Timely Topics,

Timeless Truths(Set 1)

A 19-Minute Bible Study

(with extra content to expand lessons to 45 minutes)

by Jonathan P. Bauer

Leader’s Guide

The God who made me

Lesson 1 Intelligent Design Friend or foe in the war of worldviews? 3

Lesson 2 Global Warming How concerned (and how green) 10should we be?

Lesson 3 Gender Identity Who makes the call (and how)? 18

The God who saves me

Lesson 4 Santa Claus Does the man in the red suit spell “Saint” 27or “Satan” for Christmas?

Lesson 5 Secret Baptism A grandparent’s right—or wrong? 35

Lesson 6 Close Communion Are we closing the door 43on reaching the lost?

The world around me

Lesson 7 Duel Citizenship Can my pastor talk politics? 51

Lesson 8 Broke to Bankrupt Does my faith let me file? 59

Copyrights and Permissions

The material on this disk may be adapted, printed, and copied by the purchaser of this kit. However, the following notice must appear at the bottom of the first page of each lesson of the student lessons:© 2016 Northwestern Publishing House. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission.

Ownership of this material belongs to either a congregation or an individual, but not both. Purchase by a congregation: Purchase of this material by a congregation gives Bible study leaders of that congregation permission to adapt and copy this material for use in one or more groups within that congregation. (Dual parishes may purchase one copy for use in both congregations.) Purchase by a pastor or other Bible study leader: Purchase of this material by an individual gives the buyer permission to adapt and copy this material for Bible classes he or she teaches or supervises. Buyer has permission to use this material only in the congregation he or she is currently serving or attending.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com.

The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Northwestern Publishing House

1250 N. 113th St., Milwaukee, WI 53226-3284

www.nph.net

© 2016 Northwestern Publishing House

Published 2016

ISBN 978-0-8100-2727-5

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 2

Santa ClausDoes the man in the red suit spell “Saint” or “Satan” for Christmas?

Resources

About These Resources

Please Note: The resources provided below are intended to be helpful for use with this Bible study and provide a sampling of what is written in the wider world about this topic. Their inclusion here in no way indicates a full endorsement of their content.

Pro-Santa Claus

“Why Santa Belongs in Your Kids’ Christmas” (Keri Wyatt Kent, Christianity Today) “ Six Reasons to Lie to Your Kids About Santa Claus” (Rich Cromwell, The Federalist) “In Defense of Santa Claus” (Michael Brendan Dougherty, The Week)

Anti-Santa Claus

“Naughty & Nice Nonsense” (Pastor James Hein, WELS) “What to Do About Santa?” (Blog: The Gospel-Centered Mom) “Kill Santa” (Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry, The Week) “Santa Is a Game People Play” (Charlie Park Blog)

Related Resources

Information on St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra (St. Nicholas Center) Story of St. Nicholas Slapping Arius at the Council of Nicaea (St. Nicholas Center) Information About Elf on the Shelf

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 3

Santa ClausDoes the man in the red suit spell “Saint” or “Satan” for Christmas?

Introduction

1. Poll: As a child, how many people here today remember believing in Santa for any period of time?

2. Poll: With your children, how many people have . . .

a. allowed their children to believe Santa was real without really influencing them one way or another.

b. actively encouraged belief in Santa and everything that goes along with it.

c. actively told their children that Santa wasn’t real and discouraged all things Santa at Christmastime.

d. told their children Santa wasn’t real, but allowed Santa to be a part of Christmas in a fun, playful way.

e. taught their children about St. Nicholas, the Bishop of Myra.

Answers will vary, of course. Some initial things to note would be the correlation between what your parents did with you and how that impacts what you do with your children. Also, it might be surprising to those on either side of the issue to see that there are people in the group on the other side. One desired outcome of this lesson is for people to be aware of and respectful of those who tackle the issue differently. One overall attitude to foster is that, whatever we might think about Santa (or other problems with Christmas in our country), the incarnation and birth of God’s Son is a big enough deal that it will always survive. In other words, in spite of everything wrong with Christmas, Jesus can take it. We don’t need to view ourselves as “Defenders of the True Meaning of Christmas,” as if without our efforts Christmas will perish.

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 4

What Are We Trying to Accomplish?

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

1. Describe the responsibility God gives parents with respect to their children.

The first and greatest commandment is intimately connected to the nature of our God. Just as the Lord is one—whole, indivisible, united—so also he wants our love for him to be undivided. This is the responsibility that we as parents have with our children. God wants us to teach them to love God with their whole heart. If we observe that the customs surrounding Santa present a challenge to that at Christmas, we will rightly reexamine our approach to Santa.

Mark 10:13-16

2. As parents carry out this responsibility, what characteristic of children aids them? Why is that characteristic of children something to be taken seriously?

As we teach our children about the Lord, one of the factors working in our favor is that children have childlike faith. They believe everything we tell them. They don’t question what we tell them is true. As we think about the Santa issue, we want to take seriously this important and beneficial characteristic of our children. We don’t want to abuse it or ultimately undermine it by leading them to believe things that aren’t true.

Luke 2:10-14

3. What is the angels’ (and humankind’s) response to the good news of great joy that God sent his Son to be the Savior?

As the angels announced the birth of the Savior, they proclaimed peace on earth and glory to God in the highest. As we think about our annual celebration of Christ’s birth, we want to make sure that we are giving full glory to God.

Romans 4:4,5

4. In addition to teaching our children about God’s greatest gift, what do we want them to know about the reason for which this gift was given?

God’s Son is a gift freely given, not a reward that has been earned. The same is, of course, true about forgiveness and eternal life. We obviously want that to be a message stressed at Christmastime. Part of what makes Jesus the greatest gift ever given is that he is a gift completely undeserved.

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 5

How Do We Best Accomplish It?

Evaluate each argument in favor of and against allowing children to believe in Santa Claus. Which one presents the stronger case in each instance?

Santa = Satan

Those who argue against Santa will often point out (somewhat jokingly) that the letters that spell Santa can be rearranged to spell Satan.

1. Focus on Santa takes the focus off of Jesus at Christmas.

Opponents of Santa will point out that the Santa myth and customs take the focus off of Jesus. Any attention given to Santa must be attention taken away from Jesus.

2. Parents shouldn’t lie to their children.

Opponents of Santa take a hard-line stance on any and all deception of children.

3. Telling your children that Santa is real blurs the line between fantasy and faith.

This ties in with the question above about childlike faith. Opponents of Santa point out that perpetuating this myth abuses and undermines the willing faith children put in their parents. They caution that if children find out their parents were lying about Santa, they might question whether other biblical stories that sound unbelievable (Noah and the flood, Jonah, etc.) are true.

Santa = Saint

Ironically, the word Santa truly comes from the Latin word sanctus, from which we get the English word saint.

Focus on Santa adds to the joy of Christmas and makes it more special for children.

Advocates will argue that Santa (just like presents, family meals, and other Christmas traditions) actually adds to the joy of Christmas and emphasizes the special nature of the holiday.

Parents lie to their children all the time when it serves a good purpose. (Can you think of examples?)

Situations where parents might lie to children: a family pet needs to be put down; someone loses a job and the parents don’t want the kids to know how dire things are.

Encouraging belief in Santa fosters wonder and imagination and encourages belief in the supernatural.

Advocates will argue that belief in Santa actually fosters childlike faith. They’ll argue that when children find out the truth about Santa, not only will they easily differentiate between myth and reality, but also the lightheartedness of the Santa story will only enhance the seriousness of the biblical narrative, including the story of Jesus’ birth.

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 6

4. Santa operates on a system of work-righteousness that undermines the gospel.

Opponents of Santa will quote the well-known song “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town.” The song not only promotes merit-based gift distribution (naughty and nice list) but also attributes divine characteristics to Santa (“He knows when you are sleeping. . . . ”)

5. The Santa issue allows parents to teach their children an important lesson about how different families have different rules and customs.

The same lesson is important to teach in other areas, from things like taking off shoes in the house to use of certain language. This is a valuable lesson for children to learn. Telling the truth about Santa gives parents an opportunity to teach it.

The story of the real St. Nicholas is a story of unmerited generosity that actually reinforces grace.

Advocates will actually say the same thing about Santa Claus. Kids hear all about naughty vs. nice. Then when they get presents anyway, they learn the lesson that they get gifts in spite of the fact that they haven’t always been nice.

ORSanta provides a healthy, annual opportunity to teach children that, while we don’t suffer eternally for our sins because of God’s grace and Jesus’ work, our behavior and actions do have temporal consequences.

Advocates argue that in addition to learning about divine, eternal grace, kids also need to learn about temporal accountability. Santa provides an annual chance for this lesson to be learned.

Children who are told that Santa isn’t real will inevitably ruin it for children who are told that he is.

Advocates will argue that parents who tell their children the truth will inevitably blab to children who believe the myth, not only ruining the fun but putting parents in the uncomfortable position of having to answer to their children when they come home from school. “Is this true?” “Why did you lie to me?”

6. Regardless of the decision parents make about Santa, what are some ways that parents can help their children stay focused on the important meaning of Christmas in spite of everything we might bemoan about the holiday season?

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 7

This is a good opportunity for caution to be expressed, especially to those who take a rather hard-line stance against Santa. It’s easy to think that as long as we don’t take part in “the great evil that is Santa Claus,” we are doing our job. If we make no time for extra worship services, family discussions around the dinner table, singing Christmas hymns, and instead get caught up in the commercialism as much as everyone else, we might rightly be accused of hypocrisy. It’s important for us to realize ALL of the problems and pitfalls associated with the present-day celebration of Christmas, not just this one.

Just one practical suggestion: Because of a renewed appreciation for the unique emphasis of the Advent season (it’s not just a lead up to Christmas) and because of the short nature of the Christmas season (just 12 days with many people missing the Sundays after Christmas), people often bemoan the fact that Christmas came and went without them getting to sing their favorite Christmas hymn in church. What better activity for the family in the home? Christmas hymns are among the most familiar in the hymnal. Even those with limited musical abilities or resources will find that singing Christmas hymns as a family is something many are able to do.

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 8

BONUS MATERIAL

1. How would you respond to this statement? “Not only because of Santa but also because of all the commercialization and secularization of Christmas, Christians should pick a new time of year to celebrate the birth of Christ. December 25 has no historical basis anyway.”

Christmas is a special target of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh-day Adventists. This is due both to the unhistorical association with December 25 and all of the problems with society’s annual observance. Many will also claim pagan origins of the day itself and some of the customs. Caution is in place toward an overly extreme reaction to these things. As stated above, one thing that would be good for us to remember from time to time is that regardless of what’s going on in society, Jesus can take it. His incarnation divides history into B.C. and A.D. It can probably survive the myth of a man in a red suit.

2. Research St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra. What did he (reportedly) do at the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325?

The name “Santa Claus” even has its roots in the historical figure of St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra. That being said, the jolly fat man in the red suit who lives at the North Pole and keeps reindeer might as well have no historical connection with St. Nicholas at all.St. Nicholas allegedly slapped Arius (a priest from Alexandria who said God the Father was supreme and God the Son was a creature who had a beginning) in the face after losing patience with his continued spewing of heresy about the person of Christ. Opinions vary as to the historicity of this story.On a side note: A renewed appreciation for St. Nicholas would be a good thing. The custom of hanging stockings and getting gifts in them (especially on his day, December 6) is directly tied to the historical figure of St. Nicholas. If parents are looking for an alternative to Santa Claus, this is a good one.

3. Discuss a more recent Christmas tradition, Elf on the Shelf. How does this tradition compare with Santa Claus? Would your conclusion about taking part in this tradition be the same as your conclusion about Santa Claus or different?

To learn more about Elf on the Shelf, a resource is listed on the resource page for this lesson. Elf on the Shelf is an extension of the Santa story. The elf is a spy from the North Pole to help Santa with his naughty and nice designations. Rather than using it for its intended purpose, however, many use Elf on the Shelf to cause humorous mischief in the house during the Christmas season. (For example, after the kids go to bed, Mom and Dad will take a box of cereal, tip it over on the kitchen counter so that some spills out, and then place the elf sitting on top of the box. When the children wake up the next

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 9

morning, the impression is given that the elf caused the mess. A little Internet searching reveals that parents can get pretty creative with this.) In general, the discussion about Elf on the Shelf is more or less the same as it is with Santa Claus.

4. How do other childhood myths (tooth fairy, Easter bunny) compare to Santa Claus? How is the discussion about those examples the same? How is it different?

In general, people don’t seem to view these other myths as big of a threat as Santa Claus. When it comes to the tooth fairy, there aren’t really any religious implications (other than the issue of lying to your children). When it comes to the Easter bunny, it doesn’t dominate the dialogue around Easter nearly as much as Santa does around Christmastime.

Timely Topics, Timeless Truths 10