No Santa
Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! – 2 Corinthians 9:15 NKJV.
Bishop Antonio Stagliano of the Roman Catholic diocese of Noto, Sicily has had a little problem. The problem? He told some children that there is no Santa Claus. A spokesman for the diocese stated: “On behalf of the bishop, I express my sorrow for this declaration which has created disappointment in the little ones, and want to specify that Monsignor Stagliano’s intentions were quite different.”
I can sympathize with the Bishop because soon after I became a pastor in a children’s sermon, I said there was not a Santa Claus. Word soon got back to me that some of the parents were upset about that!
Personally, I learned that there was no Santa Claus when I was in the first or second grade when a friend shared with me the shocking news that he had just found out. It really didn’t upset me because I kind of already knew there couldn’t be a Santa Claus, but I thought it would be nice if there were one.
The reality is that there is no Santa Claus, but God has given us something far better. God has given us a Savior, Jesus Christ, and through Him we can have forgiveness of sins and eternal life. As John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Jesus truly is the indescribable gift! Jesus Christ, God Himself, came down from the glories of Heaven to walk upon this earth so that He could become the perfect sinless once for all sacrifice for our sins.
This Christmas let us give Jesus the one thing that He wants, our hearts.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
(God has given us someone far better than a Santa Claus.)