So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. Luke 2:16-19.
In my opinion, Christmas movies are in a class of their own. There are many kinds of Christmas movies that all end happily, but the irony is we already know the ending because we have seen it a dozen times. It is the only time of year when I will sit for hours and watch a movie I have seen so many times I practically know the lines. But even though I think I know all there is to know about the show, something seems always to catch me by surprise. It happened recently as I was flipping through the channels and caught the end of the 1994 remake of “Miracle on 34th Street”.
A few years ago, a much younger friend enlightened me that most millennials and younger have never seen many of the classical Christmas movies I grew up watching and made my kids watch. And honestly, I had never seen some of the films she traditionally watches during the holiday season. So, if you have never seen Miracle on 34th Street, this is your spoiler alert. Watch it and come back to the Tidbit later! In this classic, an older man named Kris Kringle claims he is really Santa Claus, leading to a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity. I flipped the channel just as the judge declared that Kris needed a miracle to win his case. That line had never struck me like it did that night. Kris’s lawyer had exhausted all his defenses, but that was not enough to win the case. He needed help from another source. How often do we deplete all our human resources and finally look up for help?
The original 1947 version has the same final ending but arrives at it differently than the remake. The original uses the postal service and thousands of letters written to Santa Claus as a defense mechanism, and the 1994 version uses a dollar bill. In 1994, fewer people used snail mail, and the almighty dollar was much more relevant. The judge’s moving speech alluded to Kris’s freedom as he pointed to the words on the dollar bill that say, “In God we Trust.” He went on to say the “Federal government puts its trust in God. It does so on faith and faith alone.” Plot twist: who would have ever thought a movie about Santa Claus would end up pointing to God and our need for faithfulness?
The story of Jesus’s birth is a Bible story that, as Christians, we have heard, read, and watched portrayed many times. And just when we think we know the verses line by line, one will touch our heart, and we will be amazed all over again at the wonder of His birth. Just like the movies, we already know the ending, but we must yearn to hear the story again and again. We should never tire or think God can not renew our minds with a familiar passage of scripture. Jesus was definitely a plot twist for the Jews. They were expecting a King, but the Messiah came as a babe. They were expecting to be delivered by the Law, but Jesus fulfilled the Law and called us to put our faith in Him. The ending is the same as the movie: Faith sets us free. Read and ponder the story of Christ’s birth this week and ask God to enlighten you to see something new and be amazed.
As she sees Santa Claus, the amazement on Susan’s face (in the picture) is heartwarming. We can only imagine the faces of the Wisemen and kings when they saw Jesus. But I’m sure the look was the same, awestruck wonder. May we experience awestruck wonder and amazement this Christmas and every day as we remember the sacrifice that was made on our behalf. And that’s your Tuesday Tidbit.