BOOK TITLES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
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This title is published by KDP Publishers and sold exclusively by Amazon. This link will take you directly to the title at the Amazon website.
PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK
Most conservative teachings for the last several centuries have been strongly influenced by the teachings of the reformation beginning in the sixteenth century. Two of the most significant teachings are related to assumed definitions of the sovereignty of God and the depravity of man. God’s sovereignty is often, but wrongly, defined only in terms of total power which is assumed to cause and control everything. Coupled with a non-Biblical view of man’s inability and helplessness, God’s actions, under the general guise of sovereign grace, are preemptive and unilateral, taking place to the exclusion of any human response.
However, an overlooked, but important, part of the definition of sovereignty is that of freedom to use the power. When applied to God’s rule in the world, a total-control view of sovereignty ultimately makes God the author of evil, since nothing can happen apart from His direct causation. The ultimate-control view, on the other hand, maintains that God delegates freedom of choice and actions to sentient beings that He created while retaining His right to act and intervene in ways that He chooses.
The imbalance in the above approach is intuitive to any thinking Bible student. After a half-century of teaching in Calvinist environments, the author wrote this book to restore a balance to Biblical teachings on divine sovereignty, human freedom, the atonement, and election & predestination — with special emphasis on the right approach to successful Christian living.
This is an excellent gift book for parents, grandparents, and teachers to build upon kids’ enthusiasm for Christmas and to restore the real meaning of this important holiday – one that God Himself celebrated with a host of heavenly angels.
This title is published by KDP Publishers and sold exclusively by Amazon. This link will take you directly to the title at the Amazon website.
Sample pages (6 of 24 pp)
PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK
Since its publication over 200 years ago, multiplied millions of children have heard the timeless classic ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas (originally A Visit With Saint Nick) by Clement Clarke Moore (or Henry Livingston, Jr. – depending on how the ongoing debate might be settled).
Since the poem was intended to be a light-hearted tribute to the spirit of goodwill, it was no great threat to those who had a Christian heritage because they were already aware of the Biblical meaning of the season. However, an increasingly secular culture is focused on avoiding any reference to the true meaning of Christmas. Santa Claus has become a myth with supernatural abilities that belong to God alone. Very few people are aware of the story of the original Saint Nicholas of Myra, Turkey.
During the author’s sixty years of teaching, many students expressed the sentiment, “Our family doesn’t celebrate Christmas. It’s a pagan holiday.” Many Christians view Christmas as a hopelessly commercial, if not totally pagan, holiday. To abstain from any mention of Santa Claus, giving gifts or putting up a tree as a refusal to get caught up in the world’s commercial emphasis of Christmas is certainly a matter of personal conviction, but it is unfortunate that believers surrender a sacred holiday, leaving only a commercial celebration. The answer is to celebrate the day in a way that honors the real message of the season. At the same time, it is important to seize the opportunity to reclaim the real message of Christmas as seen through the eyes of the real Saint Nicholas of history. In this book a new poem ‘Twas the Morn of Christmas adds twenty-one additional verses to show how Saint Nicholas probably would celebrate Christmas on the morning that he returned to the North Pole. The original ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas depicts the generous spirit of Saint Nicholas, the legend, but the second poem tries to capture the deep conviction of Saint Nicholas, the Christian.
WHAT SHOULD BE OUR STANCE ON CHRISTMAS?
Of all people Christians should be the ones who most enthusiastically celebrate this wonderful holiday in harmony with the Biblical story. Gift-giving is a matter of personal conviction but, where practiced, we should emphasize that we are not honoring Santa Claus (Saint Nicholas), who would be appalled at the thought. He shared to honor God’s gift of love to the world – a lifestyle he practiced throughout the year – always making sure that the praise was directed to God. All believers are called to the ministry of sharing God’s truth and our resources on His behalf. We are simply following the example of a committed Christian whose place in history has been legendary for seventeen centuries.
WHAT SHOULD BE OUR STANCE ON SANTA CLAUS?
While the book offers least four possible responses to the question, no attempt is made to settle the question on a personal basis. Its main appeal is to be prepared to offer the truth about the missing spiritual dimension of the Christian message — that of redemption accomplished by the Son of God Who entered the world as a baby (Christmas) so that He could accomplish the forgiveness of sin by His death on the Cross (Easter / Passover). It is possible to do so without resorting to a confusing compromise of the sacred with the secular.
Christmas can be celebrated without referring to Santa Claus or getting caught up in the extravagant exchange of gifts. At the same time, we should prepare our children to deal with the inevitable and pervasive exposure to Christmas as the world sees it. As guardians of the truth (II Timothy 3:15), we have a responsibility to correct error by presenting the truth. We should grab the kernel of truth and use it to restate the whole truth.
For those who say, “Christmas is a pagan holiday,” it is not in terms of its origin and purpose, despite the secular and commercial emphasis in the current culture. For those who say, “There is no Santa Claus,” this is true if stated in the present tense – but there was a Saint Nicholas, and the truth about him as a historical person can be used to direct people to the Lord that he served. The statement that “Santa is a myth” is misleading since it implies that he is totally imaginary. It is more accurate to say that he is a legend from whom we need only to strip away the husks of myth in order to extract the kernel of historical truth, which can then be used to teach and illustrate the Biblical message.
Supplemental Materials
The Christmas at the North Pole book is available in a short skit production format with instructions for 1-2 persons or multiple parts. It is in a printable PDF format (21 pages), containing production ideas for the director. Only 5 pages need to be printed for the poem with assigned parts. The short 15-20 minute skit is ideal as a supplement to a full Christmas program or as a part of a praise & worship portion of the Sunday morning service. It is very usable for children’s groups. Included is “An Interview with Saint Nicholas” (a two-part skit) to provide important historical information for the doubters in the audience.
Twenty-four visuals of the original book pages are available to put the entire poem into a powerpoint presentation. This minimizes the need to have have stage props since the powerpoint supplies the visual background while the audio is supplied by the players – or by a one-person monologue or reading.
