the basic message #E221
12/12/03
Luke 2:10-11
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord
"Jesus is the reason for the season", reads the sign. People continue to grumble each year about how commercialized Christmas has become while they're hectically shopping on Sunday. It seems we yearn for the Christmases of our youth, but we're apparently powerless to do anything toward rebuilding that ideal. I recently began to consider what Jesus might think if he could participate in our modern version of his birthday celebration. Could you liberate your imagination for a moment and consider the possibilities?
It's late December in America. Where might Jesus learn the most about how we regard Christmas? You know where: the Mall! But before Jesus can cruise our ultimate shopping center, he'll need to blend in with the crowd. Let's ditch the robe, but the sandals, beard and long hair can stay. Levis and an LSU sweatshirt will make Jesus nearly invisible to the crowd, allowing him to observe the masses that claim him as their Savior.
Jesus stops in at your run-of-the-mill gift/home decor shop, and is quickly greeted by a bubbly clerk who explodes, "Merry Christmas! May I help you!?" Jesus, while happy the young lady is so energetic about his birthday, wants to know more about the products she has for sale that celebrate his day. "What do you have that really captures the essence of Christmas?", Jesus asks. "Ummm, let's see", bubbly muses. "There are some nice nativity scenes over there, and they're 50% off, too!" Jesus walks over to look over the wide variety of nativity sets, but is clearly disturbed by what he sees. "These look nothing like the real thing", Jesus says to the girl, but she can't hear him over the sound of a necktie with flashing lights that plays, "Rudolf the Red-nosed Reindeer". Jesus decides to move on and continue his search for products that pay honor to the real meaning of the day. As he walks into a high-end sporting-goods store, his attention is immediately drawn to a well-dressed lady who is clearly a woman of means. He doesn't want to eavesdrop, but the lady is clearly frustrated and upset, and he's thinking there might be something he can do to help. "My son is nearly impossible to buy for- he has everything a kid could want... don't you have something new he might be interested in?", the lady asks the clerk. Jesus is confused. The situation is clear- the lady has plenty of money, her kid has far more stuff than he needs, yet she's frustrated she can't buy him more stuff. Jesus, in complete innocence, asks the lady: "Maam, it would seem like you should be happy to have so much." The woman, now possibly showing she's no lady, snaps, "Why don't you mind your own business." Time to move on.
As Jesus leaves that store, he sees a crowd of people rushing out to the parking lot. Perhaps someone had an accident, so he quickly joins them in case a healing is needed. He rapidly gets stuck in the crowd as it moves toward the main boulevard of the mall. He asks someone if there's been an accident or some type of problem, and the person responds, "Oh, no, it's just time for the Christmas parade." The encounter with the unhappy woman in the store begins to fade as Jesus looks forward to the parade in his honor. As the first float approaches, he sees a big banner on the side that reads, "Merry Xmas", and he wonders what this peculiar sounding holiday is that's sharing his parade. Jesus is filled with joy as he witnesses the happiness of the crowd as the parade continues. "Now this is how the people should celebrate my birthday...Joy!" As he ponders the situation, the crowd goes wild as a big fire truck approaches. He sees the fireman driving the truck, but doesn't quite understand who the man in the red and white suit is. He appears to be an old, friendly gentleman, but just who is this character the crowd is so happy to see? Jesus turns to the lady next to him and asks, "Who is that man in the red suit?" The lady, puzzled at such an obvious question, answers, "Why, it's Santa Claus, of course." Jesus taps her on the shoulder again, and asks, "Who's Santa Claus?" The lady responds, "You must not be from around here- he's the universal symbol of Christmas", and then walks away. Jesus turns to the people around him and says, "But I thought I was the universal symbol of Christmas", but no one heard him since they were too busy celebrating Christmas.