3 (Non-Legalistic) Reasons to Go to Church on Christmas Sunday

Christmas Day is on a Sunday this year. Have you heard? 

There is a great deal of debate over Christmas Day church attendance this year. In one sense, we ought to spend some time thinking deeply about it. After all, Sunday is traditionally the “Lord’s Day” and the church makes a habit of gathering no matter what, because that’s what we do. Yet in another sense, debates can be a little overblown as people lob grenades claiming that those who aren’t holding Christmas Day Sunday services are “sinful compromisers,” while the alleged compromisers fire back, “You legalists!” 

Wherever you land in this year’s yuletide war over Christmas Day church attendance, here are 3 reasons our church has chosen to meet on that day: 

1: Our Membership Expectations and Elder Convictions

In our church documents, we ask every member to sign a commitment (not legally binding) that lays out what is expected of them according to Scripture. In today’s world of church hopping, we chose to take the concept of being a “member of Christ’s body” (1 Corinthians 12; Hebrews 13:17) and lay out some basic definitions and expectations that all believers ought to live out. In short, we let our members know that these are things the elders would hold them accountable to. It means something to be a committed member of our church.

In these commitments, we lay out certain “habits” that we as elders will live out, and that we will expect of members. One of those is “The Habit of Gathering (or Attending).” As church members, we desire to make gathering for worship a habit in our lives. Of course, it’s normal for people to miss when sick, or for some life event to occur causing us to travel, grieve, or minister and worship elsewhere. It simply means that as much as possible we will intentionally gather for worship wherever we are. 

With this intentional focus on gathering, our elders and team felt that it would send a very confusing message to cancel Lord’s Day (Sunday) worship because of Christmas. Making a conscious effort to punt Christmas Sunday even though we have Christmas Eve options was not in line with our convictions. We are unwilling to move our regular worship gathering because it interferes with our Christmas Day traditions. We gladly continue the habit of gathering together to glorify Jesus on a Sunday morning.

2: It is a Significant Opportunity to Prioritize Jesus on a Day Dedicated to Him

Many have argued on the internet in favor of canceling Christmas Day services. Reasons include: 

• Pastors need rest

• Worship and production teams have been overworked with holiday church events

• Christmas Eve services can accomplish the same purpose and we can keep Christmas morning for our families

• There is no command in Scripture that we meet on Sunday morning

• Jesus wants us to spend time with our families at home that day 

• No one will even show up, so why bother holding service

Some of those deserve a response, others are little more than the culture “tail” trying to wag the church “dog”. Despite some seeing Christmas Day as an obstacle, we’re choosing to see it as an opportunity. Instead of seeing this alleged interference as a problem, we’re choosing to embrace it as a privilege.

What a privilege to get to spend a part of Christmas Day worshipping Jesus with His body! Christmas is about the newborn King who was essentially born to die so that we would be redeemed. How special that we can prioritize the worship of Him in a way that declares His glory, majesty, and dominion on the very day we celebrate His birth. Each year we don’t get the chance to enjoy Lord’s Day worship on Christmas Day, and the next time this happens is 2033, so why not make this type of event a special commemoration? 

3: It is a Great Teaching Moment for the Church and our Families

I believe the American church is in the midst of one of the most revealing eras in our history. Parents are more challenged than ever to teach and train their children in the faith. Pastors are under tremendous pressure to provide answers and clarifying convictions through their example in leadership. The times are exposing the false churches, and revealing the true ones. Of course, I don’t mean to say that any church not meeting on Christmas Day is “false.” I am referring to the overall era in which we find ourselves this year and the weight of leadership decisions in the church and the home. It’s not far-fetched to imagine this era including the several years leading up to 2020, and now the several years that follow. The church has compromised in numerous ways during this short span of time. We’re seeing no less than the following issues expose churches as false or pragmatic: 

• LGBTQ+ positions embraced

• Gay pastors claiming they are of the faith

• CRT embraced as definitions of justice divide

• Ecumenical partnerships with false religions in the name of “one church” unity

• COVID shutdowns leading to pragmatic Metaverse church models 

• The acceptance of online church as a genuine form of sustainable worship

Every one of these issues can be expanded upon but all point back to the same core compromise: the authority, sufficiency, and inerrancy of Scripture is no longer driving the theology and methodology of the church. 

Amid such a turbulent culture and compromise, what a great teaching moment for our churches and families as we keep doing what we always do: worship on Sunday with God’s people, declaring to the world that we are citizens of an eternal kingdom. When your children ask you, “Why are we going to church on Christmas Day? What about our presents?” It’s a great teaching moment. When people say, “Why you are making the church staff work on Christmas Day?” It’s a great teaching moment. When people say, “No one will even show up!” It’s a great teaching moment. 

Our message is not, “It falls on Christmas Day, let’s cancel.” But rather, “Come and see why there is no Christmas without Christ!”

Many churches that are in the family of God will land differently on this issue, but my encouragement to all pastors is to think deeply about these things. Some will make this about legalism vs. regulative principle. Others will make it about confessionalism vs. cultural compromisers. Those debates deserve some level of attention, but perhaps most of all, this has nothing to do with legalism. Can’t it be about love?

I want to gather with the church on Christmas Sunday because I love the church, I love Christ, and I love that just once every several years we get to do something that messes with all of our traditions, reminding us what — no, Who — Christmas is all about. 

Lord willing, if you’re not choosing to gather this year, we’ll see you in 2033.