DAY 9: The Christmas Tree and the Jesse Tree
“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. ” – 1 Peter 2:24 ESV
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.” – Galatians 3: 13-14 ESV
My Thoughts:
Christmas Tree by Roys Art
I love putting up a Christmas tree so much so, that I do it twice! Yes, I have 2 (fake) trees that I decorate each year. Because you can never have too many Christmas trees I think. The Christmas tree is one of the most popular of our Christmas-time customs—for the religious and non-religious alike. And it’s true that the evergreens that were placed in the home began as a pagan symbol of life and rebirth in the midst of the dead of winter. Nevertheless, the evergreen tree was adopted by Christians for use at Christmas and any pagan connections it had were lost long ago.
Because the Christmas tree is used by all—in our homes, in our businesses, and city centers—it is important for believers to use the tree as a symbol of Christ at this time of year. The tree should remind us of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden by which sin entered the world. It should remind us of the Manger of the Christ Child by which God entered our world. And the tree should remind us of the Cross of the Son of Man by which God redeemed us and our world. Those are God’s Christmas Trees.
And the lights on the tree should represent Jesus as the Light of the World and the star on top represents the Star of Bethlehem. And the gifts under the tree should represent the gifts placed under the manger given by the wise men and the gift at the foot of the cross—which are infinitely better than any presents under our trees this year. For God’s gifts are the gifts of salvation, joy, reconciliation, peace, mercy, and eternal life!
And consider making your tree this year a Jesse Tree. See the activity below for more info.
“It might be easy to run away to a monastery, away from the commercialization, the hectic hustle, the demanding family responsibilities of Christmas-time. Then we would have a holy Christmas. But we would forget the lesson of the Incarnation, of the enfleshing of God—the lesson that we who are followers of Jesus do not run from the secular; rather we try to transform it. It is our mission to make holy the secular aspects of Christmas just as the early Christians baptized the Christmas tree. And we do this by being holy people—kind, patient, generous, loving, laughing people—no matter how maddening is the Christmas rush…” – Fr. Andrew Greeley
Activity: Make a Jesse Tree
A Jesse Tree
Consider making a Jesse Tree during this year’s Advent Season. The Jesse Tree helps us connect the custom of decorating Christmas trees to the events leading up to Jesus’ birth. The Jesse Tree is named from Isaiah 11:1: “A shoot shall come out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” Jesse was the father of King David– who it was prophesied would be of the line of the coming Messiah. And so a Jesse Tree is really a Jesus Tree. A Jesse Tree is decorated with illustrated ornaments related to the events of Jesus’ birth and the prophecies about him in the Old Testament. The ornaments of the Jesse Tree tell the story of God in the Old Testament, connecting the Advent season with the faithfulness of God across four thousand years of history.
View a Jesse Tree sample.
Prayer (Based on Philippians 4:7):
May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
And the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always.
