your conversations and time. Then, seek to apply it prayerfully. Talk to your pastor on how to use it. Most of all, give praise and thanks to God for the grace to live out His Word. Feast, party, and enjoy Christmas because the law of God has been fulfilled through Christ, and you can obey it from a New Testament lens.