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I just received a call from a brother who told me that they have a hard time talking with a couple of Jehovah's Witnesses about the nature of Christ. Sometimes being sincere in faith is not enough. You have to know the Biblical doctrine and how to defend it. The question about the nature of Christ is a very important topic since it involves our salvation. My Bible said:

"If you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from death, you will be saved." (Rom 10:9 GNB)

Jesus AS LORD means more than just claiming him as your Master. It also answers the question about His essential nature. In Jewish mind, calling Jesus as "LORD" or "Son of God" is considered as blasphemy (Mark 14:61-64; John 5:18; 10:33) The title "LORD" as understood by the Jews is a sacred title that belongs only to their monotheistic God "Yahweh".Therefore, addressing "Jesus is Lord" is the same as saying "Jesus as God".

The Jehovah's Witness believed that Jesus was just a created being. The first direct creation of God the Father Jehovah from time indefinite. When I was a Jehovah's Witness I thought that this belief is defensible from Biblical point fo view until I understood the context and some Biblical terms. One passage that I wrestled was John 1:3:

"Through him God made all things; not one thing in all creation was made without him." (Joh 1:3 GNB)

According to this verse, in order for any creation to exist, Jesus must exist first otherwise there will be no creation at all! Now, if Jesus is one of the creation, then how can he exists in the first place for "not one thing in all creation was made without him"? So even God the Father could not create His own Son without his previous existence first. This is a great dilemma for them.

Another point to consider is how could  Jehovah God be  the Father before the existence of His Son? In order for Jehovah God to be the eternal Father he must have an eternal Son as well! Eternal Father requires an eternal Son!  If the Son is not Eternal then the Father is not Eternal too!

I hate to discuss this topic here. Many of you might think that I'm a fanatic Adventist  but for the sake of truth I believe every Christians should avoid any sort of celebration on this particular festival. You know why? It's not because I was raised up as a Jehovah's Witness who strictly avoid any kind of celebration like this one.

My conviction was rather influenced by my respect for God and His Holy Book. If there is any doctrine I inherited from my former religion it should be this one. It is about God not me. God said:

"Well, whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, do it all for God's glory."(1Co 10:31 GNB)

Now ask yourself, do I glorify God by adopting this Christmas celebration, since we know the fact that this was originated from paganism?

Another question is, will God allow every Christians to mixed up both the truth and error? We know that Christmas is a mixture of truth and error. Truth because it claims to celebrate the birth of Jesus which is a historical fact. Error because December 25 is not the actual date of Christ's birth. My Bible said:

"Do not try to work together as equals with unbelievers, for it cannot be done. How can right and wrong be partners? How can light and darkness live together? How can Christ and the Devil agree? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? How can God's temple come to terms with pagan idols? For we are the temple of the living God! As God himself has said, "I will make my home with my people and live among them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people." (2Co 6:14-16 GNB)

"No! What I am saying is that what is sacrificed on pagan altars is offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be partners with demons. You cannot drink from the Lord's cup and also from the cup of demons; you cannot eat at the Lord's table and also at the table of demons. Or do we want to make the Lord jealous? Do we think that we are stronger than he? "We are allowed to do anything," so they say. That is true, but not everything is good. "We are allowed to do anything"---but not everything is helpful."(1Co 10:20-23 GNB)

The apostle Paul also warned the believers to avoid celebrating pagan festivals:

"But now that you know God---or, I should say, now that God knows you---how is it that you want to turn back to those weak and pitiful ruling spirits? Why do you want to become their slaves all over again? You pay special attention to certain days, months, seasons, and years."(Gal 4:9-10 GNB)

Well my friends, I'm not acting as your conscience or even taking the place of the Holy Spirit's conviction in your life what I am trying to say here is just a reminder that our existence on this earth is primarily to glorify God and give honor to His Name not to seek our own happiness. For me the first and foremost thing in thislast days is to shout along with the first angel's message in Rev. 14:6, 7:

"Then I saw another angel flying high in the air, with an eternal message of Good News to announce to the peoples of the earth, to every race, tribe, language, and nation. He said in a loud voice, "Honor God and praise his greatness! For the time has come for him to judge all people. Worship him who made heaven, earth, sea, and the springs of water!"