(Unrelated Note: The trailer for The Hobbit came out today. It is one of my favorite books of all time. I am excited about the movie (coming out in two parts), but am not excited about waiting until next December to see it. For the rest of you fans, feel free to torture yourself by dabbling one year away from release.)
Everyone knows who's coming to town early Sunday morning. Children will sleep very little as they anticipate the wonderful treasures they believe he is bringing them. But has anyone really thought about what his coming entails?
According to the song, crying, shouting, and pouting are all forbidden with Santa Claus. He is coming to either reward or punish me after observing all the things I have done over the past year. I've either been naughty or nice, and Santa Claus knows exactly which category I fall into. In fact, his arrival is the very motivation for my good behavior. Hopefully, the bad things I have done will be outweighed by the good things I managed to stumble upon.
Thinking through the lyrics of the song, the whole concept seems a bit extreme. And yet, often times my view of God mimics the song's presentation of Santa Claus.
With God I convince myself there is to be zero crying, shouting, or pouting. Basically all emotion is ruled out for the sake of piety or the appearance of piety. This leads to an extremely dry relationship between God and myself. I neglect the reality that God created emotions, and they are an important part (though not the foundation) of my relationship with Him, my heavenly Father.
Similarly, I view God sitting up in heaven with a giant tally chart. Every single word, thought, and deed is measure against His standard (which they are) only to be used for or against me depending on the examination (which they are not). Grace and mercy do not exist, because everything is based upon my performance. I press on in the spirit of good works, hoping they will balance the skills of my overall performance.
Furthermore, the motivation for doing good rests not in the pleasure of God, but in saving my own skin (or so I convince myself). God doesn't want my obedience because it balances any scales. He wants my obedience because it honors Him and brings glory to His name. It's also a wonderful expression of thanks for all the wonderful blessings God bestows upon me.
True, God is Judge. True, God does give and take away. True, God knows all things. However, He does not hold these over us to elicit compliance. God's judgment will come on the last day where everyone will give an account. His giving and taking away aren't based upon our merit, but His free grace. His knowledge is another reason to trust and give Him praise. Plus, Santa Claus has never given any gift anywhere near the magnitude of God sending Jesus Christ, the full revelation of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Everyone knows who's coming to town early Sunday morning. Children will sleep very little as they anticipate the wonderful treasures they believe he is bringing them. But has anyone really thought about what his coming entails?
According to the song, crying, shouting, and pouting are all forbidden with Santa Claus. He is coming to either reward or punish me after observing all the things I have done over the past year. I've either been naughty or nice, and Santa Claus knows exactly which category I fall into. In fact, his arrival is the very motivation for my good behavior. Hopefully, the bad things I have done will be outweighed by the good things I managed to stumble upon.
Thinking through the lyrics of the song, the whole concept seems a bit extreme. And yet, often times my view of God mimics the song's presentation of Santa Claus.
With God I convince myself there is to be zero crying, shouting, or pouting. Basically all emotion is ruled out for the sake of piety or the appearance of piety. This leads to an extremely dry relationship between God and myself. I neglect the reality that God created emotions, and they are an important part (though not the foundation) of my relationship with Him, my heavenly Father.
Similarly, I view God sitting up in heaven with a giant tally chart. Every single word, thought, and deed is measure against His standard (which they are) only to be used for or against me depending on the examination (which they are not). Grace and mercy do not exist, because everything is based upon my performance. I press on in the spirit of good works, hoping they will balance the skills of my overall performance.
Furthermore, the motivation for doing good rests not in the pleasure of God, but in saving my own skin (or so I convince myself). God doesn't want my obedience because it balances any scales. He wants my obedience because it honors Him and brings glory to His name. It's also a wonderful expression of thanks for all the wonderful blessings God bestows upon me.
True, God is Judge. True, God does give and take away. True, God knows all things. However, He does not hold these over us to elicit compliance. God's judgment will come on the last day where everyone will give an account. His giving and taking away aren't based upon our merit, but His free grace. His knowledge is another reason to trust and give Him praise. Plus, Santa Claus has never given any gift anywhere near the magnitude of God sending Jesus Christ, the full revelation of the Father, full of grace and truth.
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