✨DAY 5 OF 12 DAY JOURNEY: UNLOCKING THE IDENTITY OF JESUS CHRIST
- theportersview
- Dec 16, 2025
- 5 min read
Part 2: Christmas Trees, Santa Claus,
and the Birth of Jesus Christ
CORE HISTORICAL CLARITY (BRIDGE STATEMENT)
Historically, Saint Nicholas was a Christian bishop who lived in the 300s AD. He was known for helping the poor, rescuing children, and giving generously — often in secret. He was a righteous man who followed Christ, but he was not a mythical figure, not omnipresent, not supernatural, and certainly not a North Pole character.
Over centuries, his story was reshaped by culture, folklore, and eventually commercialism, leading to the figure now known as “Santa Claus.” At the same time, Christmas trees evolved from earlier European customs and later Christian symbolism, especially in Germany and Britain, where reformers sought visual ways to teach biblical truths to families.
Understanding this history helps us separate Christ from culture, Scripture from symbol, and truth from tradition.
This is a wise, necessary, and very Kingdom-centered question.
Here is a clear, biblical, Spirit-led way to teach and live out:
✝️ HOW TO EXCLUDE PAGAN CUSTOMS WHILE HONORING CHRIST
This is not about fear, condemnation, or legalism —
it is about discernment, truth, and alignment.
1️⃣ START WITH IDENTITY, NOT TRADITION
Before removing anything, you must establish who Jesus is.
Colossians 2:8
“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men…”
Ask one question first:
Does this practice reveal the identity of Jesus Christ, or does it distract from Him?
If a custom:
Confuses Christ’s identity
Replaces Him with symbols
Overshadows His purpose
It must be re-examined.
2️⃣ SEPARATE SCRIPTURE FROM CULTURE
Culture adds.
Scripture defines.
Teach people to ask:
Where is this found in the Bible?
Is this commanded, suggested, or silent in Scripture?
Did Jesus or the apostles practice this?
Jesus never mixed worship with cultural rituals.
He fulfilled the Law — He didn’t decorate it.
3️⃣ REMOVE WHAT WAS NEVER MEANT TO WORSHIP GOD
Some customs were created to:
Honor other gods
Celebrate seasons, fertility, or sun cycles
Entertain the flesh
Distract from holiness
1 Corinthians 10:20
“What pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God.”
This does not mean everything cultural is demonic —
but anything rooted in idol worship should not be spiritualized.
You don’t “redeem” idols — you remove them.
4️⃣ KEEP CHRIST-CENTERED PRACTICES ONLY
Replace culture with Christ-centered actions:
Instead of:
Mythical figures → teach Messiah
Decorations → teach Incarnation
Gift obsession → teach Salvation
Fantasy → teach Truth
Examples:
Read Luke 2 instead of folklore
Teach Isaiah 9:6 instead of myths
Worship instead of performance
Teach the Cross alongside the Manger
5️⃣ FOLLOW THE LEADING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Some things the Spirit will convict personally, not universally.
Romans 14:5
“Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.”
This is where spiritual maturity lives:
No condemnation
No pride
No forcing others
Only obedience
The Holy Spirit will show each household what to lay down.
6️⃣ DO NOT MIX THE HOLY WITH THE COMMON
This is critical.
Leviticus 10:10
“You must distinguish between the holy and the common.”
Christ does not share glory.
Jesus becomes:
One symbol among many
One story among fantasies
One name among traditions
Then the focus has shifted.
7️⃣ TEACH TRUTH WITH LOVE — NOT JUDGMENT
Excluding pagan customs is not about superiority.
It’s about:
Clarity
Freedom
Reverence
Truth
Worship in Spirit and truth
Jesus did not shame people out of error —He revealed truth until error fell away.
A POWERFUL WAY TO SAY THIS IN TEACHING
“I’m not removing traditions because I hate culture —
I’m removing confusion because I love Christ.
Jesus doesn’t need help being celebrated.
He needs to be clearly revealed.”
SUMMARY: HOW TO EXCLUDE PAGAN CUSTOMS
✔️ Establish Christ’s identity
✔️ Separate Scripture from tradition
✔️ Remove what was rooted in idol worship
✔️ Replace with Christ-centered truth
✔️ Follow the Holy Spirit personally
✔️ Keep holy things holy
✔️ Teach with love, not condemnation
✝️ WHO WAS SAINT NICHOLAS?
Saint Nicholas was a real historical Christian man — but he is NOT in the Bible.
Historical Identity
Lived around 270–343 AD
A Christian bishop in Myra (modern-day Turkey)
Known for:
Generosity to the poor
Defending Christian doctrine
Helping widows and children
Giving anonymously
He lived almost 300 years after Jesus, the apostles, and the writing of Scripture.
IS SAINT NICHOLAS IN THE BIBLE?
No.
His name does not appear in Scripture
He was not an apostle
He was not a disciple of Jesus
He was not part of the early New Testament church leadership recorded in Acts or the Epistles
The Bible is complete without him.
⚠️ IMPORTANT DISTINCTION
Saint Nicholas was:
✔️ A Christian leader
✔️ A generous man
✔️ A historical figure
But he was never meant to be mythologized, worshipped, or used as a spiritual symbol.
HOW SAINT NICHOLAS BECAME “SANTA CLAUS”
This is where culture distorted truth:
1. Stories about his generosity grew over centuries
2. Folklore exaggerated his actions
3. European traditions mixed him with pagan winter myths
4. American culture turned him into:
A magical being
Omniscient (“knows if you’ve been bad or good”)
Gift distributor
5. Commercialism finalized the image
This version has NO biblical foundation.
✝️ WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT INTERMEDIARIES
1 Timothy 2:5
“There is ONE mediator between God and man — the man Christ Jesus.”
No saint replaces Christ.
No figure shares His role.
No tradition stands equal to Scripture.
THE KINGDOM TRUTH
Saint Nicholas was a man who followed Christ.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Nicholas gave gifts
Jesus gave His life
Nicholas helped the poor
Jesus saves souls
Nicholas was generous
Jesus is Redeemer
There is no comparison.
HOW TO TEACH THIS WITHOUT CONDEMNATION
You can say:
“Saint Nicholas was a historical Christian man, but he is not found in Scripture. Over time, culture transformed his story into something the Bible never intended. Our faith is built on Christ alone — not folklore, not tradition, not legends.”
✨ BOTTOM LINE
✔️ Saint Nicholas was real
❌ He is not in the Bible
❌ He is not spiritually authoritative
❌ He is not connected to Jesus’ birth biblically
✔️ Jesus Christ alone holds that place
CLOSING STATEMENT (CONCLUSION)
So, is Jesus Christ connected to Santa Claus and Christmas trees?
Biblically — no.
Jesus Christ stands complete in Himself. His birth, identity, and purpose are fully revealed in Scripture, not in folklore or seasonal symbols.
Historically — there are connections through culture, not Christ.
Saint Nicholas was a Christian man whose generosity reflected Christ, but he was never meant to replace or represent Jesus. Christmas trees and customs developed through European tradition and later Christian adaptation, not biblical command.
The real concern is not whether these traditions exist —
he real concern is who holds the center.
Jesus Christ is:
The Light of the world
The Word made flesh
The Savior of mankind
The fulfillment of prophecy
And when He remains at the center, traditions lose confusion, culture finds its place, and worship returns to Spirit and truth.
My goal is not to strip away celebration, but to restore clarity — so that Christ is not hidden behind symbols, and truth is not lost behind tradition.
That is how we honor Him rightly.
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