Santa Claus vs. Jesus Christmas

Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.  Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.  And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.   

 Mark 10:14-16  KJV

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23 NIV

     I get a nagging feeling of discomfort every year at this time.  It comes from the Santa Claus Christmas vs. the Jesus Christmas debate.  Does participating in the Santa Claus myth take away from remembering Jesus at Christmas?

     Most of the time, the question is academic -- that is, unless you have little ones in the house!  Then some decisions have to be made.  Do you tell your kids about Santa or not?  Are the gifts left under the tree from Santa or from the person who really gave them  -- you, Grandma, Uncle Fred?

     We never told our own kids about Santa.  Of course they heard about him from others and so, when they asked us if Santa was real, we told them that he was real in the same way that Big Bird is real.  They could draw their own conclusions.  Right or wrong, that's how we handled it.

     Then it occurred to me the other day that there is a parallel between Santa Claus Christmas and how we respond to God in our Christian walk.  Children anticipate Christmas with excitement and huge anticipation.  They believe that there is someone who will give them gifts freely -- just because his love for them is so great that giving them gifts is the thing he most wants to do.

      Giving us the gift of Jesus and eternal life with Him is the thing that God most wants to do.  His gift is free to anyone who will accept it  -- just as are the gifts from Santa.

     So, there are two parts to the parallel between Santa Claus and God, God's attitude and ours.  Are we like little children who eagerly anticipate the free gift that is given to us.  It is a gift that we can accept without guilt.  Who ever heard of a child turning down a gift at Christmas?  Santa certainly reflects God's love in his desire to give free gifts to us.

     I do not know the answer to the question of whether or not you should tell your child about Santa Claus. I do know that you should tell your child about Jesus and there is a metaphor that describes, very well, God's great love for us.

How to Live for Jesus

Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.     John 14:23

     My home church has an "altar call" at the end of each service.  A song is sung by the congregation and anyone who wants to accept Jesus and be baptized can come forward at that time.  Baptism usually follows immediately.  At the end of a service I recently attended, a young couple, around 30 years old, went forward with their children.  The minister asked us all to sit down and as the couple faced us, here is what he said:

     "Most of you know these two.  They have been worshiping and serving with us for a few years now.  I asked them if I could speak frankly with you today and they gave me permission.  They love the Lord and they want to live their lives as Christ wants them to.  So today, before we have a baptism, we are going to have a wedding!"

     They then went onto the stage, the minister put on his jacket and the minister's wife brought the bride some roses.  Then, without any rehearsal, without any invitations being sent, without rings, without music, without listening to Here Comes the Bride, but with a church full of encouraging witnesses, they repeated vows to honor and love each other until death they do part and the new husband kissed his new bride.  The couple then prepared for baptism and were baptized into Jesus before their new brothers and sisters in Christ and their children who were watching from the front pew.  

     What a great example this couple set for us all!  We all say that we want to live for Jesus; but we set up our own terms.  This couple could have decided to get married when they had saved enough money for a big wedding, as so many young couples today are prone to do.  But they chose, instead, to show by example how to choose Christ over the world, over their own dreams and desires.  They were an example to their children and to the rest of us on how to submit to Jesus.  It was simple.  It is we who make living for Jesus complicated.  It is we who argue with God over his timing.  I hope to never forget the example of following Jesus that I learned from this couple who want to live as Jesus would have them live and have the courage to do it.

Liquid Gold

These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (1 Peter 1:7 NLT)

Everybody goes through hard times and our lives are all woven together so that what effects one of us effects us all. It is possible that there are times when the sufferings we go through are allowed by God for a purpose that involves us. There are other times when our sufferings are the result of decisions made as a result of the free will that God has given to people. In either case, the strength of our faith is revealed by how faithful we remain while going through the troubled times.

In Jesus' day, gold was processed by being melted in fire. Any impurities in the gold would rise to the top and could be removed while the gold was in its liquid state. Then, only when it was pure gold, would the craftsman cool it down and create a work of art.

Peter tells us that we are more precious to God than works of art made from pure gold. You are priceless to our Father. Passing through the fires of hardship in this life prepare us for the life to come when Jesus is revealed to the whole world.

A Pointing Finger

You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.    Romans 2:1  NIV

        Jesus never calls us to be a judge of other people.  That is a God sized job.  Jesus wants us to accept God's mercy and he wants us to let others know that God is merciful.  Pointing out the faults and sins of others is an activity that Satan loves.  The Bible refers to him as "The Adversary."  So the question is, are you a support for others or an adversary?  We can be the greatest help to others in their Christian growth by walking beside them down the path and helping them up when they stumble.  A benefit is that they will be there for us when we fall flat on our own faces.

Holiness

So set yourselves apart to be holy, for I am the LORD your God.  Leviticus 20:7 NLT

     We all like to be part of a larger group.  We want to have respect among our family and friends.  We want to be able to relax with people who are like minded.  In Leviticus 20, God calls us to be "set apart."  What sets you apart?  

     When people think of you, what do they think of?  What are your passions?  How do you spend your time?  Are you easy to get along with or are you hard to get along with?  Is there a sin issue that you struggle with?  How do you accomplish your goals?  Do you have goals?

     When Moses wrote, "Set yourselves apart to be holy, for I am the LORD your God," he was talking to the Israelites as a group.  God wanted the Israelites to be distinctive because He is distinctive and He was pointing out that they were a reflection of Him.

     Groups, however, are made up of individuals, so we are back to the question, "What sets you apart?"  Are you holy?  What would that look like to people today?   What does your family look like?  Your church?  When people look at you, do they see God?  He wants you to be holy because people see Him through you.

Loving the Unlovable

But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:8 NLT)

If there is anything I have learned through the years, it is that people who care about something are often the hardest to love. Anytime we are passionate about an issue, we tend to come on strong. Woe be unto the people who disagree with us.

It is easy to love those who agree with us all the time -- with those who share our point of view. God loves those who are hardest to love.

There are times when I am not very easy to love. I am so glad that God continues to love me through these times. Isn't it great that God gives us the opportunity to love those who don't deserve our love -- just as he loves us? We don't deserve it.

The Vine and the Branches

     I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.  He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.  You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.  Remain in me, and I will remain in you.  No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine.  Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches.  John 15:1-5  NIV

     Jesus uses the imagery of the vine and the branches to help us understand our position in relationship to God the Father and Jesus the Son.  Jesus is the grapevine.  The grapevine sprouts from the seed and gives life to the branches.  Jesus gives life to us.  We are the branches.  The branches sprout the flowers that produce grapes which have more seeds in them.  God, as the gardener, wants all the grapes he can get.  The grapes are valuable to him.  Our job, as branches, is to produces grapes.  Jesus gives us life so that we can produce more grapes for the father.  God will do whatever it takes in our lives to help us be more fruitful.  He will prune us back, so that we will produce more grapes.  He cares for us and watches over us.  This is a process that has one goal for each participant -- bearing more fruit.
        
        Do you bear fruit?  Do you receive what you need for life from Jesus?