The True Meaning of Christmas
Isaiah 7:14 (New International Version)
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will
conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
This is a wonderful story of a Christmas Eve dream of Santa as he
is known today and Jesus who is the Reason for the Season we celebrate each
year.
By the use of carefully chosen symbols in the dream a wonderful
picture emerges which points us not to Santa who is himself a fantasy but to
Jesus, the promised one, the savior of the world.
Late one Christmas Eve I sank back, tired but content, into my easy
chair. The kids were in bed, the gifts were wrapped, the milk and cookies
waited by the fireplace for Santa. As I sat back admiring the tree with its
decorations, I couldn't help feeling that something was missing. It wasn't long
before the tiny twinkling tree lights lulled me to sleep. I don't know how long
I slept, but all of a sudden I knew that I wasn't alone.
I opened my eyes, and you can imagine my surprise when I saw Santa
Claus himself, standing next to my Christmas tree. He was dressed all in fur
from his head to his foot just as the poem described him. But he was not the
"jolly old elf" of Christmas legend. The man who stood before me looked
sad and
disappointed. And there were tears in his eyes. "Santa, what's
wrong?" I asked. "Why are you crying?" "It's the
children," Santa replied sadly. "But the children love you," I
said. "Oh, I know they love me and the gifts I bring them," Santa said.
"But the children of today seem to have somehow missed out on
the true spirit of Christmas...and it's not their fault! It's just that the
adults, many of them not having been taught themselves, have forgotten to teach
the children."
"Teach them what?" I asked.
Santa's kind old face became soft, more gentle. His eyes began to
shine with something more than tears. He spoke softly.
"Teach the children the true meaning of Christmas.
Teach them that the part of Christmas we can see, hear, and touch
is much more than meets the eye.
Teach them the symbolism behind the customs and traditions of
Christmas we now observe. Teach them what it is they truly represent."
Santa reached into his bag and pulled out a tiny Christmas tree and
set it on my mantle." Teach them about the Christmas tree. Green is the
second color of Christmas. The stately evergreen with its unchanging color
represents the hope of eternal life in Jesus. It's needles point heavenward as
a reminder that man's thoughts should turn heavenward as well."
Santa reached into his bag again and pulled out a shiny star and
placed it at the top of the small tree. "The star was the heavenly sign of
promise. God promised a Savior for the world and the star was the sign of the
fulfillment of that promise of the night that Jesus Christ was born. Teach the
children that God always fulfills His promises and that wise men still seek
Him."
"Red," said Santa, "is the first color of
Christmas."
He pulled forth a red ornament for the tiny tree. "Red is
deep, intense, vivid. It is the color of the life-giving blood that flows
through our veins. It is the symbol of God's greatest gift. Teach the children
that Christ gave His life and shed His blood for them that they might have
eternal life. When they see the color red it should remind them of that most
wonderful gift."
Santa found a bell in his pack and placed it on the tree.
"Just as lost sheep are guided to safety by the sound of the bell; it
continues to ring today for all to be guided to the fold. Teach the children to
follow the true Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep."
Santa placed a candle on the
mantle and lit it. The soft glow from its one tiny flame brightened the room.
"The glow of the candle represents how man can show his thanks for the
gift of God's son who was born that Christmas Eve long ago. Teach the children
to follow in Christ's footsteps, to go about doing good. Teach them to let
their lights shine before men that all may see it and glorify God. This is what
is symbolized when the twinkly lights shine on the tree like hundreds of
bright, shining candles, each of them representing one of God's precious
children, their light shining for all to see."
He then brought
out a holly leaf. "Teach the children that the holly plant represents immortality.
It represents the crown of thorns worn by our Savior. The red holly berries
represent the blood shed by Him.
Next he pulled
from his bag a gift and said, "Teach the children that God so loved the
world that he gave his begotten son." Thanks be to God for his unspeakable
gift.
Again, Santa reached into his bag and this time he brought forth a
shiny red and white striped candy cane. As he hung it on the tree, he spoke
softly, "The candy cane is a stick of hard, white candy. White to
symbolize the virgin birth and sinless nature of Jesus and the shape 'J' to
represent the precious name of Jesus who came to earth as our Savior. It also
represents the crook the Good Shepherd uses to reach down into the ditches of
the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like sheep, have gone astray. The
original candy cane had three small red stripes which are the stripes of the
scourging Jesus received by which we are healed, and a large red stripe that
represents the shed blood of Jesus so that we can have eternal life.
He reached in
again and pulled out an Angel. "Teach the children that it was the angels
that heralded in the glorious news of the Savior's birth. The angels sang Glory
to God in the highest, on earth peace and good will toward men."
Teach these things to the children."
Santa brought out a beautiful wreath made of fresh, fragrant
greenery and tied with a bright red bow. "The bow reminds us of the bond
of perfection which is love. The wreath embodies all the good things about
Christmas for those with eyes to see and hearts to understand. It contains the
colors of red and green and the heaven-turned needles of the evergreen. The bow
tells the story of good will towards all; and its color again reminds us of
Christ's sacrifice. Even its very shape is symbolic, representing eternity and
the eternal nature of Christ's love. It is a circle without beginning and
without end. These are the things you must teach the children."
"But where does that leave you Santa?" I asked.
The tears gone now from his eyes, a smile broke over Santa's face.
"Why, bless you my dear," he laughed. "I'm only a
symbol myself. I represent the spirit of family fun and the joy of giving and
receiving. If
the
children are taught these other things, there is no danger that I'll ever be
forgotten."
"If we don't
teach the children these things......who will?"
