Sermon from December 25, 2011
"Here Comes Santa Claus"
Philippians 2:5-8

Notes of a Sermon for Christmas Day, 2011

Loretta Whitely of our congregation teaches in BVBC’s English as a Second Language (ESL) school. They were reading the Christmas story from the Bible a few days ago, and an Asian woman in her class said to her, “I read the story about Jesus in the Bible. But where did Santa Claus come from?”

She raises a valid question. Where did all these additions come from? Do they belong in a Christian celebration of Christmas?

One big word expresses the meaning of Christmas: Incarnation. Here is the memorable one-liner in the Bible that defines the Incarnation: The word become flesh and made his dwelling among us – John 1:14. The Church’s breath-taking belief that we celebrate at Christmas is that God who created all things became one of us at particular time and place, speaking a particular language, having a particular color of skin, and socialized into a people with communal memories going back more than 2000 years. We call Him Jesus Christ.

Philippians 2:5-8 develops the meaning of Christmas: Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!

The movement of the Incarnation was down, down, downward from equality with God to life in a human body; and in that body learning what God requires but no one ever requires of God, namely, obedience; an obedience that required His death; and death of the worst kind, death by crucifixion. Christ’s cascading descent into darkness revealed humility in the nature of God. God does not stand aloof or turn away from us in disgust. He got His hands, so to speak, very dirty to help us.

God’s movement downward carried great risks for His reputation. For example, Jesus was tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin. He felt the force of what flaws us and fought it off. At the same time, Jesus participated in a baptism that was meant for sinners. How awkward was that! At the height of His public life people called Jesus a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of sinners and tax collectors, because He partied with the wrong people. – Matthew 11:19.

To what shall I compare God’s risk-taking humility, or what parable shall I use for it? C. S. Lewis expressed it well in these two verses of poetry.

Among the hills a meteorite
Lies huge, and moss has overgrown,
And wind and rain with touches light
Made soft, the contours of the stone.

Thus easily can earth digest
A cinder of sidereal fire,
And make her translunary guest
The native of an English shire.

The way we celebrate Christmas makes the Incarnation (“a cinder of sidereal fire”) “the native of an English shire.”

·        The Evergreen Christmas tree – it is ever green, a reminder that the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord, Romans 6:23.

·        The balls on the tree – they remind us of the nations of the world, whom God loved so much that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life, John 3:16.

·        Candy Canes – They are in the form of a shepherd’s staff to remind us that Jesus is the good shepherd, John 10:11. They are traditionally red and white striped to remind us that though our sins are as scarlet, they shall be white as snow (Isaiah 1:18) through our Lord’s sacrificial death for us on the cross.

·        The Star is the most clearly biblical symbol, reminding us of the star in the east that guided the wise men to the place where they could find Jesus, Matthew 2:1-2.

·        Gifts – they remind us that we love (give gifts) because God first loved us, 1 John 4:19, and gave to us Jesus, “his indescribable gift,” 2 Corinthians 9:15.

·        Lights – they remind us that Jesus is the light of the world, and whoever follows will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life, John 8:12.

·        Santa Claus – he derives (possibly but not certainly) from Nicholas of Myra. He was by tradition a bishop in the early church, who gave gifts to the poor children in his care.

The young Asian woman who asked Loretta the question about Santa Claus, if she were to become a Christian, might celebrate the Incarnation quite differently; and that would make the Incarnation the native of an Asian shire; and God, I believe, would approve. The Incarnation is the “cinder of sidereal fire.” How it gets overgrown and softened can vary from culture to culture.

So, I’m comfortable with our Christmas tree. I’m comfortable with the pagan origins of some of our symbols. The Incarnation has transformed them into something thoroughly Christian, and they have made the Incarnation accessible to our ordinary imaginations.

It is of course possible that the cultural overgrowth can hide the true meaning of Christmas. In that case, something needs to be done. It may already be happening. We complain at the determined efforts of some people to take Christ out of Christmas and Christmas out of the public square. It might be the best thing for the Church; it forces us to reexamine the cinder of sidereal fire underneath all our cultural accretions.

Has that fiery visitor from beyond our world found a place in your life?