Last Friday evening, my wife and I and our daughter and son-in-law, took in a local theater company's production of Charles Dickens classic yule tale, A Christmas Carol. Although I had seen many a television/movie version, I had never seen it done "live." It was a highly enjoyable experience (for those of you who live in Lancaster, I would highly recommend it. Info on the production - which runs through December 28th - can be found at http://www.seventhsister.com. The theater is offering a "pay as you wish" admission plan!).Now that I have seen A Christmas Carol "live" - I thought it would be interesting to read it as Dickens actually wrote it. So I went to Amazon.com to purchase the book. In the process of doing so, I read some reviews on the book that readers had posted. The following caught my eye:
"This is the most heartwarming story EVER written about Yuletide, the story is truly magical. It captures the very essence of what Christmas is all about."
Hmm. Although I would agree that Dickens' tale is indeed one of the more heartwarming stories that have been written, to say that it captures the very essence of what Christmas is all about .... well that is a woeful overstatement! Yes, Dickens story does capture some of what the essence of Christmas is all about. But where it misses the mark is in what is left unsaid.
You see, Christmas is about love ... and about transformation. What a joy to see miserly old Scrooge transformed into a joyful and generous benefactor, thinking more of others and their needs than himself and his "bottom line!" So as far as he goes, Dickens does move us toward the very essence of Christmas. But the Christmas (read CHRISTmas) story is about something even greater! It is the story of a God who so loved us that He sent His Son to be born in abject poverty. That Son would grow to be a man when he would offer Himself up as a sacrifice for our sin. This is humanity's greatest need. To have the penalty for our sin paid for - which is exactly what Jesus did on the cross. So in light of this wonderful essence of Christmas, what must we do? How should we respond? By faith we must ADMIT our sin and rebellion to God, BELIEVE that Jesus died for us (and then three days later rose from the dead and so now lives!) and COMMIT ourselves to Him, turning from our sin to Him, asking Him for the forgiveness that only He can offer and the new life that only He can give. This my friend is the path toward radical life transformation and eternal life. It is the very essence of Christmas!
So Mr. Dickens, thank you for such a heartwarming tale. I only wish you would have shown Christ and the gospel as the true path to a transformed life!
Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj
You see, Christmas is about love ... and about transformation. What a joy to see miserly old Scrooge transformed into a joyful and generous benefactor, thinking more of others and their needs than himself and his "bottom line!" So as far as he goes, Dickens does move us toward the very essence of Christmas. But the Christmas (read CHRISTmas) story is about something even greater! It is the story of a God who so loved us that He sent His Son to be born in abject poverty. That Son would grow to be a man when he would offer Himself up as a sacrifice for our sin. This is humanity's greatest need. To have the penalty for our sin paid for - which is exactly what Jesus did on the cross. So in light of this wonderful essence of Christmas, what must we do? How should we respond? By faith we must ADMIT our sin and rebellion to God, BELIEVE that Jesus died for us (and then three days later rose from the dead and so now lives!) and COMMIT ourselves to Him, turning from our sin to Him, asking Him for the forgiveness that only He can offer and the new life that only He can give. This my friend is the path toward radical life transformation and eternal life. It is the very essence of Christmas!
So Mr. Dickens, thank you for such a heartwarming tale. I only wish you would have shown Christ and the gospel as the true path to a transformed life!
Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj
No comments:
Post a Comment