Christmas is fundamentally about authority. The birth of Christ was threat to human leaders because Jesus came as a King. Today we see two possible responses to the newborn King.
As a herald of the Kingdom, John calls us to allegiance to King Jesus. This allegiance calls us to embody a counter-culture community that is a witness to the world and brings glory to Christ.
Jesus experienced rejection and as we follow Him we will experience rejection as well. He calls us to remember who He is, trust Him, and go into the world with courage and grace.
In the age of hyper criticism, God commands all who fear Him to give thanks. Psalm 118 defines this giving of thanks as an active process that leads to worship!