I have been telling the story of Christmas this month using Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” as a backdrop. I confess that having watched many a movie based on the story, I had never actually read the book until this month. It has been a reminder of how much of an impression the story has had on us as a society.
The very name of the main character has become a part of our vocabulary. The word “Scrooge” is synonymous with “cranky, selfish miser.” The character of Ebenezer Scrooge is so familiar that if you were to refer to someone as a “Scrooge,” just about everybody in the Western world would know what you mean and they would certainly understand that you were not offering a compliment!
Interestingly enough, the name “Ebenezer” appears rarely in A Christmas Carol. Scrooge’s first name is not even mentioned in the first pages of the book. We don’t hear it until Marley’s ghost speaks the name, first in explaining that he has no comfort to offer his former partner. Marley’s second use of “Ebenezer” comes when he explains the purpose of his visit: “I am here to-night to warn you, that you have yet a chance and hope of escaping my fate. A chance and hope of my procuring, Ebenezer.”
The only other character to use the name “Ebenezer” is Old Fezziwig, Scrooge’s former employer whom Scrooge holds in high esteem. There is one final use of “Ebenezer” in A Christmas Carol - Scrooge’s gravestone. This stone completes the transformation of Scrooge, showing him of how his life might end if he does not become a new man.
The words of Dickens have even invaded our church hymnals. Perhaps, you have sung the song “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and wondered about that strange line - Here I raise mine Ebenezer. It is a strange line that practically nobody understands.
Come thou fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount--I’m fixed upon it—
Mount of thy redeeming love.
Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
Hither by thy help I’m come.
And I hope by thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home.
The name “Ebenezer” is not original to the English language. In fact, it is a Hebrew name composed of two Hebrew words. This name is a combination of the Hebrew word for stone (eben) and the Hebrew word for helper (‘ezer). Thus, an ebenezer (literally, ha-eben ha-’ezer) would have been a stone that offered some sort of assistance.
In 1 Samuel 7:12, the judge Samuel sets up a stone as a monument in remembrance of God’s special help. It was a “help-stone” that reminded the Israelites of God’s care. It was rather like those little monuments you find along highways throughout the United States. They commemorate some event long past, helping us to remember what we would otherwise forget.
1 Samuel 7:12, “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the LORD helped us.”
These words are spoken over eleven hundred years before the time of Jesus. The entire nation of Israel had just gone through a long period of sadness and trouble. In fact, twenty years before the event in this text, one of the darkest days in ancient Israel happened. In a single day, Israel not only suffered a terrible military defeat but also lost the Ark of the Covenant into enemy hands. The Ark was the symbol of God’s presence among them. It was the worst disaster imaginable.
Twenty years later, Samuel, the great prophet of the nation, calls a meeting of the nation’s leaders. At Mizpah, the nation gathered in prayer to seek God’s blessing again. Just at that moment, the Philistine army, the dreaded enemy, saw an opportunity to attack while Israel’s warriors were in prayer. But Samuel learns of the treachery. The soldiers form battle lines. The Philistines are turned back in defeat. A great victory for Israel!
To mark the occasion of the great military victory and the day of the nation’s return to faith, Samuel placed a memorial marker and publicly dedicated it as a monument to God's help, God's faithfulness, and God's eternal covenant.
1 Samuel 7:12, “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the LORD helped us.”
Samuel placed a large stone at the place where the restoration of the people began. The Ebenezer stone represented a fresh beginning, a reversal of course for God's people. It also said something important about God. His mercies are everlasting and His covenant promise is forever.
As the people got on with their lives, the stone stood there, visible to all who passed that way, a reminder of judgment and repentance, mercy and restoration. Samuel’s marker wasn’t a memorial to the hard times or to their recent victory. It was a memorial to God’s faithfulness:
Here we raise our Ebenezer because “Thus far has the Lord helped us.”
That’s a reminder we could always use!
Israel didn’t need a memorial to the tough times they had been through. After all, they had experienced them. Those ancient Israelites weren’t likely to forget the twenty years of discouragement. We don’t need a memorial to our mistakes … we do a good enough job ‘beating’ ourselves up over our mistakes – as well as ‘beating’ each other up. We don’t need a memorial to our victories … we can recount them as well in detail to anyone who asks.
We don’t forget. We have an unusual capacity to remember.
Samuel was a wise and godly man with a good idea. He recognized something that's true about human nature - we're only forgetful about the things we should remember --- How can I remember what happened in a baseball game 35 years ago, but I can’t remember when my wife’s birthday is?
That is not what Samuel had in mind, nor do I … What we need to be reminded of is that which we too often forget - God is with us.
We need to set up Ebenezer stones to serve as continual reminders that we are forgiven, that we have chosen a new direction, that God has made a permanent covenant with all who put their faith in Jesus Christ.
So, as we move past Christmas and get on with our normal lives, we need an Ebenezer - something to stand out and remind us of judgment and repentance, mercy and restoration – We need something to remind us of the story of change and transformation that overcomes each of us at Christmas, but seems to be too quickly forgotten.
Can I suggest that you keep out a Christmas ornament this year? Place it somewhere in the house where it will be seen. Let it become your Ebenezer - a reminder that God has helped us in the past - a reminder that God came to be with us so that he might better help us in the present and future.
And if anyone asks about your Christmas ornament, tell them it is your Ebenezer – a reminder that God has helped you – past, present, and future.
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