Easter and Christmas are major celebrations in Christendom. However one is more significant than the other…
It’s few days to Easter. Christians all over the world have soaked themselves in the spirit of celebrations as they await the resurrection of Jesus the Christ. During Easter, Christians celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus, whose suffering and death brought salvation to mankind.
See: 10 Very Interesting Facts You Should Know about Easter
Another major celebration in Christianity is Christmas. This is the celebration of the birth (nativity) of Jesus Christ. Christians are taken back to history on 25th December of every year, as they commemorate when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, by Mary -a virgin who was chosen by God to birth the savior of the world.
However in our society today, there is a seeming distinction between Easter and Christmas celebrations, in terms of which is more important or which should be held in higher esteem. For some people, Christmas is more important than Easter. This according to research, is as a result of the period when the feast is celebrated. Christmas comes on 25th December -1 week before the end of the year.
In Christian homes, the end of the year is a period when family and friends gather to sing carols, decorate the home with lighting, exchange gifts, and much more. Christmas which more or less ushers in the New Year, sees many travel far wide to be with their families and loved ones in the spirit of celebration. To sum it up; Christmas through new year -1st January, is a season of celebration for Christians and even non Christians.
As mentioned earlier, Easter is the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Unlike Christmas, this major celebration falls within the year. Easter is determined by the phase of the moon. It is celebrated on a Sunday immediately following the Paschal Full Moon and can vary between March 22 and April 25.
This period as we can rightly guess, is when most people have gotten immensely busy with work and their businesses. This has been the most meaningful rationale behind the less regard for Easter. Notwithstanding the facts mentioned, Christians hold Easter in higher esteem, with regards to its unbeatable significance to their faith.
Yes! Easter is more important and significant to the story of salvation. Read through the following points to fully understand why the resurrection of Christ is more important to Christians than his birth.
1. Christmas means nothing less than the birth God’s son.
This has become a common belief even among non-believers in the sense that, those who do not believe in the incarnation can still view Christmas as something worth celebrating.
To explain further, Jesus’ divinity was manifested in his resurrection and not in his birth. This simply means that the belief in Jesus’ birth is nothing compared to the belief in his divinity or immortality.
If Easter had not happened, Christmas would have no meaning. Christmas was only the beginning of Jesus’ life. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then his birth would have just been a regular phenomenon and he would have just been regarded as an ordinary teacher.
Jesus did grow up as a boy with his family and then as a man. Stories in the bible made us understand that he began teaching in temples and people flocked him because of his inspiring message of God’s love for mankind. But this same Jesus was later hated by the same people, beaten mercilessly, condemned, crucified and later, rose from the dead after three days.
The Christian faith is that, God sent his son Jesus Christ into the world to be born of the Virgin Mary, who conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. It continues that Jesus came into the world to be crucified and killed in order to bring salvation to the world through his resurrection.
Jesus could have chosen not to go through the significant suffering and death. He could have chosen not to live up to expectation by deviating from God’s will for him. But his total submission to God; emphasized in his death and resurrection, justifies Christianity and the Christian belief.
Easter is the moment that the life and work of Christ reach their climax. According to Christians, it is through Easter that humanity receives its liberation from death and the fear of death. In Christianity, Jesus’ death and resurrection proves that there is life after death, and that life is with God in heaven.
See Some Easter Quotes in the Christian Bible
Mark 8:31 -“He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.”(Jesus predicting his death)
John 19:30 -“…Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” (Jesus’ death)
Mark 16:6 -“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here…” (Jesus’ Resurrection: when some followers of Jesus went to the Tomb three days after his death and couldn’t find his body, an angel appeared and told them that he had risen.)
Easter and Christmas are quite important in Christianity, but it is important to note that the former gives more significance to the latter; seeing that Easter is a justification of the purpose of Christmas.
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