As I stroll through shopping malls at Christmas time (which starts shortly before Hallowe’en), I occasionally hear “Christmas Music” being played. I tune my hearing, listen carefully, and can detect that almost none of these musical offerings are traditional Christmas carols. Instead, they celebrate the holiday — but not the holy day of Christmas. They wind up simply celebrating the act of celebrating. They carefully avoid any reference to the Incarnation, the Word made flesh.

These secular songs admittedly have wonderful, memorable melodies while still managing to detach themselves from the historic event which is the origin of Christmas: The Nativity of Jesus.

The resulting songs extol the joy of reunion of family and friends, the warm and glowing memories of times past, the thrill of sleigh rides and chestnuts roasting on an open fire, etc. Are they legitimate? I mean, are they an authentic part of the celebration of Christmas? I suppose they are, but they tell only part of the story.

What’s missing? Our biggest clue comes from that very word “Christmas”. What’s missing is the first syllable. I reflect upon the infancy narratives in our New Testament. When the shepherds, dwelling outside the town of Bethlehem, heard a celestial chorus, they must have been deeply moved — but not moved enough to journey into town. That happened when the angel assured them that this newborn babe would be their Savior.

That’s what moves me, too, because I realize that I need a Savior too. The philosopher Seneca once speculated that what people really need above anything else is a hand reaching down to lift them up. And, in Jesus, that is what we get. If you yourself are just nonchalantly looking for a baby in a manger, maybe you won’t feel highly motivated to go in search. But if you are genuinely seeking a Savior, chances are that He’ll find you.