Why God Isn't Like Santa Claus

Why God Isn’t Like Santa Claus

Psalm 139:1-12

You better watch out, you better not cry

You better not pout, I’m telling you why

Santa Claus is coming to town

He sees you when you’re sleeping…

You know the rest.

            That’s Santa Claus.  We’ve made him such an important part of growing up that we can’t escape him.  I know, you probably think it’s too soon to be writing about Christmas.  It’s bad enough that the stores are already full of ornaments, and lights, and angel statues, and all the other trimmings, but merchants can’t be blamed completely for rushing the season.  After all, we’ve made the Friday after Thanksgiving the most important shopping day of the year.  It’s inevitable that every store should want to entice us in to that establishment where (it is hoped) we’ll spend all our money.

In the first twelve verses of Psalm 139 it’s difficult to know whether the writer is talking about God or the Santa Claus we use to keep our children (fairly) well-behaved at this time of year.  The psalmist knows that he can never escape God’s presence.  No matter what he does, no matter where he goes, God is always there.  God sees everything, knows everything about him—about us.  There’s no escaping God’s presence

He sees you when you’re sleeping; he knows when you’re awake,

He knows when you’ve been good or bad, so be good for goodness’ sake.

These words could apply to either God or Santa.  We teach our children that Santa sees everything we do and writes it down in his little book, so he knows whether or not he should be good to us on Christmas Eve.  Is it any wonder that children get God and Santa confused—just as many adults do?  Both God and Santa seem to be closely watching each little thing we do.  If we’re good, we’ve got it made.  If we make a slip—watch out!

            David McCasland has said, “God has both an all-seeing eye and an all-forgiving heart.”  That’s the difference between the two “watchers.” 

We portray Santa Claus as the great judge.  If you get on his bad side, it’s all over!  Coal in your stocking come Christmas morn.  Of course, we know that God is the righteous judge, and that the day will come when each of us will have to stand at God’s judgment seat and answer for the way we’ve lived our lives.  It’s also true that we have a tendency to emphasize God’s all-seeing eye over God’s all-forgiving heart.  This is a weakness in our theology, and we need to correct it.  We can’t speak about God’s all-seeing eye unless we equally stress God’s all-forgiving heart.

            John Baillie begins one of the prayers in his book, A Diary of Private Prayer, with these words:  “O merciful Father, who dost look down upon the weaknesses of Thy human children more in pity than in anger, and more in love than in pity…”  God’s pity for our foolishness far outweighs God’s anger at our sinfulness, and God’s love for us far outweighs God’s pity.  After all, this is the God who sent Jesus Christ to show us how we should live and how we should die, and to give us a path to life everlasting. 

            Santa Claus can’t do that.  He can’t forgive us the wrong things we do, or the right things we fail to do.  He can only keep score, and decide which list we should be on as he packs his sleigh.  It’s God who, seeing all that we do, no matter how bad, no matter how often, stands ready with open arms and forgiving heart to welcome us back home.