By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — As comforting as it can be to be sentimental about Christmas, three ministers from across Hutchinson agree, the message of the holiday is ultimately about a one on one, personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
"Scripture speaks and says, the man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned," said Pastor Andy Addis with CrossPoint in Hutchinson. "But we have the mind of Christ. The first step has to be inviting Christ into your life, so that the Holy Spirit can communicate to you. If you haven't asked Christ into your heart, then it's just another book."
Pastor Matt Stafford from First Congregational makes it clear, the Jesus of the Bible was not a good teacher, he is a Savior.
"We celebrate it because it's a virgin birth, it's not just a birth," Stafford said. "The purpose of Christmas is Easter. Jesus didn't come to make bad people good, he came to make dead people alive and that is what we celebrate."
Pastor John Wolf from Temple Baptist noted that the Magi came well after Christmas and continued to seek not the baby of the manger, but the King they believed would reign.
"The wise men were seeking God the way he wanted to be found," Wolf said. "They didn't come with an expectation. They didn't seek him on their terms. They sought him on his terms and weren't afraid to let others know, like King Herod, to let him know, we've been watching for what God's going to do and we're seeing it and we're open to instruction to not go back that way. It's just a perfect picture to me of what following God really means."
The pastors made it clear that they would love to have you at any of their churches for Christmas Eve or any time, but the important thing is that no matter where you worship, it's about Who you worship.
Below is the full interview with the ministers: