Santa vs. Jesus

Merrick's first time meeting Santa

Don't get me wrong. I like Santa. I think he's a really nice guy. But something about all the emphasis on Santa in the lead up to Christmas has been bothering me lately, and I just realized what it is. No offense to those who embrace Santa and Elf on the Shelf wholeheartedly and enjoy the fun they bring, but the very notion of being good in order to receive gifts flips the whole premise for Christmas on its head.

The very basis for Jesus coming to earth as a tiny baby, with the purpose of growing up to sacrifice himself to save us, is lost in the message Santa sends. Jesus came because there is no way we can be good enough. The whole reason we should celebrate at Christmas is because we were on the Naughty List, but we got the best gift anyway! We didn't deserve it! 

Of course, we should all still strive to do good, but being on the Nice List isn't something we can place our eternal hope in. Santa is still welcome in our home, and I appreciate his spirit of generosity, but we choose to focus our attention less on who is coming on Christmas Eve and more on the One who came many years ago in Bethlehem.