Santa versus God
The questions asked by children are often the most difficult to answer. An adult asking the same question is a lot easier to answer. Adults are capable of higher reason than children. This is the reason why it is hard to answer the questions posed by children.
This holiday season provides a great example. There is a popular song called “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” This song contains the lyrics “he sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake. He knows if you’ve been bad or good….” As adults, we probably all recognize that those lyrics are somewhat disturbing – they seem to imply that Santa has hidden webcams watching all our children. Perhaps more disturbing still is the fact that we all seem to sing along to this song!
Prompted by these lyrics, a child asked her Sunday School teacher to explain the difference between God and Santa Claus. After all, she wondered, God also seems to know if you have been bad or good. The teacher’s first reaction was to explain the difference between real and imaginary. However, the Sunday School teacher did not want to be responsible for sending the student back to her parents in tears because her Sunday School teacher said there was no such thing as Santa Claus.
Instead, her teacher responded with a very interesting explanation. He asked the student if she had a bed time. Of course, she responded affirmatively. Then the teacher explained: “Santa may know if you stay up past your bedtime and consider that naughty.” He continued: “God, on the other hand, will know whether or not you did that on purpose, and whether or not you intend to do it again or are truly sorry.”
From an adult point of view, we understand the motivation to get “on the good side” of a fictional entity is not the same as being on the Lord’s side. Even if Santa Claus really made a list of those who were naughty and nice for the purpose of earthly presents, God calls us to a much more serious and final purpose. Jesus said: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21)