Quote from Forum Archives on December 17, 2002, 10:57 am

Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

FROM HUMBUG TO HALLELUJAH! #4/7

GETTING OR GIVING?
December 15, 2002

Text: Matthew 1:18-25

As Christmas approaches, the annual fuming and fretting over Christmas
shopping builds and builds. The promotions and advertising increase as
everyone, it seems, has our “perfect gift solution” in mind. Stores and
malls become more and more crowded as they fill with “last minute”
shoppers. I remember the December Saturdays in Virginia Beach when I took
Malia to the mall where she received her piano lesson. I did a lot of
driving around the parking lot to find an empty space. It can all be so
frustrating!

It strikes me as so sad that one of the most joyful traditions associated
with Christmas also becomes one of the most frustrating things we do. As
I have mentioned, the extra traffic and crowds raise our levels of
stress. So does the whole materialistic emphasis. Every year, there are
some new, better, gotta-have toys out there with a pretty hefty price
tag. Yet, Christmas shoppers seem to buy find ways to buy them up - and
then realize that they have to get presents for their children, too.

Now, I don’t totally begrudge retailers and marketers and producers the
profits they need to make in order to stay in business and provide for
their families. After all, there are many Christians who are involved in
some businesses that rely heavily on Christmas sales. Still, it is sad
that one of the chief indications of our Christmas holiday is that it has
become a materialistic frenzy instead of a sacred celebration. One
cartoonist captures this unfortunate side of Christmas as Jon Arbuckle
types a letter to Santa for his cat, Garfield. “Dear Santa, ‘This is
Garfield. Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme,
gimme.’” Jon asks, “How’s that?” to which Garfield replies, “One more
‘gimme’ oughta do it.” (Jim Davis, “Garfield,” Peru Tribune, Thursday,
Dec. 12, 2002) No wonder anyone of us can get caught up with a “humbug”
attitude instead of a “hallelujah” attitude this time of the year.

The truth is that we will never experience a “hallelujah” Christmas when
our focus is on getting. It doesn’t take many of us long to realize how
quickly the very things we have longed so much for break. Or, even worse,
how quickly we become disinterested and bored with the things we wanted
so badly. All of this contributes quickly to the “humbug” Christmas
attitude.

The coming of Jesus stands in stark contrast to the present-day emphasis
on spending and getting. Turn to Philippians 2:3-8. Even though Paul
never celebrated a Christmas season, he tells us what Christmas is all
about: God putting us first. Jesus lay aside the heavenly glory that was
rightly his and was born among us as a servant, humbling himself even to
death on a cross. The Gospel accounts of Matthew and Luke detail for us
just how humble Jesus’ birth was. His birth came through an unmarried
maiden who was pledged to be married. Both Joseph and Mary were ordinary
people; we are told of no extraordinary social standing or spiritual
qualities. The birth took place in an unusually humbling setting.
Sometime after the birth, they had to flee to escape the senseless fury
of an angry tyrant. Not really a whole lot of esteem there for the King
who gave up heavenly royalty. As a race, we can really be quite a
miserable lot when we forget about how to properly treat our fellow human
beings.

Illuminating this facet of human behavior was one of the reasons for
Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. The main character, Ebenezer
Scrooge, expresses complete disdain for the poor and unfortunate, even
though he, himself, creates such a family through the inadequate wage he
pays his clerk, Bob Cratchit. Yet, it is to his clerk’s home, which
Scrooge had apparently never visited, that the Ghost of Christmas Present
takes him. Scrooge sees the impoverished Cratchit family enjoying one
another and the holiday, in spite of their meager fare. They have riches
that have nothing to do with finances.

As Scrooge witnesses this family’s interaction, he genuinely softens.
Beginning to thaw from his "humbug chill," Scrooge anxiously inquires
about the prospects for Tiny Tim. The ghost reminds Scrooge of an
incident that had occurred earlier that Christmas Eve: Scrooge, asked by
some other wealthy gentlemen for a charitable Christmas contribution,
responded with bitter sarcasm: "Are the poor houses still in operation?
The orphanages?" Receiving an affirmative reply, Scrooge expressed
relief, for he was convinced that such institutions were the primary aid
for the poor. "But many would rather die than go to those places," one
gentleman replied. "Then let them die," said Scrooge, "and decrease the
excess population!" (Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, New York:
Scholastic Magazines, Inc., 1962, pp. 9, 10, 70, 71)

When we hear a comment such as this - “Let them die, and decrease the
excess population” - we ask ourselves, "Just what kind of a person could
make such a statement? How could anyone be so cold-hearted?" But what is
much more disconcerting than witnessing a fictional character exhibit
such a “humbug” attitude is witnessing people in real life with such a
“humbug” attitude. I do not know whether materialism creates such an
attitude, but it certainly seems to reinforce the attitude. We have to
constantly learn that generosity brings a joy with which dollars cannot
compare.

We need to remember that Mary and Joseph would have been among the poor
whom Scrooge despises. Joseph had been taken away from his trade in
Nazareth to go to Bethlehem for the census. He had no insurance, vacation
leave, sick days, or unemployment. A short time after the birth of Jesus,
Mary and Joseph became refugees to flee the wrath of King Herod. All they
had was what they could carry. Would Scrooge have said, “Let them die,”
if he had been confronted with the holy family in Bethlehem? Would we?
Scriptures remind us frequently of this vital lesson: we make a living by
what we get; we make a life by what we give. Jesus came to give us life
abundantly.

Consider the Dickens’s character, Tiny Tim. Though his little body is
broken, his heart and spirit are whole. Though poor in things, he is rich
in faith. He knows you don’t have to be rich to bless others. Tiny Tim
reminds us of the lessons of baby Jesus. He is vulnerable to the world,
yet he reaches out to it in compassion and exclaims, “God bless us
everyone!”

Where are true riches to be found? They are found in entering the mystery
of godly love and the mystery of putting others before ourselves. True
riches are not found in the mere accumulation of worldly wealth, but in
the extravagant investment of godly love. Those whose hearts have been
touched by God are able to realize a profound truth. Paul states it
similarly in 2 Corinthians 1:3–5: “Praise be to the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any
trouble with the comfort we have received from God. For just as the
sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our
comfort overflows.”

Tiny Tim echoed this truth when he said, “…that he hoped the people saw
him in the church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant to
them to remember upon Christmas Day who made lame beggars walk and blind
men see.” (Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, New York: Scholastic
Magazines, Inc., 1962, p. 67) Tiny Tim is one who turned the humbug of
his life into a God-glorifying hallelujah. Rather than being poor, he was
rich, because he had received the riches that only Christ can give, and
he passed them on.

But reading about a fictional character to whom its author can dictate
any desired attitude and response, no matter how reflective of Biblical
Christianity, is not really the end result that God wants. God wants His
truths to live in and through us. Christianity is not about feeling good
because we read of someone else’s response, fiction or non-fiction, to a
Biblical truth. Christianity is not about feeling good because we read
that “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and
they will call him Immanuel - which means ‘God with us.’”

Christianity is about responding to the invitation of God to receive His
magnificent gift of salvation in Jesus Christ, and then also returning
His gift of love to others along the way.

Certainly making use of the opportunities given in Advent and Christmas
to make known the birth of Jesus Christ, our Lord and King, is one way to
pass along God’s gift of love to others. Nothing is more loving than for
another person to receive God’s gift of salvation.

And remember that the “hallelujah” side of Christmas comes from giving. I
don’t mean just going out and spending money on presents that probably
won’t last all that long; I’m talking about giving ourselves in
meaningful ways no matter how small they might appear be. During this
Christmas season, do something for someone who can do nothing in return
for you. What do I mean? Well, you may have more ideas than I can
imagine, but take this as one idea. What is it that we may have to be
doing this time of the year that tests our patience to the max? We may
have to wait in longer than normal lines! I don’t think that we display
any greater impatience than when we have to wait in a line. So, during
this Christmas especially, practice the hallelujah presence of God while
you’re in those lines. If you are an outgoing person, chat with others in
line with you about the season and God’s love. If you are not so
outgoing, dwell upon a Scripture about the birth of Christ, and at least
smile at someone in line with you. And be courteous to those checking you
out. Bless their time with you and their Christmas. Insignificant and
trivial? Maybe seemingly so, but smaller actions than these have
attracted people to learn more about the Gospel. Give thanks to God for
the blessings you receive from Him and pass on a blessing to others as
you celebrate a hallelujah Christmas.

Rev. Charles A. Layne, pastor, First Baptist Church, Bunker Hill, IN

________________________________________________________________
Sign Up for Juno Platinum Internet Access Today
Only $9.95 per month!
Visit www.juno.com