December 3, 2006

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. (Luke 2:20)

Dear Friends and Members of Grace,

This Sunday, December 3, marks the beginning of the season of Advent with its focus upon our preparation for Christ's arrival on Christmas. It is always a challenge for American Christians to keep their focus upon Christ during this time of the year as we busy ourselves with buying presents, attending parties, decorating our homes, making travel arrangements, etc. There is a perfect opportunity, however, to bring an Advent focus upon Christ to these hectic days. That opportunity arrives this Wednesday, December 6, a date reserved by many Christians for better than a millennium and a half to commemorate St. Nicholas.

Yes, that's the same St. Nick who is the historical background for Santa Claus. The historical St. Nick/Santa Claus died on December 6, 343 AD, giving rise to that day being set aside for his commemoration. He truly is a fine Christian example for us all. He was bold in his proclamation of Christ which even led him to be imprisoned during the reign of Diocletian, who issued an edict in 303 AD authorizing the systematic persecution of Christians throughout the Roman Empire. While St. Nick's unflinching faith in the face of persecution is admirable, his contributions to Christianity are even more renowned for his service at the Council of Nicea, which set forth the Biblical teaching of Christ's divinity in the words of the Nicene Creed. St. Nick was also known for displaying his faith through loving service of others. That characteristic was most clearly seen in the gifts that he would give to impoverished children. This, of course, is the historic basis for Santa delivering gifts to children.

It is a faithful portrayal of St. Nick to describe him as being one with the shepherds in his devotion of Christ which spurred him on to glorify and praise God for all that he had heard and seen of Christ. Christians have an excellent opportunity to join in that glorification and praise of God by using the message of the historic St. Nick to cause the light of Christ to shine and thus redefine our culture's interest in Santa Claus. Some would prefer to ditch St. Nick altogether due to the commercialization of his name. Yet the perversion of someone's true personality is not a sound reason to pretend they do not exist. I would pray that after I have entered the Church Triumphant in heaven I would be defended by Christians still on earth from someone misrepresenting me. Our brother-in-Christ deserves better than us passing him off as non-existent or allowing him to remain simply a commercial/cultural icon in the minds of many. Just as the apocryphal story of the cherry tree does not bring Americans to altogether dump George Washington, Christians ought to defend and speak well of the true St. Nick. Likewise, Lutherans (along with many other Christians) are not ready to dump Martin Luther, even though some have erroneously taught that he is the progenitor of certain Nazi policies (this is the Shirer Myth - with a heavy accent on myth). So too, The DaVinci Code and other cultural phenomena have spoken falsely of Christ, yet we are certainly not ready to let falsity trump the Truth.

So I encourage you to bring a true Christ-centered focus to these days by recalling St. Nick who proclaimed Christ to be the eternal Son of God, born of Mary, crucified and resurrected for the salvation of the world. Perhaps offer your first Christmas gift to a loved one on St. Nicholas Day to remember who the true St. Nick is (not was, because he still lives now in heaven thanks to the merit of his and our Savior Jesus Christ). And rejoice in the message that St. Nick proclaimed - the message of salvation through Christ alone. When friends, family members, and others comment on Santa bringing them gifts, let them know what motivated jolly old St. Nicholas to act in such love - the love of God that became incarnate in Christ.

The Peace of the Lord be with you,

Pastor Golden

 

Inspire Gifts & Books: This Sunday, December 3, is the final day for purchasing or ordering items from the Inspire Gift and Book event. All payments are due Sunday as well.

Voters Meeting: All communicant members of Grace should mark their calendars for Sunday, December 10, 11:15 a.m. for a Voters Meeting. The agenda will include the election of 2007 congregational officers and the approval of the 2007 budget.

Children Needed: We need plenty of children to be part of Grace's Christmas float on Saturday, December 9. We'll meet at Grace at 1 p.m. Any children planning on participating should inform Pastor or Ron Erxleben.

LifeLight: LifeLight will resume on Monday, January 8, 2007, 7 p.m. for a study of Miracles - Biblical and Contemporary. Anyone interested in participating should contact Pastor Golden by December 17 so sufficient materials may be ordered.

Christmas Caroling: We will be sharing the joy of Christmas as we sing carols at Summit Villa on Sunday, December 10. We'll meet at Grace at 1:30 pm to practice and then arrive at Summit Villa by 2 pm.

Advent & Christmas Services

Sunday, December 3 - First Sunday of Advent - "Promises, Promises"

Wednesday, December 6 - First Wednesday of Advent - "These Are the Signs"

Sunday, December 10 - Second Sunday of Advent - "He Comes To..."

Wednesday, December 13 - Second Wednesday of Advent - "The Simple Truth"

Sunday, December 17 - Third Sunday of Advent - Children's Program "From Heav'n Above"

Wednesday, December 20 - Third Wednesday of Advent - "Sing with a Joyful Tongue"

Sunday, December 24, 10 am - Fourth Sunday of Advent - "Anticipating What's Under the Wrapping"

Sunday, December 24, 5 pm - Christmas Eve - "The Love of God Made Manifest"

Sunday, December 24, 11 pm - Christmas Vigil - "Coming Out Party"

Monday, December 25, 10 am - Christmas Day - "The Joy of the Nativity"

Sunday, December 31, 10 am - First Sunday after Christmas - "Christmas Clothes"

Sunday, December 31 - 5 pm - New Year's Eve - "Time Change"