They Worship the Baby but Reject the King

We love the story of the manger, but we stop there too often. The cradle points to the cross, and the cross points to the crown. The joy of Christmas is found when we worship Jesus as Savior and King.

Christmas Hypocrisy

While spending time with God, I began to think about all the carols and the worship of the name of Jesus. Many religions talk about giving praise to Jesus. Now, you might ask, “Well, shouldn’t God be pleased about this?” Yet I began to feel God’s grief over the hypocrisy of the Christmas season. For many generations, people have adored the baby, but they will have nothing to do with the man of Jesus. They worship him in the crib but not on the throne. Oh, the hypocrisy that goes on in the world!

Many adore the baby Jesus because he hadn’t yet established his kingdom. As an infant, he hadn’t spoken about his demands and commandments. He hadn’t said one word about the sins of the world. They have not witnessed him taking out a whip and casting out the money changers in the temple or rebuking their hypocrisy. He had never looked at them and called them children of the devil. Jesus is merely a baby in a manger whom these modern Christians can worship because he poses no threat.

This type of hypocrisy is across our nation. Many Americans stand against schools that do not allow prayer, yet many do not even pray at home. In Congress, many say, “We’re losing our religious freedom because we can’t put up the Ten Commandments in public places.” Yet many who fight for religious freedom do not have the law of God written on their hearts. They want the freedom to put up nativity scenes in public places, yet they don’t go to church. They adore the baby but will have nothing to do with Jesus, who now sits at the right hand of the Father. 

Often, the worst hypocrisy is in God’s house, where people sing, “Oh, come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.” These are good words to sing when we let him be Lord of our lives, but it is hypocrisy to sing the words and not surrender to his lordship.

This hypocrisy is not limited to America; it is prevalent all over the world. Mormons go out, two by two, as evangelists with pamphlets telling people they are “Jesus” people. Even Islam counteracts the idea of their terrorism and violence by putting out a message that they believe in the miracle-working Jesus. They acknowledge that Jesus is to be honored, but they deny that he is God. It’s deception to adore the baby but reject the man.

Worship the Redeemer

When Mary brought baby Jesus into the temple to be blessed, there was an old prophet named Simeon who had been searching for the Messiah his whole life. Simeon took baby Jesus in his arms and worshipped him. He wasn’t adoring a baby; he was acknowledging the Messiah. He knew the baby would grow up and bring salvation. Simeon said, “For my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:30, NKJV). He looked at baby Jesus and said, “This is my Lord!”

The widow Anna was an old woman who spent many, many years waiting and worshipping in the temple. When she looked at baby Jesus in Mary’s arms, she marveled because she had lived to see that day and rejoiced in meeting the redeemer of the world (see Luke 2:36-38). Anna didn’t meet a baby; she met the redeemer.

The shepherds came and worshipped, but they were not looking for a baby. They were looking for the one whom the angel said is “Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). The shepherds worshipped him, but they were not worshipping just the child; they were giving adoration to who he would become.

The Gift of God’s Son

God will not accept any other adoration in your mind, spirit, and heart but that which climaxes at the cross. He will not receive any worship that ends at the manger. By the word of the living God, we must perceive in mind and spirit that this little child was with the Father. We must recognize that this child is the creator of all things, and he set aside his glory to come as a man.

At Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, and God receives this adoration from those who believe not only in his birth as a baby but that he was born the son of the living God. He’s not just a miracle-worker, as there have been many miracle-workers. He’s not just a prophet, because there are many prophets. The question is not whether he was a good man, a prophet, or a miracle-worker. Not at all. The question is do you believe baby Jesus is God? This separates us from every other religion. Muslims believe in the virgin birth. Many cults believe Jesus was virgin-born, but they refuse to acknowledge that he is God.

I am thankful for baby Jesus, God’s very own son. Scripture says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son” (John 3:16). God gave his son not just at the cross but as a child. That was his gift to the world.

Oh, how the shepherds and wise men would have longed to live in our time. You may think it would have been wonderful to have been there when Christ Jesus’s birth was announced to the world, but that generation couldn’t have fellowship with that baby. You and I have the privilege of intimacy and fellowship with the child who grew up to be a man. We can talk to him; he talks with us, and we are one with him. What an incredible time to be alive!

His Constant Fellowship

However, the Lord revealed to my heart that Christ’s birth was a painful time for the Father. He witnessed people adore the baby but totally reject the man Jesus and the gospel and fellowship he brought to the world. Yet in understanding God’s grief, I also began to rejoice, for he began to speak to me about his constant love that never wavers.

It brings me joy to know that no matter how I feel—whether I’ve failed the day before, lost my temper, or doubted him—his love for me remains constant. That’s the kind of fellowship I have with the man Christ Jesus. His continual presence is with me. I can wake up in the middle of the night, and he’s there. Before I even go into my prayer closet to meet him, he’s there at the door. 

His continual presence is always there when we speak to him. Our prayer closet can be anywhere, like the subway, car, or bus. Just close the door with your mind, and he will speak to you.

I adore baby Jesus, and I thank God that he came in the flesh and for all that his birth represents. But a better thing has been provided for us: his fellowship! No one else can satisfy that hunger and need inside of us. Without Jesus in our hearts, where do we go when we are in trouble? Without Jesus, who is there when we feel lonely, hurt, and in pain? How sad that someone should live in such pain. There are so many running away from God, living their lives only to die and go to hell. It’s a painful thought that one would go on in their misery when the Lord Jesus says, “I have fellowship for you. I want to speak into your life, and I want to be your friend.” 

Time to Surrender

How doubly sad at Christmas that there would be people so unhappy, so discouraged, even though they have heard the message. Some may have even given their heart to Jesus at one time. But they hear the full gospel and the call to worship continually and say, “I am too busy. I don’t have time.”

If you are a believer, do you know what the Bible says? Jesus said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment” (Matthew 22:37-38). As a believer, you will be judged by this commandment. If you are a Christian, are you worshipping the Lord with all that is in you? Scripture says, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). This is the standard. God has revealed his nature. It’s a mirror God holds up. It’s been said, “The law will drive you to the cross, but it can’t take you any further.” The law takes you to the cross, but some need to repent of the idols in their life.

This is a season for reflection. Do you spend time thinking about Jesus? Do you talk with your friends about him? Are there other pursuits that your time commitments reveal are more important to you than Christ?

Today, will you surrender your life to Christ? Remember, one day you will have to stand before God and answer to him. If you are truly a believer, you will walk according to his Word. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Don’t let Jesus lie in the backroads of your mind. This Christmas, surrender and give Jesus your time; put him first in your life. Put no other gods in his place. His fellowship is waiting. Come, let us worship and adore him! Amen ▉