The Hope of Christmas Future: Death-Defying Acts

For the past few weeks, we’ve been talking about A Christmas Carol: how Scrooge starts out as the epitome of stinginess, greed, and “generally being in a terrible mood.” With the ghosts of Christmas past and present, Scrooge starts seeing how others live: some choose relationships and while it might cost finances, their lives are enriched because of it. And his actions have had a negative impact on others. Seeing that, Scrooge has been reconsidering his own life. But with the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, Scrooge fully faces what could happen if he doesn’t change. 

The future is uncertain for everyone. By the time he encounters this final Spirit, Scrooge has been considering his own change of heart. He’s more open to listening and considering all before him. Dickens tells us that Scrooge was especially eager “to observe the shadow of himself when it appeared. For he had an expectation that the conduct of his future self would give him the clue he missed, and would render the solution of these riddles easy.” 

Of course, as Scrooge continues with the Spirit, he eventually realizes that this future is still the worst possible. He would die unmourned- the only emotion connected to his death would be relief and excitement over the opportunity to profit. And by not paying Bob Cratchit more, Tiny Tim would die.

By the end, as he looks at the gravestone with his name on it, Scrooge asks “‘Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of the things that May be, only?’

In October and November, we started looking at the Book of Revelation, and we’ll continue it on January 7. In Scripture, we often see references to God being of the past, the present, and the future. And in these few verses especially, John of Patmos really emphasizes it. As he considers the ghosts of past, present, and christmas yet to come, Matt Rawle also considers what it means that God is the one who is, who was, and who is to come. Because God is “the one who is”, God is in the present and always present. It doesn’t matter that these words were originally written almost 2000 years ago. God remains the one who is. As Rawle says, “This is the timeless truth that we are not abandoned. In the midst of suffering, we are not alone. God is, and God is with us.”  

God is also described as the one who was. “Knowing that God is a God of past means that our sins may be forgiven, that God can heal wounds from long ago. …Not only that, but worshiping a God who is and a God who was means that our past matters [and] the goodness you offer today by loving God and loving neighbor, creates a foundation for tomorrow. …A God who is means that we are not abandoned. A God who was means that we are forgiven. A God who is to come means that God can be trusted. …A God who is to come is a God whose promise can be trusted.” 

We get to see these promises in the next verses of our Revelation passage: “To the one who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, who made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father—to him be glory and power forever and always”

The tense once again reflects present, past, and future. “‘To the one who loves us’ is in the present tense. This is the promise of the God who is. ‘And freed us from our sins,’ is in the past tense. This is the promise of the God who was. ‘And made us a kingdom’ is pointing us toward the future. This is the work of the God who is to come. God loves us, has forgiven us, and has given us purpose for the future, beginning today as servants to God and for each other. Through faith in Christ, our present, our past, and our future are held together in grace.”

Scrooge gets his answer in the final stave of the book: he awakens to live as a changed man. He builds a relationship with his nephew and his niece-in-law. He builds a relationship with the Cratchits and Tiny Tim, helping where he can so that Tim gets what he needs. And we, also, have that opportunity. Each and every day, we have the chance to live a life redeemed, knowing we have a God who is, and who was, and who is to come. Our God is with us, and will never abandon us. Our God knows our past, and forgives and restores. And our God’s promises can be trusted. Along with Scrooge, we can reawaken to life. No matter how far off course we might have gone, “we haven’t missed it!”

“The miracle has just begun in YOU for the sake of the world… God Bless us Every One!”

*Resources for this sermon include:

Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.

Marcia McFee, God Bless Us Every One: The Redemption of Scrooge, “The Hope of Christmas Future: Death-Defying Acts” from the Worship Design Studio with Dr. Marcia McFee. 2016.

Matt Rawle, The Redemption of Scrooge, (Nashville, Abingdon Press, 2016), Chapter 4: The Hope of Christmas Future.