The Christmas Spirit
You’ve seen it. The consumer version of the Christmas season is an invasive species. It has wriggled its way earlier and earlier into our calendars with each passing year, sneaking from December 25 to December 1, then invading Black Friday and Thanksgiving. Amazingly, Christmas music started playing on a local radio station in my region on Halloween. Back in my retail days, I was asked to set up the Christmas card display on October 1st. October FIRST!
Now, I love just about everything that comes with the Christmas season—the music of Bing Crosby, the Muppet Christmas Carol, and the lights on the houses in our neighborhood. The Christmas spirit is a joy, a small oasis of beauty and warmth for those in colder climates as the harsh winter approaches. But, October 1st? Excuse me? At that moment, I knew I was not long for the world of retail. The Christmas spirit shouldn’t be haunting October and November. I don’t need the Ghost of Christmas Yet-to-Come dressing up in a Halloween costume for a Trunk or Treat event.
The Spirit of Christmas
Of course, there’s a big difference between the “Christmas spirit” of today and the original Spirit of Christmas. We can see the Holy Spirit’s work throughout the Christmas story when we remember and celebrate the Incarnation in this season. It’s the beauty of our Triune God—Father, Son, and Spirit—in collaboration.
Although, sheepishly, I have to admit that until recently I’d never really “noticed” the Holy Spirit in the story.
Sure, I’ve heard and read the stories from the prophets and the Gospels my whole life, so I “know” the Spirit is named and active. But I have mostly run in church circles that are uncomfortable with the Holy Spirit in a lot of ways, and I inherited that posture in earnest.
As I continue to seek to know the Spirit better, one of the best gifts from Scripture for me has been seeing the Spirit’s role in Christ’s first coming. Think about all the ways the Spirit is active in our Advent and Christmas story:
- In prophecies about the Messiah (Isaiah 11:1–2).
- In the coming of the forerunner, John the Baptist (Luke 1:15).
- In the conception of Jesus (Luke 1:35, Matthew 1:18–21).
- In blessing Mary (Luke 1:41–45)
- In Zechariah’s prophesying (Luke 1:67–79)
- In the encounter with Simeon at the temple (Luke 2:25–33)
This is a Spirit-filled story, a Holy Ghost-haunted narrative better than any Dickens tale. The Christmas story is a Trinitarian story, and deserves to be celebrated as such.
The Spirit in Our Worship
We always hope, pray, and plan for worship that is Trinitarian, that is rich in honoring Father, Son, and Spirit, even as we name the mysteriousness of it all. (I believe it was Dr. John Witvliet who once described our Lord’s Day worship gatherings as “Trinitarian New Covenant renewal,” which is both a mouthful and an incredibly beautiful vision for our worship gatherings).
Advent and Christmastide, in my experience anyway, have not typically been about the Holy Spirit. But my aim in this season has broadened over the years; I now revel in the activity of God’s Spirit, I wonder how that Spirit might still be working among and surprising us today, and I seek the Spirit’s renewal in the hope of Christ’s second advent. Lean in to the scriptures, rewrite the prayers, and find the songs that honor the Spirit as well this Advent and Christmastide. That’s the true “Christmas Spirit,” and should be celebrated.
More on the Holy Spirit in Worship and at Christmas
The Holy Spirit in Worship
Pay Attention to the Dreams: Resources for Advent and Christmas Services
Holy Spirit, Present at Advent: A Five Week Worship Series
Advent and Mission: The Call to Emulate Christ and Join in His Work