Genesis 1:2

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth... And then God saw everything that he had made. And indeed, it was very good. (Genesis 1:1, 31)

Why do we even need Christmas? The answer begins on the very first page of the Bible—with a good God, a gift, and a world that broke.

In the Beginning, God

There is so much we learn in just these first few words. First, there is a beginning to everything. Even modern science agrees there was a beginning to all that is. The Bible has said this for thousands of years, while science has only recognized it in the last fifty to a hundred years. But notice: in the beginning, God. God is before the beginning. He is before all things, and He is creative. He created the heavens and the earth and everything contained in them, both seen and unseen.

Skip ahead to verse 31: "And then God saw everything that he had made. And indeed, it was very good." These are the words God chose to begin His revelation to mankind. He beheld everything He had created, and indeed it was very, very good.

A God Who Loves Beauty

God is an artistic Creator. He loves aesthetics; He loves things that look good. Since we are created in His image, we too are aesthetic beings. We paint our living spaces, remodel our environments, and try to make things look inviting—because God likes that. None of His other creatures do this. They don't decorate or remodel their environments; we do that for them when we build zoos, but they don't much care. We do, because we bear the image of an artistic Creator.

Seven times in Genesis 1 God says, "It is good." On each day He looks at what He made and calls it good—twice on the third day—and at the very end He calls it "very good." That means pleasant, right, excellent, abundantly good. If you ever travel and see the beautiful wonders God created, remember: even now it is not as good as it once was, and it is still awesome and wonderful.

A Gift-Giving God

These chapters reveal that God is a gift-giving God, which we'll consider over the next three weeks as we approach Christmas. He made good and pleasant trees to grow in a garden, trees that were "pleasant to the eyes" and "good for food," appealing to the senses He created in us. Then He gave the garden to man as a gift.

In Genesis 2:16 God commanded man, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat." He said, in effect, "I made them for you. They're a gift." But verse 17 adds, "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat. For the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." Because He is a good and gift-giving God, He warns against the one tree that would devastate them. Something would happen if they partook.

The First "Not Good"

In Genesis 2:18 we read the first negative of the whole passage: "It is not good that man should be alone." Up to now everything was good, good, very good. But God, who knows all things, sees an incompleteness. This isn't evil—it's incomplete. The incompleteness was that no helper comparable to man was found. So God said, "I will make for him a helper comparable to him"—a gift given to complete him.

Notice how God reveals this to Adam. Adam doesn't yet recognize the incompleteness, so God leads him to it. In verse 19, God forms every beast and bird and brings them to Adam to name. As they pass by, Adam names them—hippopotamus, giraffe, platypus—and he sees something: lion and lioness, cow and bull, part and counterpart. But verse 20 says that among them all, Adam found no helper comparable to him. God already knew there was an incompleteness; now Adam recognizes it too.

The Greatest Gift

So God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, took one of his ribs, and made it into a woman—and "he brought her to man." After all the wonderful gifts—the earth, the garden, the trees—the gift-giving God now brings the most magnificent gift. As Proverbs 18:22 says, "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord."

From one God made two, for the purpose of joining them once again as one. He brought her to man, and Adam responded, "Whoa, man!" They called her woman. God created this woman from man and brought her as a precious gift, placing them in a garden full of bountiful blessing. God's goodness and graciousness are clearly seen from the opening verses of the Bible.

A Question About God's Goodness

Then in chapter 3 something new is introduced—a question about the goodness of God. "Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field... And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?'"

To this point, Adam and Eve recognized that God supplied their every need—home, food, and a helper. Now the serpent introduces a question: Is God really giving you everything you need? The woman answered correctly that they could eat of every tree, but of the one tree in the midst of the garden God said not to eat. Then she added something God never said: "nor shall you touch it." Whether from her zeal or her husband's, it seemed logical—why touch it unless you intended to eat it?—but it was an addition to God's word.

The Anatomy of Temptation

Seeing an opening, the serpent said, "You shall not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." What is the enemy really introducing? The thought that God's command is holding her back from something good. I suggest that many falls into temptation and sin come from that very question: God is keeping me back from something good.

In verse 6 we see the equation of temptation. The apostle John tells us all that is in the world is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. When the woman saw that the tree was good for food—the lust of the flesh; pleasant to the eyes—the lust of the eyes; and desirable to make one wise—the pride of life. Interestingly, every tree in the garden was pleasant to the eyes and good for food. This tree looked no different; what was new was the serpent's promise that it could make one wise. So she took, she ate, and she gave to her husband—who, being a smart husband, ate whatever she put before him.

Eyes Opened to Shame and Fear

"Then the eyes of both of them were opened." The serpent had said their eyes would be opened—and they were. But what did they behold? At the end of chapter 2, Adam and Eve were naked and not ashamed; they had no knowledge of shame. Now they knew they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves to cover themselves. Innocence was lost, and shame and fear entered in. When they heard the Lord God walking in the garden, they hid themselves. Their new knowledge led only to shame and fear—shame so deep they tried to cover it, fear so great they tried to hide from God.

God called, "Adam, where are you?" Adam answered that he was afraid because he was naked. God asked, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree which I commanded that you should not eat?" Then Adam did what most of us would do—he blamed someone else: "The woman whom you gave me." Behind his words he is accusing God: had You not given her to me, we wouldn't be in this mess. God turned to Eve, who said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." Her blame on the serpent was legitimate—he did deceive her.

Why the Command, and the Curse

The rest of chapter 3 records a curse falling on the serpent, the woman, the man, and all creation—the most devastating blow God's creation ever received, as sin enters in. Sin is transgression against God's commandment. He commanded that they not eat of the tree, not because He was withholding good, but to keep them from what was bad. When they ate, their opened eyes and exposed nakedness were not so much His punishment as the result of that fruit. (By the way, the Bible never says it was an apple—that's our culture, not Scripture.)

Why Christmas? Because the World Is Broken

So why do we need Christmas? The first answer is this: the world is broken. Even the great twentieth-century philosopher Bob Dylan knew it—he wrote a hit song, "Everything Is Broken." Even people not following God daily sense something isn't right. The creation the good, gift-giving God called "very good" is now broken. Without this foundation, there's no clarity about why Christmas was necessary. People say, "Jesus is the reason for the season," but what's the point of His coming? If you don't understand the brokenness, you cannot understand the answer.

Cookies, bells, presents, lights, candles, ornaments, trees, wreaths, carols, eggnog, snowmen, gingerbread, chestnuts—none of these is bad in itself. I know some in the global church say Christians shouldn't celebrate Christmas. It's highly unlikely Jesus was born on December 25th—I agree. Yes, this holiday originally coincided with a pagan celebration of the winter solstice. Some Christians take the Puritan approach and reject it entirely. But honestly, I've only met a couple of people genuinely celebrating the solstice, and they always wore hemp clothing and smelled funny. I don't know anyone normal celebrating it.

Reject, Receive, or Redeem

There are different ways to approach the cultural things in our world. We can reject them as ungodly, we can simply receive them, or we can redeem them. We recognize a redemptive opportunity in Christmas. Nothing in the Bible mentions reindeer with red noses, elves, or Santa Claus, and in themselves these things aren't bad—many are enjoyable. I love this time of year; to me it's the most wonderful time of the year.

The problem is that these things can become a distraction from the real point. Marketers know this season is a route to high profits—one reason Black Friday is so named is that many retailers operate "in the red" until that day. When Dave and I were at the shopping center, we saw many people with no Christmas cheer at all. One unhappy lady wanted me to tell the management how mad she was, and I said, "I don't work here—I'm just a guy with a microphone." Those distractions seduce many people.

But this is an opportunity, church. The overwhelming majority of our culture is celebrating this holiday, even though many have no idea what it's about or why Christ came. The first answer is because the world is broken. Many sense something's wrong but don't know why or the cure. We know both. So may we take advantage of this season—not just this year, but every year—to reveal who Jesus is and why He came. Next week we'll pick up here in Genesis 3, where the gift-giving God reveals a gift packaged and ready to be given.

Closing Prayer

Father, as we stand here today, I recognize—and I hope my brothers and sisters do as well—that this world is broken. I recognize how easy it is to be distracted from the real point and reason for this season, easy to lose sight of why You came. But I pray that You would stir my heart and give me an opportunity this week and this month to share that reality with friends, neighbors, and family members who don't know You. We thank You that although the world is broken, You have an answer for that brokenness. Help us to recognize it, help us to see it, and stir our hearts to resound with joy during this season—even in the midst of all the stress and craziness—that we would be filled with Your joy, and that it would be contagious. In Jesus' name, amen.