Humbug: nonsense or gibberish
“Jacob,” he said, imploringly. “Old Jacob Marley, tell me more. Speak comfort to me, Jacob!”
“I have none to give,” the Ghost replied. “It comes from other regions, Ebenezer Scrooge, and is conveyed by other ministers, to other kinds of men.”
Jacob Marley knows good tidings of comfort and joy come from another world! But Scrooge?
But there was nothing on the back of the door, except the screws and nuts that held the knocker on, so he said “Pooh, pooh!” and closed it with a bang.
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“Humbug!” said Scrooge; and walked across the room.
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“It’s humbug still!” said Scrooge. “I won’t believe it.”
Prophets, angels and a star, all messages from another world, announced the birth of Jesus!
Isaiah 7:14, Micah 5:2, Luke 2:9-14, Matthew 2:2
Check out Tim Chaffey’s article on the fulfilled prophecies of the birth of Jesus
The danger of not believing in something beyond yourself is a life like Scrooge.
Without God’s moral compass there is no right & wrong,
it doesn’t matter how we treat one another,
there is no reason to live each day as an investment in a better tomorrow.
Creation, law, eternity, purpose—These four things are written within each person’s heart.
God’s truth written in nature: Romans 1:20, Job 12:7-10, Psalm 19:1-4
God’s truth written on our hearts: Jeremiah 31:33, Hebrews 8:10, Hebrews 10:16, 2 Corinthians 3:3
Why we need connection to this other world:
- Like Scrooge we need a strong dose of reality. We are not the center of the universe, other people matter.
- So we don’t end up like Marley, missing what life is really all about.
- We need to be reminded that we are spiritual beings.
- We need a shove. Most of us rarely change direction without a brutal wake-up call.
- We need consistent direction and challenge. We often do not follow through on our good intentions without consistent connection to and reliance upon the Spirit of God. We don’t just need to hear a sermon but connect with the Spirit of God that wants to speak to us through the sermon. We don’t need to just read the Bible but to connect with its message.
Church 29:11 