pennned wrote:
blessed time to study and celebrate with the brethren. in one accord, to corporately declare our fellowship, to the authentic and real event in history of the coming of the Messiah, born of a virgin, in the line of David, who fled from Herod and came out of Egypt to "make a holy nation" that would have the law "written on their hearts

Dec 25 date is based on Easter's March 25th as Christ's conception date. Silly - BUT

Reading prophecies
[URL=http://accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html]]]in this artfully laid our 353 Messianic prophecies[/URL] I was reminded of the atheist who looked at one prophecy and scoffed "this is a weak point" - "sure, not a strong point by itself: but you put 353 strings together in a braided rope, and try to break that "
replied the disciple.

The 12/25 birthday is an arbitrary guess.. But.,,
Like today( our 40th Wedding anniversary ) a celebration of birthdays and anniversaries is not mandated in scripture , yet it is fitting to recall.

My cousin was born Dec 25 so his birthday is celebrated June 25 to avoid problems.

"Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me" (Psalm 40:7).

"The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (Revelation 19:10).

"...all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me" (Jesus Christ, Luke 24:44).

"For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me." (Jesus Christ, John 5:46).

"To Him give all the prophets witness" (Acts 10:43).

" Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel... By which also ye are saved... unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

The Gospel is the Prophesied Virgin Born Lamb Risen Lord!

I mean

1.if you know me you know I love Christ & hate blasphemy of the Mass. If you misheard it as me referring to the mass as anything good, I will typically disabuse anyone of that notion in short order.

2.I reject the mess of consumerism of Dec in the west

3.I enjoy word play and the hidden code of
ChristMess
that stands for ChristMessiah: doubling down on the prophecied King.

See

[URL=http://accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html]]]353 proohecies fulfilled in ChristMESSiah [/URL]

This is the thing to focus on when Christ's Name is misused- one thing that can start conversation is pointing out. " Jesus Christ " includes a title not a last name.
surprising how few know this. That leads to the prophecies that pointed to our Lord.

The Kennedy classics on SA have some good audio on this.

It is in Job wrote:
https://answersingenesis.org/holidays/christmas/hark-the-herald-angels-said/

This verse is the basis of the

Prologue of "The Real Messiah" book pages 11-22

The book recently expanded from Dr D James Kennedy by his friend Jerry Newcombe in 2008

Goes into detail from the first pages that
"O Little Town of Bethlehem"
Verse
"O morning stars, together proclaim his holy birth"
Is ref. to the prophecy of Messiah's birth by
The Heavens Themselves!
The book Goes into Isaac Abrabanel's calculation of planets
and Al Samaca constellation Pisces star with the star Okda being a "song in the night" to the Magi that led them to Messiah.

Kepler looked at the "music of the spheres" as a Jupiter & Saturn movement into Pisces that Magi would read as the overture to the Messiah.

I re-read the book yesterday - the index of 133 prophecies fulfilled by Christ is extensively commented on by various experts.

listening to Handel's Messiah should lead to Isaiah 53 - a mountain top that sings out our Lord's praise.