If ever a man
walked in darkness, it was Ebenezer Scrooge. He had one friend,
his business partner, Jacob Marley, who had died some years back, but Scrooge
never shed a tear. In fact, all he ever said about “the sad event” was that
Marley had been an excellent businessman until the very day he died. There was
no funeral. No memorial. No celebration of life. Scrooge observed the death of
his business partner by going to work. They say he struck quite a bargain.
Sound cold? Oh, he
was surely that. Scrooge was “a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping,
clutching, covetous old sinner.”[i]
“No wind that blew was bitterer than he….”[ii]
Why, Scrooge was
so cold he believed that poor folks belong in prisons and workhouses! And, in
the dead of winter, he lit such a meager fire in his office that his clerk had
to wear a coat indoors and warm his hands over a candle. If the poor man tried
to put even one more lump of coal on the fire, Scrooge threatened unemployment.
It’s easy to see
why no one ever asked ANYTHING of Scrooge. Even blind men’s dogs knew to steer
clear of him! But Scrooge did not care. He liked the solitude. He pushed away
anyone who reached out to him in kindness, and made his way alone through busy
city streets.
So you can imagine
how Scrooge felt about Christmas. To the mean old miser, the season of giving
was nothing but an inconvenience, a total waste of money, maybe even a scam!
While others planned holiday parties and big family dinners, Scrooge ate alone
in a local bar, preferring his newspaper and account ledger to the company of
merry-making fools. There was one brave caroler who began a cheerful tune, but
Scrooge ran him off with a ruler.
Man, that’s cold!
But that’s what happens when you live too long in a world without light. Your
heart freezes over. And Scrooge’s life consisted of nothing but numbers. Dollar
signs. Money. He didn’t trust anything that he could not count so there was
simply no room in his life for kindness. No room for love. No room for
compassion. As a result, he had become stingy. He was greedy, and he was mean!
It happens that
way, sometimes. The hardness of life can turn us cold. But, sometimes, it
leaves us despairing. We once lived with hope. We dreamt of true love, better
days, and peace on earth. But the endless grind of work and bills wears us
down. Death and disease take their toll. Our hearts get broken. Our heroes fall
down. Our friends betray us. Our leaders disappoint. Lovers leave. Children
forget. And the light of hope slowly dies. You try to pray.
You go to church. You do “the right things.” But, deep in your heart, you
wonder, “Has God forgotten me?”
And then, the
unthinkable happens. A tornado rips apart a church. Forest fires blaze through
the Smoky Mountains. Gun shots are fired outside of YOUR home. And, with that,
your last shred of joy is gone. Your last shred of patience is gone. Your last
shred of hope is gone. Like old Ebenezer himself, you find yourself shaking a
fist at carolers and muttering in disgust, “Bah! Humbug! What reason have you
to be merry?”
It’s a good
question. One we really ought to consider. What makes it a merry Christmas? Is
it the lights? The music? The gifts? Is it the glitter and holly and mistletoe?
Is it figgy pudding, wassail and fruit cake? No! If those were the only reasons
we had to celebrate, we really would be in a sorry state. But at Christmas we
celebrate the birth of Jesus! God sent us a Savior! We have not been forgotten.
The prophet Isaiah
tells us that there was a time when it looked as if God had abandoned the
people of Israel. They were supposed to be God’s children, but they had
rebelled against the Lord time after time after time. They were evil and
corrupt and disobedient. They had abandoned their faith. They ditched the Lord!
Man, did they
suffer for it! Their country lay barren. Forsaken. It had been overrun by
enemies and destroyed by fire. The people were broken. All hope was gone. And
then God had mercy on them. God did not abandon them in their hour of need. God
came to them. Isaiah 7:14 tells us, “A young woman will bear a son and name him
Immanuel.” God is with us.
God is with us!
That is the light. That is the light that shines in the darkness. That is the
reason we celebrate Christmas. God is with us! God came to live here on earth
with us. Whatever we are going through. Whatever obstacle we face. Whatever
hardship we endure. God is with us.
And the God who is
with us is not sitting idly by while WE work for justice and peace. The God who
is with us will establish God’s kingdom WITH us. God is right here with us,
helping us DO the work of the kingdom. The God who is with us will uphold that
kingdom with justice and righteousness. The God who is with us will uphold that
kingdom forever! And that is good news!
But time is a
tricky thing with God. And we see that clearly during the season of Advent. We
gather now in the present moment to ponder the past as we look toward a future
hope.[iii]
Sounds complicated, right? During Advent, we are preparing ourselves to receive
the Christ Child. But he was actually born years ago. And we live in hope of
his triumphant return.
That’s why “Advent
is like living in the wilderness between what was and what will be,” Matt Rawls
writes in The Redemption of Scrooge. “Even though the Promised Land may
seem far off, we hold tightly to the promises of our God, for ‘he who promised
is faithful.’ (Hebrews 10:23 NIV).”[iv]
God promised the
people a Savior, and that Savior was born in a manger in Bethlehem. “The big
reveal has been made.”[v]
That is not what we, the Church, are waiting for. We are not waiting, wondering
what God is going to do. We already know what God has done. God sent us a
Savior. Colossians 1:19-20 tell us that all things have been reconciled to God
through Christ.
But the story
isn’t finished yet. The work of reconciliation is still being done. And that is
what gives us hope. God is still at work in the world. God is still at work in
the Church. And God is still at work in us.
One of the most
popular carols of the Victorian era was “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.” It was
first sung by English peasants who, on the surface of things did not have a lot
of reasons to rejoice.[vi]
But the word “rest” means “keep” or “make.” And “merry” means “mighty.” So the
carol is a reminder that it is God who makes us mighty. It is God who KEEPS us
mighty. We have no reason to fear. And no reason to give up hope. Because
Christ our Savior was born to save us from ALL the power of Satan. May that
truth bring you comfort and joy.
God rest you merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay.
Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone
astray
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy!
[i]
Charles Dickens. “A Christmas Carol.” New York: Scholastic Magazines, Inc.,
1962. 2.
[ii]
Dickens, 3.
[iii]
Matt Rawle. The Recemption of Scrooge. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2016.
Location 207 e-version.
[iv]
Rawle, 231.
[v]
Rawle, 372.
[vi]
Ace Collins. “The Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas.” Published
online at www.acecollins.com/Books/storiesbehindchr.html.
Downloaded December 2, 2016.
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