Hanukkah:Fulfilled!

Here is the first installment of my new Fulfilled! series. Stores everywhere are decked out for the holidays, so this seems a relevant place to start. Do keep in mind this is an experiment and i'm not trying to uncover new truths or anything. We no longer have obligation to follow any feasts as we are made righteous by Christ's blood. With that, we have the freedom to celebrate as we choose (following that it's good).

To start, I took the definition/meaning of Hanukkah from joi.org and updated some BC words. So many things in the New Testament has an Old Testament shadow, so I amThe word Hanukkah means rededication. It commemorates our particular salvation (as opposed to the rededication of the Temple after desecration by outside forces). I don't mean it in the sense that we run down an aisle and give our lives to Jesus again, but celebrating in a more obvious way than an average day of the year. Of course we should be praising God for this fact daily, but it doesn't hurt to have a special day (or week) to remember this, especially if you "forget" easily, as sin causes us to. It reaffirms the presence of grace in the continuing struggle to live Christian lives in a culture hostile to God's commandments. When we dedicate ourselves, through faith and action, to the pursuit of high religious and human ideals, Christianity is strong. That imperative, to strengthen our faith and brothers, remains an important challenge at this season, in every generation. This is an important point...what a gem this is, and oh so relevant. This is what we need more of: a dedication of faith and action. We need to keep daily in the Word and part of a local ekklesia to strengthen our faith. We need to dedicate ourselves to finding ways to act out that faith through one-anothering and service. We need to aim high, because in our sin we shall constantly fail. Christianity will retain a strong presence and grow if we work and pray hard to keep our faith and brethren strong. This is challenging in a season of extreme materialism and increased faux-Christians. This is true year after year and shall remain true until Christ returns.

Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights and the story of the oil that lasted for 8 days (how long it took the high priest to make some more) is famous, but I found that the sites I looked at prefers to emphasize how they got to the point where they only had one day's worth of oil left, and just throws the miracle of the longevity as a side note. Of course I realize that these sites tend to be more liberal and a bit new agey because an Orthodox Jew isn't going to really care about making a website to tell others about their religion.  The focus is instead put on the fact that so many Jews were being Hellenized under Syrian rule. The ruler tried to force them to bow down to idols and sacrifice pigs (read: NOT kosher). The Jews rebelled and won against odds in classic fashion. It's tooted as a triumph over assimilation even though it is the most assimilated holiday, with the Hanukkah bush, exchange of presents, Hanukkah lights. Irony at its best.

The thing that sets Christianity apart of Judaism is grace. We have grace and don't have codes to follow, so to celebrate in a secular way is not a sin in and of itself, just easy to commit idolatry (eg materialism, gluttony, etc.) But because of this grace, we can incorporate Hanukkah into our Christian celebrations as a way to celebrate the whole story of salvation. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus (coming of the Messiah) but leaves you hanging until Spring as to what that means. We can celebrate the grace that God has given us in giving us his Son to be the propitiator of our sins and the graces to grow in and live out that faith He has granted us. It is only by God's grace that we can rebel against assimilation (of doctrine) and remember the true Light.

I'm glad that visibly the menorah seems to be central to Hanukkah. That makes it easier to transition to what it means to a Christian. In the Temple, there were 7 lampstands (menorahs -although the kind used in the temple only had 7 branches, as opposed to the 8/9 of Hanukkah). The lampstands, showbread, incense...everything in the Temple (and the Temple itself) were but shadows of things to come. The fulfillment of the menorah is threefold.

1. Revelation 1:12-20 indicates local churches are represented by golden lampstands
2. Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12)
3. Christians are to be a light to the world (Matthew 5:14-16)

Whoever follows Jesus Christ will have the light of life, and thus shall be a light to the world.  We have to remember this time and always to stand firm in the faith, sharing the gospel whenever possible, and living, by God's grace, to be Christlike.  It's a miracle that God enabled one day's worth of oil to burn for 8 nights, but oh the miracle of bringing men dead in their sins to life and to be a light to the rest of the dead, dark world.  This Christmas season, let's not forget these important facts and mercies.  We deserve death and God not only gives us life, but uses us to strengthen our brothers and share Light with the world.

For more information, please visit Got Questions?org (Christians on Hanukkah) and Chabad.org (info on Hanukkah and other Jewish holidays).