Charlie Brown Teaches Us About Real Security
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Isaiah 32:17-The work of righteousness will be peace, And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
Some of my favorite memories have been from the Christmas holiday. I know a lot of Christians don’t like to think about Christ being associated with that time of year, and I respect them and their conscience on the matter. But personally, I believe it is good to think about Jesus all year round.
With that in mind, have you ever considered the hidden message in one of the best Christmas cartoons in the history of the world?
That’s right: I am talking about Charlie Brown!
Do you remember Linus and his blanket that he always carried around with him?
Meditate on this with me:
“It has been over 50 years since “A Charlie Brown Christmas” aired on national prime time television. In a world where the latest greatest technology is outdated in a matter of months, and social media trends come and go in a matter of days, 50 years of anything becomes quite meaningful. I am a fan of all things nostalgic and all things Christmas, so when the two are combined I am hooked, and the Charlie Brown Christmas special falls squarely into that category. I was in the first grade back when they still performed Christmas pageants in schools (less than 50 years, but still a very long time ago), and our class performed a version of the Charlie Brown Christmas. Since I was kind of a bookworm and already had a blue blanket, I was chosen to play the part of Linus. As Linus, I memorized Luke 2: 8-14, and that Scripture has been hidden in my heart ever since. But while working so diligently to learn those lines, there is one important thing I didn’t notice then, and didn’t notice until now. Right in the middle of speaking these words, Linus drops the blanket. Charlie Brown is best known for his uniquely striped shirt, and Linus is most associated with his ever-present security blanket. Throughout the story of Peanuts, Lucy, Snoopy, Sally and others all work to no avail to separate Linus from his blanket. And even though his security blanket remains a major source of ridicule for the otherwise mature and thoughtful Linus, he simply refuses to give it up. Until this moment. When he simply drops it. For the first time I noticed that in that climactic scene when Linus shares what ‘Christmas is all about’, he drops his security blanket, and I am now convinced that this is intentional. What convinced me is the specific moment he drops it: when he utters the words, “fear not”. Looking at it now, it is pretty clear what Charles Schulz was saying through this, and it’s so simple it’s brilliant. The birth of Jesus separates us from our fears. The birth of Jesus frees us from the habits we are unable (or unwilling) to break ourselves. The birth of Jesus allows us to simply drop the false security we have been grasping to so tightly, and learn to trust and cling to Him instead. It is during this speech that Linus is telling us, “what Christmas is all about”, and he even throws in a visual for effect. The world of today can be a scary place, and most of us find ourselves grasping to something temporal for security, whatever that thing may be. Essentially, our world today is a world in which it is very difficult for us to “fear not”. But in the midst of fear and insecurity, this simple cartoon image from 1965 continues to live on as an inspiration for us to seek true peace and true security in the one place it has always been and can always still be found.” (Jason Soroski, A Journey to Bethlehem: Inspiring Thoughts for Christmas and Hope for the New Year, 9-11 (Kindle Edition); Houston, TX: Hourglass Ministries)
In Jesus, we can find true security. We often put so much stock in things like money, property, careers, family, and friends. All of these can be good things and blessings, but everything in this world will crumble: and our loved ones, despite their best intentions, will at times let us down. That’s human nature. It doesn’t mean that we don’t love them by saying that they will fail at times. They were never meant to be God in our lives, yet so often we put them in His place.
Yet when the things of life fail and come crashing down, remember you can trust in Jesus to be your firm Foundation.
Romans 8:37-39-Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Lord Jesus, thank You for being our place of refuge in all the chaos of this world. We thank You for loving us and being with us. Help us to learn from Linus about placing our confidence in You. Amen.