How Do Christians Interpret Hanukkah
Over the years, I’ve been asked many times, “Pastor Mike, what should Christians think about Hanukkah?” Many students are confused because it’s celebrated among Jewish classmates. Some have a basic understanding that it involves oil and a menorah, but fail to grasp the spiritual significance of the day.
Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday to commemorate God’s miraculous provision for Israel as they rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd Century BCE. As the faithful fought against the Gentile occupiers, the menorah in the Temple was running out of undefiled oil and only had one day’s oil left. The video below is from a Jewish site that beautifully captures the spiritual significance of the miracle: the menorah continued to burn for eight days. Yes, it was incredible that the Jewish revolt was victorious in battle, but the menorah’s flame symbolized the reason why they fought in the first place: they wanted to remain faithful and pure in their worship of the Lord. Please take three minutes to watch the video below before continuing with this article.
Please take 3 minutes to watch this video from the Jewish site, Chavad. For more, read their article on Hanukkah.
Hanukkah in the New Testament
You may be surprised to learn that Jesus celebrated Hanukkah and it’s mentioned in the New Testament. At that time, Hanukkah was called “the Feast of Dedication” because it commemorated the dedication of the Temple.
At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
The Jews picked up stones again to stone him.
John 10:22-31
It was during Hanukkah that Jesus talked about his Messianic identity. While Israel was celebrating their heritage of faithful worship in the Temple, Jesus identified himself as the Good Shepherd of Israel. He is the fulfillment of the prophecy against faithless shepherds in Ezekiel 34:2 and announces himself as the Messiah who would shepherd God’s people with faithfulness.
Those who say Jesus never claimed to be God or the messiah need to understand what’s happening in this passage. The people clearly understood what he was claiming, which is why they picked up stones to stone him (which was the biblical punishment for blasphemy). Jesus is the living Temple (John 2:19) who was rejected during the feast of Hanukkah.
Rather than being a “new” Judas Maccabeus, who would lead Israel in another revolt against the occupiers, Jesus proclaimed himself to be a different type of Messiah. He would be the Good Shepherd, who lays down his life for his sheep. And he would call sheep from another sheepfold (Gentiles, see John 10:16), in order to call Gentiles to be ingrafted into the root of Israel.
Christians and Hanukkah
There is no biblical command for Christians to celebrate Hanukkah. But it can be helpful for youth workers and parents to teach students about what Hanukkah means and use it as a reminder of how God provides for his people. This is especially true for Messianic Christians (Jewish men and women who believe Jesus is the promised Messiah). Hanukkah is a celebration of God’s provision for Israel rather than a “biblical” holiday that God mandated to teach something about the Messiah who would come.
More specifically, the benefit of talking with students about Hanukkah focuses on God’s ongoing provision and protection. Not every miracle is reported in Scripture. Sometimes church kids can get the impression that God is only at work in the Bible. I’ve even heard Christians express skepticism that God actually did the miracle of the oil! There is certainly no reason for Christians to be skeptical of Hanukkah or to feel like it competes against Christmas for any reason.
The faithful Jewish men and women wanted to remain faithful and ceremonially pure before the Lord in worship, rather than being polluted by their Gentile occupiers. Likewise, we call our students to walk in faithfulness, as opposed to spiritual and physical compromise with their unbelieving peers.
Hanukkah is a reminder for Christians to entrust themselves to God as they seek to live and worship with purity, resisting those who would tempt them towards spiritual compromise.
