Complicated Christmas: When the Holidays Don’t Look Like the Movies

You ever notice how Christmas looks absolutely perfect in the movies? Snow falling softly. Families that never argue. Houses decorated like Pinterest exploded on them. Kids behaving for thirty straight days like they’re trying to land a spot in a cereal commercial. Everything warm, cozy, peaceful… and unreal. In every Hallmark-style Christmas movie, there’s always a gazebo. Always. A perfectly lit gazebo in the center of a perfectly decorated town with perfectly perfect people finding their perfectly scripted love story. Guess what?

It’s not real.

Most of those “towns” are just façades on a studio backlot. Many of the buildings don’t even have interiors—they’re literally walls propped up. The hospital in your favorite Christmas movie? It might actually be the costume department. That iconic place where Spider-Man kissed Mary Jane? It looks huge on-screen, but it’s only about 25 feet tall. It’s called forced perspective. And honestly, a lot of us have been handed a Christmas that feels like forced perspective. What looks perfect from the right angle actually hides the imperfections, tensions, and cracks just out of frame. Movie magic is great for Hollywood—but it’s a terrible way to live a Christmas season.

Because if we’re honest, most of our Christmases are complicated. There’s stress. There’s tension. There’s grief that shows back up without asking. There’s an empty seat at the table. There’s financial pressure. There are strained relationships. There are expectations we can’t meet. There are smiles we’re trying to hold together. And then we feel guilty for not feeling more “Christmas-y.” Guilty for being overwhelmed. Guilty for not being joyful enough. Guilty for not having that movie-perfect holiday experience. If your Christmas feels complicated… you’re right where God works best. And Matthew proves it by beginning his Christmas story in the most unexpected way possible:

With a genealogy.

The Genealogy We Usually Skip

Let’s be honest: when most of us hit a genealogy in the Bible, we skip it. It’s the “begat section.” And after about the 50th begat, the eyes get heavy. But in the first century, genealogies mattered. They told people who you were, what tribe you belonged to, what inheritance you had, and whose story you continued. Identity flowed through family lines.

So Matthew begins his Gospel by saying, “Let me show you exactly where Jesus came from.” And the list he gives? It’s not neat. Not polished. Not Hallmark-approved. It’s messy. It’s complicated. It’s full of real, broken people. Honestly… Jesus’ family might look a lot like yours.

A Family Tree Full of Imperfections

Matthew starts with Abraham—the father of faith—but Abraham had major flaws. He lied twice about his wife. He doubted God. He made decisions out of fear. He slept with someone else to “help God out.” Then there’s Isaac, who repeated many of his father’s mistakes. Then Jacob, whose name literally means “deceiver.” He lied, manipulated, ran from conflict, and created deep family wounds. Then Judah, who sold his brother Joseph into slavery… and later slept with his disguised daughter-in-law, Tamar. And Matthew intentionally includes the women in Jesus’ genealogy—highly unusual in ancient Jewish records. But look who he includes:

• Tamar — involved in a scandal with Judah
• Rahab — a prostitute from Jericho
• Ruth — a Moabite outsider from a nation with dark origins
• Bathsheba — not even named, just called “Uriah’s wife,” because Matthew wants you to remember David’s adultery and murder

This is not a polished family tree. This is not the kind of lineage you brag about. This is Matthew preaching before he ever writes a sermon:

Jesus didn’t come through perfect people. He came through broken people—to save broken people.

The Rise, the Fall, and the Restoration

Matthew organizes the genealogy into three movements:

1. Abraham to David — The Rise
2. David to the Exile — The Fall
3. The Exile to Christ — The Restoration

The exile was Israel’s lowest moment. They lost everything—land, identity, temple, hope. Then came 400 years of silence between the Old and New Testaments. Generations lived and died feeling like God wasn’t speaking.

But Matthew shows us:

God was still working.

God was still moving.

God was still weaving the story.

Even when the people couldn’t see it. Maybe that’s you this Christmas. Maybe God feels silent. Maybe the story feels stuck. Maybe the prayers feel unanswered. The genealogy says: When nothing seems to be happening, God is often doing His deepest work.

What This Means for Us

So what does this ancient list of names mean for you in 2025?

1. Your family doesn’t have to be perfect for God to work.

Jesus came from a complicated family. That means He understands yours. He’s not intimidated by your family tension, drama, absences, or pain.

2. Your story isn’t too messy for God to redeem.

Jesus’ lineage includes liars, cheaters, outsiders, adulterers, broken people, and sinners. And God wove redemption through every generation.

Your mistakes don’t disqualify you. They may be the very places God wants to shine through.

3. Christmas isn’t about perfection—it’s about God entering the mess.

The manger wasn’t cute or cozy. It was a stone feeding trough. There were animals, smells, noise, tension, rumors, fear, exhaustion… and into that mess came the Prince of Peace.

Christmas has never been perfect.

Christmas has always been complicated.

And that’s exactly where God shows up.

Jesus: Fully God and Fully Human

John opens his Gospel differently than Matthew, but he makes the same point:

“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us…” (John 1:14)

That’s the heart of Christmas. Jesus didn’t wait for humanity to get its act together. He stepped into the chaos, pain, and brokenness of real life. Fully God to save us. Fully man to understand us. Perfectly united in the One who would rescue us. This was God’s plan from the beginning.

Every year, my Christmas lights come out tangled. Every year. I don’t put them away in knots—I try to be neat. But somehow they turn into a ball of chaos no one can explain. And when you face tangled lights, you have two options:

Throw them away…or patiently work through the knots because you know the light is worth it. That’s what God does with us. He doesn’t throw away tangled lives. He doesn’t toss complicated stories. He patiently untangles, restores, and brings light out of what looks like a mess. Maybe your life feels knotted this Christmas. Maybe your relationships feel tangled. Maybe your heart feels twisted up. God says, “Give it to Me. I can untangle what you cannot.”

If Your Christmas Is Complicated… There’s Hope

As we begin this journey through Complicated Christmas, hear this clearly:

• If your Christmas is complicated… you’re in the perfect place for God to show up.
• If your family is complicated… Jesus understands family mess better than anyone.
• If your story is messy… you are exactly the kind of person God loves to redeem.
• If your life feels tangled… God specializes in untangling knots.

From Abraham to David. From David to the exile. From the exile to Jesus. God was weaving a rescue plan all along.

And that rescue plan has a name: Jesus. A Savior who stepped into a complicated world to save complicated people—people like us. There is room for you in this story. There always has been.