With that, let's start with the implications of the statement….

The intended implication of the phrase is this, God is a well meaning, not too harmful, but none the less fictional concept that people who are immature, uneducated, and/or need a positive thought to get through the days need. More than likely, any one who believes in God does so because their parents told them He is real and they are still waiting for that day that they over hear another kid at school say that his mommy let him in on the secret that it was all a big lie.

Here's the problem with the comment (outside of the obvious to me that Santa Clause is fictional and God is not); it is WAY too simplified of a concept for me to even take serious. Let me explain…..

Santa is based off the life of a real man named Nicholas(who was raised as a Christian) and did incredible acts of goodness. He used his inheritance and resources to do good for the needy in an attempt to follow Jesus' instructions as found in the Scriptures. He never claimed to be Santa Clause, others created this persona over time.

Like Nicholas, Jesus was a real person. There are few who dare to debate otherwise. He is a historical figure, based in a historical time, with not only being referred to within the Bible but outside sources as well. This can not be debated any more than if Nicholas ever lived. So this, the stories have in common. (Wait, Jesus? I thought we were talking about God being an adult version of Santa Claus!?! Stay with me, I appreciate your patience.)

Now if Jesus was a heck of a guy, great teacher, and all around role model that later other people turned into a super hero by building on his reputation, then DING, DING, DING…..we have a winner. People are trying to push their own purpose (rather good or bad) by making Jesus something bigger than He was. Hence, we see an example of the comparison in the above statement. Since Christians claim that Jesus is not only the Son of God but that He is God, then I could partially buy the statement.

However, here's the start of the differences….Christian don't just claim Jesus is the Son of God and that He is God….Jesus claimed these vital facts. Again, these claims are not only found in Scripture but also kept in history by outside sources.

For instance, Flavius Josephus (AD 37 - c. 100) notes the following….

About this time lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was the achiever of extraordinary deeds and was a teacher of those who accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Messiah. When he was indicted by the principal men among us and Pilate condemned him to be crucified, those who had come to love him originally did not cease to do so; for he appeared to them on the third day restored to life, as the prophets of the Deity had foretold these and countless other marvelous things about him, and the tribe of the Christians, so named after him, has not disappeared to this day. (All Josephus citations, except the next, are from P. L. Maier, ed./trans., Josephus –The Essential Works(Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1994).

About this time lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was the achiever of extraordinary deeds and was a teacher of those who accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Messiah. When he was indicted by the principal men among us and Pilate condemned him to be crucified, those who had come to love him originally did not cease to do so; for he appeared to them on the third day restored to life, as the prophets of the Deity had foretold these and countless other marvelous things about him, and the tribe of the Christians, so named after him, has not disappeared to this day. (All Josephus citations, except the next, are from P. L. Maier, ed./trans., Josephus –The Essential Works(Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1994).

It is clear in even the most casual glances of the evidence that those who argue that Jesus never claimed to be anything more than a good teacher have little to stand on. I have heard those who try to follow the "DaVinci Code" mentality that later people try to make Jesus the Christ. This is very weak and would not hold up in any court.

Jesus claimed to be the Christ, his immediate apostle's who had their life changed claimed Him to be the Christ, early historians inside and outside of Christianity claimed Hm to be Christ, the Gospels were written within the first century, the letters of Paul (who previously was a skeptic to say the least) were written first century… there is overwhelming proof of who Jesus claimed to be as well as the devotion and change in the lives who witnessed and believed.

Just for fun, let's talk about the evidence even before Jesus was born in that barn…. there are many propheciesthat Jesus fulfilled pointing to His claims that He made. Prophecies that were written hundreds of years before Jesus' birth. Again, there are mountains of evidence of these texts of Scripture (Old Testament) have been in existence for thousands of years. Including the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, there is an undeniable amount of proof that these texts are original and could not be manipulated to fit anyone's agenda later down the road.

Again, this is just part of what we can get into as I talk about God the Son. I could go on a lot longer but I would bore some, annoy others, and I really should be working =) The main point is this, to say God is the Santa Clause for adults is an over simplified comment that can not be an apples to apples conversation.

Santa was not a real man, Nicholus never claimed to be Santa, did not have 66 books written about him written by multiple authors over 4,000 years that work in balance, does not have first hand witness accounts testifying about him, does not have very real, personal testimonies about him, is not confirmed by even outside, non believing historians………it just doesn't fit.

Again, my observations above deal with believing that Jesus is God thus the evidence I offer in my mind is for God being real and not a modern day fable. Jesus' claims have stood the test of time for 2,000 years. The claims of God himself have stood the test of time for 6,000 years. Not just believers but evidence. Truth is not a matter of an opion poll or even a popular vote, it is a matter of….is it true? Is there eviedence? You bet there is! The question is what are you doing with the evidence?

Here's what Jesus, the real man, leaves us with (as best noted by C.S. Lewis)…

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."