I have been doing parodies of The Night Before Christmas this season. I did one on Christmas Eve and you might remember that on Thanksgiving Sunday I read one The Day After Thanksgiving. In response to the Thanksgiving poem, I got an email with another parody. I don’t know who wrote it, so I can’t really give credit, but here it is.
Twas the night before Christmas
and all through the town
Not a sign of Baby Jesus
was anywhere to be found.
The people were all busy
with Christmas time chores
Like decorating, and baking,
and shopping in stores.
No one sang "Away in a manger,
no crib for a bed".
Instead, they sang of Santa
dressed-up in bright red.
Mama watched Martha Stewart,
Papa drank beer from a tap.
As hour upon hour
the presents they’d wrap
When what from the T.V.
did they suddenly hear?
’Cept an ad. which told
of a big sale at Sears.
So away to the mall
they all flew like a flash...
Buying things on credit...
and others with cash!
And, as they made their way home
From their trip to the mall,
Did they think about Jesus?
Oh, no... not at all.
Their lives were so busy
with their Christmas time things
No time to remember
Christ Jesus, the King.
There were presents to wrap
and cookies to bake.
How could they stop and remember
who died for their sake?
To pray to the Savior...
they had no time to stop.
Because they needed more time
to "Shop til they dropped!"
On Wal-mart! On K-mart!
On Target! On Penney’s!
On Hallmark! On Zales!
A quick lunch at Denny’s
From the big stores downtown
to the stores at the mall
They would dash away, dash away,
and visit them all!
And up on the roof,
there arose such a clatter
As grandpa hung icicle lights
up on his brand new step ladder.
He hung lights that would flash.
He hung lights that would twirl.
Yet, he never once prayed to Jesus...
Light of the World.
Christ’s eyes... how they twinkle!
Christ’s Spirit... how merry!
Christ’s love... how enormous!
All our burdens... He’ll carry!
So instead of being busy,
overworked, and uptight
Let’s put Christ back in
Christmas and enjoy
some good nights!
Merry Christmas, my friends!
When you saw the title to this message, The Reason for the Season, my guess is that you had to stifle a yawn. I can hear your thoughts. “I know what’s this is going to be like. Tim’s going to get on his soap box and talk about how commercial and secular Christmas is. He is going to tell us that we have to beware of “X’ing” Christ out of Christmas, but we must remember that Jesus is the reason for the season. Be sure to wake me when it’s over.”
I understand what people mean when they say that Jesus is the reason for the season. Their hearts are in the right place, but I have to quibble a bit. Christmas does exist to honor Jesus – that’s true. But the reality behind the season is different. Jesus didn’t come to be honored, He came to save.
I have heard people who recognize and honor Christ’s mission and His lordship of their lives. They will say, “I am the reason for the season. Christ came and gave Himself for me. The Creator of the Universe became a baby in a manger because of His love for people like me.” Again, that is true and honorable when you understand what is meant, but again, I think that it is a shade off of the real reason for the season.
You may have noticed that we have a distinguished visitor sitting in here this morning (indicate where a mannequin is sitting in an easy chair in front of a TV set). That’s Harry. He is the strong silent type. I think Harry is the reason for the season.
Now is the time for credits. This sermon owes much to a book by Lee Strobel, a former Chicago Tribune reporter who is now a speaker and author. He is currently the host of a TV program called Faith Under Fire which airs on PAX TV at 10:00 pm on Saturday. I would encourage you to watch if you have the chance. Strobel’s most famous book is The Case for Christ, but the book that inspired this message is called Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary. That book considers the perceptions and notions of our neighbors and friends who don’t go to church. We are honored to have Harry joining us in church today so we can learn more about what makes him tick.
I need to offer a quick disclaimer here. Harry is here with us, but Mary was not able to join us. Since I will be referring to our guest, I’ll be using masculine pronouns, but almost everything I say is applicable to Mary as well.
Who is Harry? He is our neighbor, our family member, our friend, or our coworker. He is that guy we know who doesn’t go to church anyplace and doesn’t seem to have any particular beliefs. He isn’t a bad sort, just not religious. He is a bit younger than average, more likely to be a college graduate, and probably makes a little more money than the average churchgoer. But overall, he is not that different from you and I. Normally he is home watching TV at this hour.
Harry has rejected church, but he has not necessarily rejected God. We may characterize Harry as being hostile toward God, but the truth is that when we talk to him about why he doesn’t believe in God, what he will respond by telling us what we have done wrong. He will tell us that we are hypocrites, or intolerant, or bigoted, or snobbish, or something. Harry knows about the church. He probably attended church as a child, but he feels that he outgrew it. He doesn’t understand why we didn’t.
If we want to share the meaning of Christmas with Harry, we need to be prepared to confess the imperfect nature of the church while we point to the eternal and unchanging love of God.
Harry is adrift, but he seeks an anchor. Where is Harry in terms of morals? Most Americans, 74%, believe that it is OK to steal from those who won’t miss it. 64% say that it is OK to lie on occasion. Half of all Americans admit that they waste the equivalent of one day a week at work. More than half admit to cheating on their spouse.
The odd thing is that Harry understands the dangers of this decline in morality and he innately knows that there needs to be a moral standard. The problem is that without God there is no basis for morality. There is no anchor. Harry will listen when we talk about standards and accountability and discipline.
Harry resists rules, but responds to reasons. Harry has a rebellious streak. He doesn’t want to be told what to do and he will resist you if you try. “The Bible says so” will turn Harry off, it won’t persuade him.
Instead, if we want to share the message of Christmas with Harry, we need to be willing to talk about why we believe and act as we do. We have to explain how following Christ allows us to live an abundant life today. We have to talk about the consequences of unbridled behavior and make it clear that God’s objective is not to limit us, but to protect us from our own foolhardiness.
Harry doesn’t understand Christianity, but he is also ignorant about what he claims to believe in. Often we are afraid to talk with Harry about faith because that we assume that he has carefully considered Christianity, rejected it, and has analyzed alternative beliefs. That is simply untrue. Harry probably knows nothing more about Christianity than he learned in Sunday school as a child. At best, he might have had a first year philosophy class in college taught by some graduate student. Harry has huge misconceptions about what the Bible says. If you ask him to articulate his own beliefs, you will likely hear an ill-conceived mishmash of philosophy and religion.
It is often a good idea to ask Harry what he believes and why? Encourage him to talk. Ask questions. Few people, churched or unchurched, have ever spoken about their faith out loud. As Harry speaks more and more about his belief, the more lame his own ideas will sound even to him. We don’t need to challenge his beliefs, which would make him defensive. Just keep him talking and get him thinking.
Because you have listened to Harry, he will probably give you the courtesy of listening to you. When you are sharing the message of Christmas with Harry, don’t assume that he knows the basics. Speak simply, avoiding church language and religious terms. Be patient and take small steps. You don’t have to persuade him in one sitting. Plan on several conversations because he needs time to think things over on his own.
Harry has legitimate questions about spiritual matters, but doesn’t expect answers from Christians. Each of us, Harry included, has a yearning to be connected with God. Harry was in church as a child and that experience doesn’t give him the answers he needs today, so he assume that the church and Christians don’t have those answers.
We, the ones who are sharing the message of Christmas, can’t shy away from addressing the questions that Harry is asking. Don’t sidestep. Don’t avoid. Just state clearly what you believe and why. Even if he disagrees, Harry respects your honesty.
Harry may ask “Is Christianity true?” but he is more often asking “Does Christianity Work?” You and I may think about absolute truth, but Harry doesn’t. When Harry asks, “Is it True?” what he really means is “Does it work?” “If I follow these teachings will my life have meaning?” “Will this help me with my relationships with my wife and my children?” “Will this make me more safe, more secure, more satisfied?” “Will this give me purpose?” Remember that the very Christian book, “The Purpose Driven Life” is a secular best seller. Even Harry wants his life to have purpose.
Harry doesn’t just want to know something; he wants to experience it. Again, truth doesn’t mean the same thing to Harry as it does to most of us. Harry judges truth, not in absolute terms, but in personal terms. “Will this work for me?” “Will this make my life better?”
Harry looks for purpose and meaning. He seeks meaning, not in some understanding of truth, but in his own subjective experience. If it doesn’t have an impact on how he lives day to day, Harry just is not interested.
Harry looks at us and our worship services. He considers whether we act as if Christ is alive in us and making a difference in our lives. Do we appear to have found the joy and purpose that he seeks? Do we live our lives in a way that strikes him as better than the way he lives his life.
Harry does not want to be anybody’s project, but he wants to be somebody’s friend. If Harry senses that your interest in him is related to his becoming a Christian, he will distance himself from you. It is crucial that you don’t act like his friend as a way to introduce him to Christ. You need to be his friend, even if he never grasps the truth that could transform his life. Our caring has to be legitimate and consistent or he will see us as a phony and reject us.
That is one reason that Harry will listen to you more readily than he will listen to me. Ministers are always seen as suspect because we must have ulterior motives. In Harry’s eyes ministers are after his money or out to put his scalp on their belt. He responds to people like you.
Harry distrusts authority, but he is responsive to leadership. He has so called leaders in the world who are unethical cheats. He will tell you stories of religious folks – usually televangelists – who he believes took advantage of his mother or grandmother.
He wants us as the church to be accountable, to be open in our financial dealings, to be led by people leading lives characterized by moderation and charity. He expects us to be humble and to be dedicated to service. He will be quick to inform us of any hypocrisy that he witnesses.
Harry is not loyal to denominations, but looks to individual congregations.
Do you remember when there were Ford families and Oldsmobile families and so on. Is that still true? How many different brands of cares have you owned?
There was a time when denominational identity was part of our family heritage too. That isn’t true anymore. While both Harry and is wife Mary have church backgrounds, they were different church backgrounds. He cares nothing about the distinctions that separate us, and even sees that as evidence against the truth of our faith. He has also seen the rise of large independent churches and of parachurch organizations. Harry sees denominations as passé.
We have to show cooperation between churches or Harry discounts the truth of our message. While we can talk with pride about our denomination and the heritage that it brings to us, anything that we do that diminishes other Christian groups diminishes us in Harry’s eyes.
Many churches, while still participating within a denominational structure, have dropped any denominational identification from their names and signage because any identification will be seen by some as exclusive.
Harry doesn’t want to join an organization, but will connect with a cause. He isn’t a card carrying member of anything. Even if he starts coming to church, he won’t be quick to join, but he is interested in something that has meaning.
When Steven Jobs was working to start the Apple Computer Company, he went to John Scully, the head of Pepsi and asked him to become CEO. Jobs challenge is said to have been “Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water, or do you want a chance to change the world?”
Harry wants a chance to change the world. He will participate in a movement like the civil rights movement or the environmental movement. According to a Gallup pole, one in five unchurched people say that they would go to a church that is “serious about working for a better society.” A church that is inwardly focused turns Harry off. A church that is working to make a difference will get Harry’s attention.
What I have said so far applies about equally to both Harry and Mary, but this last characteristic has a stronger appeal for Mary. Mary wants her children to get moral training. She knows that her kids need some sort of moral and social foundation and she wants to provide that for them. One of the few times that Harry and Mary will actually go out looking for a church is when they have young children and are responding to this desire to give them a foundation.
A church that wants to reach out into its community has to come to grips with this need to provide a high quality experience for kids. They need clean and pleasant facilities. They need caring and personable teachers. They need programs that respond to the needs of children who get no religious training at home.
So what is the reason for the season? The season is to celebrate the life and ministry of Christ. The season exists so that we can celebrate the reconciling love of God that has touched our lives. But most of all, the season is to remind us about all the Harry’s and Mary’s in our world. God became flesh to share a message with those who were most alienated from Him. We, as Christ’s body, need to accept the ongoing task of sharing that message with folks like our friend Harry.
