In this special episode of A Reasoned Response, Robert Bosley addresses a recurring point of tension among Christians: whether believers should celebrate Christmas at all. Rather than treating the issue as a litmus test of faithfulness, Bosley frames it as a matter of Christian liberty that must be handled with love, humility, and a Christ-centered focus.

He warns those who celebrate Christmas against allowing the day to drift into sentimentality, materialism, and distraction from the incarnation of Christ. At the same time, he cautions those who abstain from celebrating against pride, judgment, and looking down on fellow believers who observe the day unto the Lord.

The real question, Bosley argues, is not whether Christmas is celebrated, but whether Christ is honored—both in how the day is approached and in how Christians treat one another. This episode calls believers to guard their consciences, honor Christ, and pursue unity even amid disagreement.

As the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, except for all the Christians yelling at each other. Welcome to A reasonable response. I'm Robert Bosley, and the purpose of this podcast is to give a reasoned response to issues related to the Christian faith from a Reformed Baptist perspective. Today we're going to be doing something a little bit different. We're going to begin what we hope will be a periodic thing on this show, where we examine issues related to Christian liberty or matters of conscience and Since this episode is coming out the week of Christmas What better topic to begin with than the issue of celebrating Christmas now?

Not everyone who watches this episode or listens to it is probably going to understand what we mean when we talk about Christian liberty or liberty of conscience. What we mean by this phrase is that we recognize Scripture doesn't give us a point-by-point detail on everything that we are permitted or not permitted to do in the Christian life. When we talk about Christian liberty we're not saying we have an anything-goes attitude, but rather what is your conscience informing as bound by what scripture does positively say? And the fact is there are areas and issues where real, sincere, believing, and faithful Christians can come to different opinions on these debatable matters. And Christian Liberty is where we have this attitude of charity toward one another and recognize that we can still be brothers and sisters even though we come to different opinions on these things.

So with that introduction, let's get started. Brother versus brother. We're going to start with the case for celebrating Christmas. This case for celebrating really begins with the scriptures themselves. We see in the gospels this marvelous truth that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

This monumental reality of the incarnation of the Son of God is a truth that ought to be celebrated. And if we can have a dedicated time every year to focus specifically on that, that seems like a good and proper thing for God's people to do. This has been a great thing that God has done in history and ought to be celebrated by his people. As we look at church history we see that very early on the church began to celebrate Christmas and have particular feasts and celebrations and traditions centered around the birth and the incarnation of Christ. And this continued throughout the Middle Ages even through the Reformation.

When the Reformers arrived on the scene, they did not entirely jettison the church calendar. They stripped away a lot of it, but most of the Reformers held on to things like Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. There's also a positive cultural influence from Christmas that we see in our society, even still today. During this time of year, you go to the stores and you're hearing Christmas hymns being played over the speakers and people are hearing these songs on the radio and there's an influence of the gospel in the culture even now. And this presents Christians with a wonderful opportunity of explaining what these things really mean.

It's also worth considering the opportunities this provides for families. As a father, I can take the Advent and Christmas season and really specifically in family worship focus on what the incarnation means with my children. And that's a great blessing to see them come to understand the importance of the reality that the Son of God took on a human nature. Now for the case against celebrating Christmas. The arguments against it basically boil down to a few common assertions.

First would be the idea that Christmas is related to paganism. It's often claimed that the origins of Christmas are in pagan rituals and traditions, and this is a burdensome thing on the conscience of many real believers. Second is a concern over worldliness and materialism, And we definitely see that. That's true with such an emphasis on the gifts and the material aspects of the season. That can be a real issue and a sinful inclination that ought to be rejected and repudiated by all Christians.

Third would be issues related to what is called the regulative principle of worship. This is really a concern with reformed folks such as myself. The regulative principle of worship, it means that in the worship of God, we are not permitted to get creative. We don't get to just make things up as we go along. The regulative principle says that we are only permitted to do what God's word specifically says we are allowed to do.

And so some take this to mean that we are not permitted as Christians to celebrate additional days or have feasts outside of what the scriptures specifically command. And that is a real conscience issue for believers who have a very high view of the regulative principle of worship. And in church history, while not all the reformers rejected the church calendar, a group that I dearly love and have benefited from, the Puritans, largely did. There was heavy opposition to the celebration of Christmas among the Puritans, as exemplified in this quote from New England Puritan, Increase Mather, where he said, quote, In the pure apostolic times there was no Christ Mass day observed in the Church of God. We ought to keep to the primitive pattern.

The word Christ Mass is enough to cause such as our studious of Reformation to dislike what shall be known by a name so superstitious. Why should Protestants own anything which has the name of mass in it? How unfittable is it to join Christ and mass together? Christ and Antichrist? At least we don't have to wonder how Inquist felt.

Now, having outlined the case for and the case against observing Christmas, I want us to consider some of the common pitfalls and even sins that each side can fall into in debating this issue. Consider, for example, what the Apostle Paul says in writing to the Romans, chapter 14. Verse 14, one person esteems one day above another and another esteems every day alike, let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day observes it to the Lord, and he who does not observe the day to the Lord he does not observe it. Verse 13, therefore let us not judge one another anymore but rather resolve this not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother's way.

So whether or not we observe Christmas, Let us resolve to not put a stumbling block in one another's way. Let our love for one another be our greatest concern when discussing this issue. For those who celebrate, the danger is turning away from the inherent Christ-centeredness of the day and making it merely into a sentimental and materialistic feast. A day that has nothing to do with Christ apart from the mere name, and our focus is only on food and presents and the various trappings that come with it and we're distracted from really what Christmas ought to be centered around, the incarnation and birth of the Son of God. And for those who choose to not celebrate, the common pitfall and danger that I've seen is an issue of judgment and pride and condescension toward your brothers and sisters who do celebrate.

I understand the conviction. I used to share it myself, but do not let your sincere heartfelt conviction on this issue become a matter where you set yourself up above your brother and judge them and condemn them for celebrating this day. As Paul said, they celebrate it to the Lord. So in conclusion, I hope that we can see the real essence of this issue, this discussion, is not really do you celebrate Christmas or not, but the question is do you honor Christ in what you're doing, whether you're observing the day or not? That's the heart of the issue, is Christ being honored in what you're doing and how you're treating your brothers and sisters in the Lord.

Well, that's all the time we have for today. I hope this special episode has been helpful for you and be on the lookout for future episodes where we deal with other issues related to Christian liberty. If you'd like to connect with me personally, I'm on X at R. Bosley, 1689. And if you'd like to learn more about church and family life, you may do so at churchandfamilylife.com.

And don't forget, we have our national conference coming up in May at Ridgecrest, North Carolina on biblical manhood and womanhood. We'd love for you to Join us. See you next time.