Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The Theology of Santa Claus

You better watch out,You better not cry,
Better not pout,I'm telling you why: Santa Claus is coming to town.
He's making a list,And checking it twice;
Gonna find outWho's naughty and nice. Santa Claus is coming to town.

He sees you when you're sleeping.He knows when you're awake.
He knows if you've been bad or good,So be good for goodness sake!
Oh, you better watch out!You better not cry.
Better not pout,I'm telling you why: Santa Claus is coming to town.

Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see. Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see.
The Father up above is looking down in love, So be careful little eyes, what you see.
(and the other verses)
Be careful little ears what you hear
Be careful little mouth what you say...
Be careful little hands, what you touch...
Be careful little feet, where you go...

As a child I always hated those childrens songs, not so much because that I might get caught doing something wrong but just because they were kind of creepy. As an adult not only are they creepy they are completly theologically unsound.

Heb 10:12 But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
13 There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet.
14 For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy.
15 And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For he says,
16 “This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”
17 Then he says, “I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds.”
18 And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.

God is not some sort of cosmic sin accountant. He is not recording sin debits and repentance credits. He is not even keeping score!

He conquered sin 2000 years ago, He undid Adam! (Rom 5) The only real power sin has over us now is in its illusion that causes us to believe that God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) is separate from us. Living in that illusion causes us to do amazingly stupid things to ourselves and others.

Any theology that suggests that since the Cross event that God is still "keeping His list and checking it twice" is doing nothing less then recrucifing Jesus over and over and over again.

Paul says it this way, "Where there is no law, there is no transgression". The law of Moses, the period of the old covenant, ended on the Cross. (Rom 4) Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances [the Mosiac Law] that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.

If we need to use a childrens song as the basis of our theology let it be this one.

Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Now that is sound theology.

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