For
the past two weeks, we’ve talked about Charles Dickens’ Christmas classic A Christmas Carol. Like Scrooge, many people are haunted by
ghosts of their past—but God wants to cleanse that past and offer us a better
present. Both Dickens and scripture
remind us that present need is all around us, and that it is our obligation as
children of God and citizens of this planet to relieve the suffering of our
fellow human beings. As the shadow of the
future looms before us, many of us shrink back in fear—but Scrooge shows that
fear doesn’t have to paralyze you.
Instead, it can be a great motivator of change.
As the
hooded, Grim-Reaper-like Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come appears to Ebenezer
Scrooge, it shows him three wealthy businessmen joking about the death of some
nameless person. Next, Scrooge sees that
dead person’s belongings being stolen and sold off. He sees that person’s shrouded corpse, and
begs the hooded ghost not to unmask the deceased. He begs the ghost to show him somebody who
has emotion for the dead person. The
ghost shows him somebody who owed the dead man money, glad to have extra time
to pay off the bill. Then the ghost
shows him the family of Scrooge’s clerk Bob Cratchit, grieving the death of
their sickly boy Tiny Tim. Finally, the
spirit takes Scrooge to a cemetery, where Scrooge sees his own grave, realizing
himself to be the dead man that the people had mocked. Scrooge is terrified by this glimpse into his
own future and implores the spirit for an opportunity to change and
“sponge
away the writing on this stone.” ...
"Good Spirit," he pursued, as down upon the ground he fell before it:
"Your nature intercedes for me, and pities me. Assure me that I yet may
change these shadows you have shown me, by an altered life!"
When
Scrooge awakes from his vision, his heart is changed and warmed. Filled not just with Christmas spirit but charity
and goodwill toward his fellow human beings, Scrooge is inspired to renew
broken relationships, and provide the financial support necessary to save Tiny
Tim’s life. Though Scrooge had to face
his fearful future, that same fear became the means necessary to work necessary
change in his life.
When
you think about it, the Christmas story is a pretty fearful one. In Luke 1, an angel appears to Zechariah to
foretell the birth of John the Baptist.
But in verse 13, the angel tells him not to be afraid. He and his wife Elizabeth have wanted a child
their whole marriage, but were unable to conceive. Now that they are old, certainly there are
fearful aspects to childbirth. But the
angel’s words reassure them that God’s plan is at work. They do, however, have a choice whether or
not to participate in that plan. But the
angel’s reassurance shows them that, though the future may be fearful, God is
still in control.
Also
in Luke 1, the angel Gabriel appears to Mary, to predict the conception of the
Messiah, God in the flesh. Certainly
this is a fearful announcement, considering she is a virgin engaged to be
married, and there are social and legal repercussions for conception outside of
marriage. But in verses 28 and 30, the
angel says, “Greetings, you who are
highly favored! The Lord is with you…Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found
favor with God.”[i]
Mary is not forced into premarital
motherhood—God gives her a choice, and she willingly submits, declaring, “I am the Lord’s servant…May your word to me
be fulfilled (verse 38).” In
both of these accounts, Elizabeth and Mary are told about their own futures
which involve difficult circumstances, yet they are reminded not to be afraid,
because God is with them.
Like
Ebenezer Scrooge, sometimes our pasts can conjure up images of pain and
disappointment. Our present
circumstances can call us to unfamiliar action that puts us outside of our
comfort zone. Our futures may loom like
a specter before us so that, like Scrooge, we ask whether the future may yet be
changed by an altered life. However
frightening the ghosts of past, present, and future may be, they are the agents
that call us to repentance, change, and redemption. Maybe this holiday season, you find yourself
haunted by frightening memories, current challenges, or fears of the
future. Rather than being daunted, may
these apparitions give you cause for celebration. As the spirits who appeared to Scrooge
ultimately brought him hope, so the angels who manifested to Elizabeth and Mary
promised God’s blessing. So also the
Lord tells you not to fear—for what lies before you is an opportunity to say
“yes” to God’s call.
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