Christmas wasn't a quaint, quiet affair. It was an invasion.
Every December, the world turns its gaze toward nativity scenes: peaceful mangers, glowing halos, “silent nights,” and carols by candlelight. We imagine serenity. However, I’ve found it helpful to recast my imagination of that night. Christmas was not a quaint, quiet affair. It was an invasion.
The Almighty God looked upon a world imprisoned by sin and death and declared it time for liberation. The Nativity was the moment heaven stormed the beaches of a fallen world. The birth of Jesus Christ of Nazareth was the first strike in a divine campaign that would shatter the powers of darkness and reclaim what was lost since the Garden of Eden. It was God’s D-Day for liberating mankind.
The Bible tells us, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8). That’s not gentle imagery. It’s military language. The cries of a baby in Bethlehem were the sound of war being waged against evil itself. The angels’ songs of “glory to God” and “peace on earth” were like Allied leaflets dropped across occupied Europe, announcing that freedom was coming, that rescue was at hand.
Like the WW2 Normandy invasion, this invasion came at a great cost. Herod’s massacre of Bethlehem’s infants was a horrific counterattack—a desperate attempt to hold back the advance of heaven’s agenda. From the very beginning, Christ’s mission drew fire. Evil does not surrender quietly.
When we romanticize the Nativity, we lose sight of its powerful meta-narrative. We forget that Christmas was strategic. The Son of God parachuted behind enemy lines in human form to dismantle sin from within, armed not with weapons but with obedience, humility, and sacrificial love.
In 2000, I met a World War II veteran named Al Gliemi in Chicago. He was starting a business as a 79-year-old, and I had the honor of helping him. When I learned of his Bronze Star and multiple combat medals, I pressed him to share his stories from the European theater — the Battle of the Bulge, the capture of Berlin, and more.
One day, I asked him what the most perilous part of the war had been. He paused for a long moment and said,
“When V-E Day came, we thought we had victory. The enemy stopped firing mortars and tank shells, but we still had to go door to door through every building in every city. I lost more men in those weeks than during the famous battles. There were enemies still lurking in closets and shadows. The illusion of victory is dangerous. It takes courage and persistence to truly deliver peace.”
That conversation has stayed with me for decades.
Christmas is D-Day. Easter is V-E Day. The historic resurrection of Jesus Christ declared ultimate victory, but the world is still being cleared, room by room, of lingering darkness. We live in that in-between space, called to join the mission of restoration and renewal.
The greatest danger we face today comes not from artillery fire but from apathy. We forget that we’re part of a cosmic liberation effort. The birth of Jesus was the beginning of a campaign to reclaim every corner of creation. The followers of Jesus Christ are called to be His hands and feet—the “horizontal advent”—sent into the world to carry out the work He began (John 17:18).
In leadership, I’ve seen the same pattern play out in the human heart. In business, in families, even in nations, we mistake comfort for victory. We celebrate success, but we often forget that peace, like freedom, must be guarded, cultivated, and courageously fought for, sacrificed for.
The message of Christmas confronts that complacency. It reminds us that God sent His Son to transform our destinies. The King of the Universe came as an infant, not to make life easy but to make life eternal.
The world needed rescuing then, and it still does. Our culture is weary, divided, and searching for meaning. Christmas calls us to respond with courage, conviction, and the clarity to remember what this day truly means.
Christmas Eve is the turning point of all history — the moment heaven declared, The end starts here. The light entered the darkness, and the darkness has never overcome it (John 1:5).
If Christmas was D-Day, then our calling is to live as people liberated by that invasion. To bring hope where despair still hides. To rebuild broken systems with grace and truth. To lead businesses, families, and communities with the same sacrificial love that began in Bethlehem and triumphed at Calvary.
Every believer is invited to carry forward the victory Christ secured. In a culture obsessed with self-preservation, Christmas reminds us of Heaven’s mission of self-sacrifice.
As we gather around the tree and the table this year, may we remember: The manger was the beachhead. The King has landed. The rescue has begun.
Mike Sharrow is the CEO of C12 Business Forums, the world’s largest peer-learning organization for Christian CEOs, business owners, and executives. Under Mike’s leadership, C12 has grown to serve 4,400 members worldwide, which is supported by a community of more than 200 full-time Chairs. He leads the C12 headquarters team, championing the concept of BaaM (Business as a Ministry) for leaders building great businesses for a greater purpose.
