Okay, here's the thing about "Joy to the World,": did you know that if you look in most hymnals (those books with all the songs that we used to sing out of in churches) that this song will be listed, not really with the Christmas carols, but with the advent carols? It's supposedly a song that's to be sung before Christmas ever gets here. Why is that significant? Well, it's significant because if you relegate to the "advent hymns/carols" pile, you might miss the fact that the meaning of this song doesn't actually end with Christ's first coming. This Christmas, as you sing "Joy to the World," sing it as someone who's looking for Christ's return, his second coming to earth, when he will restore, judge, and make all things new, right, as they should be. I love Mariah Carey's version of this song from her CD Merry Christmas. Enjoy!
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
("Is come." He's coming. This is the hope of the believer: that Christ will come again. That he will make things right again. What a promise that we have to look forward too, and that will be the day of complete, true joy for the world.)
Let earth receive her King;
(A reminder that he will come as king on that day. The first time he came he was, in essence, king of the world, but that's not how he came. When he returns, he will come in that capacity, to set up reign.)
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
(A foreshadowing of how the entire earth will be "singing" at the return of Christ, when he makes all creation new and redeems it from the damage and destruction of man's sin.)
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
(The ever-increasing number of sins and sorrows on this earth, will be stopped with Christ's return. Not only will they be stopped, but they will be wiped out totally, completely.)
Nor thorns infest the ground;
(An allusion to the curse that God put on man and the earth after Adam and Eve's sin in Genesis 3. With the promise in Revelation, comes the promise of a new Heavens and a new Earth.)
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
(I love these lines, because they remind me that the Gospel, which was instituted by Christ's first coming to earth, is able to reach far and wide. There's not a person that the gospel doesn't have the power to save, and there's not a situation or life that the gospel doesn't have the ability to transform and redeem. Just when I think situations are hopeless, here's a reminder that as far as the curse of sin goes, so does the transforming power of the gospel.)
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
(When Christ is king, his character is proven. The attributes of who he is are seen in the way he changes those who are his. When a people have the gospel, they have change. There can be no question that change will occur, even if it's not as quick or dramatic as we would like. On the hearts of men is where you'll find the record and evidence of Christ's coming.)
And wonders, wonders, of His love.
Showing posts with label Christmas Carols. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas Carols. Show all posts
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Caroling, Caroling: Silent Night! Holy Night!
Here's the thing: I've always thought it was kind of odd that there are exclamation points in this title. They don't seem to fit with the overall mood of the song, and even thought I get that they're kind of proclaiming something, which is a big part of the Christmas story, it just seems strange to me that they would be proclaiming silence and holiness. . . until I started thinking about that more, and I realized that in the world I live silence and holines are such foreign concepts that they almost have to be proclaimed, shouted even, to get the point across. I know it's a little cheesy maybe, but I would recommend Mannheim Steamroller's version of this song, from their CD Christmas, because I think the absence of words and the "new-age" feel that their music has really does what the title indicates, it proclaims silence. (By the way, the song is titled "Stille Nacht" on the CD.)
Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright
(I'm not sure even on the first Christmas, all was calm, and the Bible indicates that at least with the Israelites, all was not bright. Sound familiar? But I think these lines serve as a reminder to me that, with the coming of the Christ-child, in that moment, because of all that God had planned and because Christ would be obedient and fulfill his Father's will completely, as soon as he took his first human breath, ultimately all was calm and bright because of the hope of redemption.)
Round yon virgin mother and Child.
(I like that this line is in there, because I need to be reminded of Mary's place in the story and the absurdity of having a virgin, teenage girl give birth to the Savior of the world. This is no sentimentality or mere sweetness, this is theology that gives hope!)
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight;
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
(Again, not much about glory coming down from heaven and angels singing that lends itself to peace, but when I'm singing these lines, it's hard for me not to be overwhelmed by the lengths God went to to announce his Son's birth.)
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born!
Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love’s pure light;
(What an amazing thing to say about Jesus! He was the pureness of love. Looking on Christ, we see the ultimate example of love.)
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
(These are the two lines that get me every time. I dare you to sing them without getting teary-eyed. "With the dawn of redeeming grace." From the very beginning, it was there. The Cross and my redemption was written all over Christ's face from the very beginning.)
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright
(I'm not sure even on the first Christmas, all was calm, and the Bible indicates that at least with the Israelites, all was not bright. Sound familiar? But I think these lines serve as a reminder to me that, with the coming of the Christ-child, in that moment, because of all that God had planned and because Christ would be obedient and fulfill his Father's will completely, as soon as he took his first human breath, ultimately all was calm and bright because of the hope of redemption.)
Round yon virgin mother and Child.
(I like that this line is in there, because I need to be reminded of Mary's place in the story and the absurdity of having a virgin, teenage girl give birth to the Savior of the world. This is no sentimentality or mere sweetness, this is theology that gives hope!)
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight;
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
(Again, not much about glory coming down from heaven and angels singing that lends itself to peace, but when I'm singing these lines, it's hard for me not to be overwhelmed by the lengths God went to to announce his Son's birth.)
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born!
Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love’s pure light;
(What an amazing thing to say about Jesus! He was the pureness of love. Looking on Christ, we see the ultimate example of love.)
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
(These are the two lines that get me every time. I dare you to sing them without getting teary-eyed. "With the dawn of redeeming grace." From the very beginning, it was there. The Cross and my redemption was written all over Christ's face from the very beginning.)
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Caroling, Caroling: O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Here's the thing: in his commentary on Galatians, Martin Luther makes the case that one of the reason the law was so burdensome is that it was meant to make the Israelites cry out for relief, for rescue, in short, for the Savior. In other words, God intentionally made the law impossible to follow and therefore mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually taxing, so that his people would run and cling to the gospel of grace and rescue his Son provided when he came to earth. There's a lot in this song that applies to us, the church, living in this world that at times is mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually taxing as well. As believers we don't have the burden of the law anymore, but I wonder if God has ordained and designed this life to be difficult in its own right to make us long for, cry out for rescue, for our Savior who is coming again.
My advice on this song is to download Jim Brickman's version from his CD Grace. While the long intro. is playing, let your mind and emotions be flooded by the difficulties of this life. Read Ephesians 2:1-3 and be reiminded of what you were, and then let yourself cry out with the chorus, "Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to Thee O Israel." Rejoice. He is coming.
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
(A reminder that, just like Israel, we are exiles. This is enemy territory we live in. This is not our home. This teaches me not to fight so hard against those feelings of loneliness, because those very feelings are evidence of my salvation.)
Until the Son of God appears.
Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice!Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
(Just spend a couple of hours repeating the word "shall" over and over again to yourself, and see if you can somehow get the certainty of it.)
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
(The name "Rod of Jesse" reminds us that Christ is in the lineage of King David, and that he is our king who goes out to fight our enemies for us. The hardness of this life should not leave us hopeless, because we have a king who is fighting on our behalf, and he is fighting Satan, our greatest enemy.)
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.
(A reminder that Christ came not primarily to be born but to die. This is one of the great hopes of the Incarnation. We can have victory over death.)
Refrain
O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
(Again, a joyless Christian is one who doesn't understand their Savior. Christ's first coming gave us joy. The facts, the reality of all his life, death, and resurrection accomplished, should give us much to rejoice about, even in the midst of our exile.)
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
(A reminder that our getting to Heaven is all the result of our Shepherd's leading. He makes the path wide and safe, and through his intercession, assures that we'll make it.)
And close the path to misery.
Refrain
O come, Desire of nations, bind
(This is a reminder that, whether they act like it or not, the desire of every person on planet earth is for Christ. He is the ultimate object their hearts were made to ache for. No matter what their cultural norms, history, etc., the nations do desire Christ.)
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.
(Peace. Ultimate peace. Our souls at rest, so that our bodies and emotions would be at rest as well.)
Refrain
My advice on this song is to download Jim Brickman's version from his CD Grace. While the long intro. is playing, let your mind and emotions be flooded by the difficulties of this life. Read Ephesians 2:1-3 and be reiminded of what you were, and then let yourself cry out with the chorus, "Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to Thee O Israel." Rejoice. He is coming.
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
(A reminder that, just like Israel, we are exiles. This is enemy territory we live in. This is not our home. This teaches me not to fight so hard against those feelings of loneliness, because those very feelings are evidence of my salvation.)
Until the Son of God appears.
Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice!Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
(Just spend a couple of hours repeating the word "shall" over and over again to yourself, and see if you can somehow get the certainty of it.)
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
(The name "Rod of Jesse" reminds us that Christ is in the lineage of King David, and that he is our king who goes out to fight our enemies for us. The hardness of this life should not leave us hopeless, because we have a king who is fighting on our behalf, and he is fighting Satan, our greatest enemy.)
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.
(A reminder that Christ came not primarily to be born but to die. This is one of the great hopes of the Incarnation. We can have victory over death.)
Refrain
O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
(Again, a joyless Christian is one who doesn't understand their Savior. Christ's first coming gave us joy. The facts, the reality of all his life, death, and resurrection accomplished, should give us much to rejoice about, even in the midst of our exile.)
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
(A reminder that our getting to Heaven is all the result of our Shepherd's leading. He makes the path wide and safe, and through his intercession, assures that we'll make it.)
And close the path to misery.
Refrain
O come, Desire of nations, bind
(This is a reminder that, whether they act like it or not, the desire of every person on planet earth is for Christ. He is the ultimate object their hearts were made to ache for. No matter what their cultural norms, history, etc., the nations do desire Christ.)
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.
(Peace. Ultimate peace. Our souls at rest, so that our bodies and emotions would be at rest as well.)
Refrain
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Caroling, Caroling: Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Here's the thing about this carol: it's arguably the most theologically packed Christmas carol out there. I mean, really, it's kind of like the "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" of Christmas carols! My favorite version of this song is one you probably can't get anywhere. It was done by the choir at Oak Mountain Presbyterian Church last year (2007) in their Christmas program. Here's a link to Jason Sears, the Worship Leader at Oak Mountain's blog. Maybe he can help.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
(That we can be reconciled to God! It's probably one of the preeminent messages of Christmas. And I love the past tense of the verb "reconciled." Everything necessary is now in place. God has done it. He has reconciled mankind to himself.)
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
(Christ didn't come for a particular ethnic group or race. This line should give great hope to us Gentiles and all the people groups of the world.)
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim,“
Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Refrain
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
(These lines affirm Christ's diety. He was God. You can hear echoes of John 1 and Philippians 2 in these lines. The heresy that Christ was just a man, good man or not, is completely wrong. He was God, and he came.)
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
(This was no ordinary birth.)
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
(I love the word "veiled" in these lines. It didn't erase his diety, but there was a masking of it on some level. He didn't give up any of his "Godness" to come to earth, but it wasn't fully visible. But, as you approach Christ in the Gospels, keep this song in your mind. He was fully God: Father, Son, and Spirit while he was here on earth.)
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
(Wow, he was "pleased" to take on our flesh and dwell among us! Is there any response to this but worship?)
Jesus our Emmanuel. Refrain
Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace!
(Do you ever stop and think about how wonderful the words, "peace on earth" are? We won't fully realize that until Heaven, but peace between men, peace between nature and humans, peace within our souls. It's repeated over and over again by secular culture to only apply to war, but it's so much more than that. You can have peace, because of Christ.)
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to us He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
(I think sometimes I forget that Jesus' ultimate goal on this earth was to heal. He healed the sick, yes, but this was only to illuminate the fact that he had come to heal souls, heal the rift between God and man, and ultimately heal creation damaged by sin. I think this line just reminds me that healing isn't something he did, it's something he is.)
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth. Refrain
Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
(This is a direct allusion to Genesis 3 where God tells Eve that her offspring will crush Satan's head under his heal. Tired of the ravages of Satan and his forces on this earth? If Christ didn't come as man, there would be no one to crush him at the end of the age.)
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
(Over and over again in the Old Testament we see nature punished for man's sin. In Romans Paul says all of creation groans for the return of Christ. God created the Heavens and the earth, and he means to restore them as well.)
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine. Refrain
(We have union with God through Christ, see John 17 for Christ's prayer which includes this.)
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
(These lines provide so much hope because they refer to the fact that we can actually have a new nature. The Adamic sin nature no longer has to apply to us. In Christ, we are actually made new. Wow. What a concept.)
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart. Refrain
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
(That we can be reconciled to God! It's probably one of the preeminent messages of Christmas. And I love the past tense of the verb "reconciled." Everything necessary is now in place. God has done it. He has reconciled mankind to himself.)
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
(Christ didn't come for a particular ethnic group or race. This line should give great hope to us Gentiles and all the people groups of the world.)
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim,“
Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Refrain
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
(These lines affirm Christ's diety. He was God. You can hear echoes of John 1 and Philippians 2 in these lines. The heresy that Christ was just a man, good man or not, is completely wrong. He was God, and he came.)
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
(This was no ordinary birth.)
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
(I love the word "veiled" in these lines. It didn't erase his diety, but there was a masking of it on some level. He didn't give up any of his "Godness" to come to earth, but it wasn't fully visible. But, as you approach Christ in the Gospels, keep this song in your mind. He was fully God: Father, Son, and Spirit while he was here on earth.)
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
(Wow, he was "pleased" to take on our flesh and dwell among us! Is there any response to this but worship?)
Jesus our Emmanuel. Refrain
Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace!
(Do you ever stop and think about how wonderful the words, "peace on earth" are? We won't fully realize that until Heaven, but peace between men, peace between nature and humans, peace within our souls. It's repeated over and over again by secular culture to only apply to war, but it's so much more than that. You can have peace, because of Christ.)
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to us He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
(I think sometimes I forget that Jesus' ultimate goal on this earth was to heal. He healed the sick, yes, but this was only to illuminate the fact that he had come to heal souls, heal the rift between God and man, and ultimately heal creation damaged by sin. I think this line just reminds me that healing isn't something he did, it's something he is.)
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth. Refrain
Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
(This is a direct allusion to Genesis 3 where God tells Eve that her offspring will crush Satan's head under his heal. Tired of the ravages of Satan and his forces on this earth? If Christ didn't come as man, there would be no one to crush him at the end of the age.)
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
(Over and over again in the Old Testament we see nature punished for man's sin. In Romans Paul says all of creation groans for the return of Christ. God created the Heavens and the earth, and he means to restore them as well.)
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine. Refrain
(We have union with God through Christ, see John 17 for Christ's prayer which includes this.)
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
(These lines provide so much hope because they refer to the fact that we can actually have a new nature. The Adamic sin nature no longer has to apply to us. In Christ, we are actually made new. Wow. What a concept.)
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart. Refrain
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Caroling, Caroling: Angels from the Realms of Glory
Here's the thing about this carol, it is so not worthy of the tune that we've been singing it to all these years! It is a great song, with words that are theologically rich as well as emotionally deep. I would definitely encourage you to listen to the version of this song from Steven Curtis Chapman's All I Really Want for Christmas. It'll definitely awaken you to the greatness of the truth in this little song.
Angels from the realms of glory,
Wing your flight o’er all the earth;
Ye who sang creation’s story
Now proclaim Messiah’s birth.
(I just love the imagery here of elements of Heaven coming down to earth, and the fact that the angels were there singing in Creation and now are here, singing in the hope that Creation may be reborn with the coming of Christ to earth.)
Refrain
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.
Shepherds, in the field abiding,
Watching o’er your flocks by night,
God with us is now residing;
(Perhaps one of the most powerful lines in the history of song-writing. Just try and reflect on this fact for a moment, and see if your head doesn't come close to exploding. In an instant, just like that, he's here.)
Yonder shines the infant light:
Refrain
Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
(A great reminder that the things we strive so hard for and spend so much time on at this season and most others, really, aren't the things we should be thinking about and using our resources on. Something better's out there. Seek it.)
Seek the great Desire of nations;
Ye have seen His natal star.
Refrain
Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
(This is a cool image, because it seems like the saints here are those that are already dead. Those who's faith was credited to them as righteousness. They now know that the Christ is coming to justify them in "real-time." What a concept: the Incarnation from the perspective of believers in Heaven!)
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Refrain
Sinners, wrung with true repentance,
Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
Justice now revokes the sentence,
Mercy calls you; break your chains.
(Wow! If you can get through these two lines without tearing up, then you don't feel the weight of what you deserved and what you've been given. Not us, not what we did, but Justice revokes its own sentence. Amazing! God sends his Son to provide a way for his own justice to be done.)
Refrain
Though an Infant now we view Him,
He shall fill His Father’s throne,
(We should always have one eye on Bethlehem and one eye on Golgotha. And both of these should be within the backdrop of Heaven.)
Gather all the nations to Him;
Every knee shall then bow down:
Refrain
All creation, join in praising
God, the Father, Spirit, Son,
Evermore your voices raising
To th’eternal Three in One.
Refrain
Angels from the realms of glory,
Wing your flight o’er all the earth;
Ye who sang creation’s story
Now proclaim Messiah’s birth.
(I just love the imagery here of elements of Heaven coming down to earth, and the fact that the angels were there singing in Creation and now are here, singing in the hope that Creation may be reborn with the coming of Christ to earth.)
Refrain
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.
Shepherds, in the field abiding,
Watching o’er your flocks by night,
God with us is now residing;
(Perhaps one of the most powerful lines in the history of song-writing. Just try and reflect on this fact for a moment, and see if your head doesn't come close to exploding. In an instant, just like that, he's here.)
Yonder shines the infant light:
Refrain
Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
(A great reminder that the things we strive so hard for and spend so much time on at this season and most others, really, aren't the things we should be thinking about and using our resources on. Something better's out there. Seek it.)
Seek the great Desire of nations;
Ye have seen His natal star.
Refrain
Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
(This is a cool image, because it seems like the saints here are those that are already dead. Those who's faith was credited to them as righteousness. They now know that the Christ is coming to justify them in "real-time." What a concept: the Incarnation from the perspective of believers in Heaven!)
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Refrain
Sinners, wrung with true repentance,
Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
Justice now revokes the sentence,
Mercy calls you; break your chains.
(Wow! If you can get through these two lines without tearing up, then you don't feel the weight of what you deserved and what you've been given. Not us, not what we did, but Justice revokes its own sentence. Amazing! God sends his Son to provide a way for his own justice to be done.)
Refrain
Though an Infant now we view Him,
He shall fill His Father’s throne,
(We should always have one eye on Bethlehem and one eye on Golgotha. And both of these should be within the backdrop of Heaven.)
Gather all the nations to Him;
Every knee shall then bow down:
Refrain
All creation, join in praising
God, the Father, Spirit, Son,
Evermore your voices raising
To th’eternal Three in One.
Refrain
Caroling, Caroling: I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
Here's the thing: this is a song I don't really ever remember singing growing up, but when I heard Steven Curtis Chapman's version from his album All I Really Want for Christmas, it just hit me between the eyes, and now it's one of my favorites.
I'm not going to comment on each line of this one, but I'll tell you how I see this song. I see the bells as the music of the gospel. When I think about it that way, the entire song makes sense to me. So, try listening to it and see if it resonates with you the same way.
I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”
I'm not going to comment on each line of this one, but I'll tell you how I see this song. I see the bells as the music of the gospel. When I think about it that way, the entire song makes sense to me. So, try listening to it and see if it resonates with you the same way.
I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”
Caroling, Caroling: O Holy Night
Here's the thing: this is probably my favorite carol, so it was easy to start with this one. My suggestion for listening to this one is Josh Grobin's version, but really most any will do for this one.
O holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
(This line reminds me that this night is the antithesis of the chaos that so often surrounds our Christmas Eve. It centers me back on the fact that this is moment when God became man to save me.)
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
(This reminds me that the world, like the Israelites were aching for a Savior, and that I should feel that same ache, that same need.)
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,
(The soul, then and now, tormented by sin and Satan's attacks, and now there's hope for salvation. Hope for salvation! Hope that we can be changed!)
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
(The only proper response when you let the previous lines really sink in.)
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!
Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
(These two lines are such a picture of salvation to me. We are led, brought to salvation by faith. This is the gospel, God sending his Son, to draw men and women to himself. I can never sing these lines without seeing myself, a sinner with nothing, like the shepherds, the least of all, brought to the manger to receive everything!)
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here came the wise men from Orient land.
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,
In all our trials born to be our Friend!
He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger.
(This is direct allusion to the Hebrews 4:15-16, which talks about our High Priest, Jesus, who can sympathize with our weaknesses. What an amazing thing! That Christ is our friend through trials, because he's experienced them.)
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
(These four lines are pretty popular with the world because they talk about love and peace, but really they are a reminder to me that the only way we will have true peace with each other is if every individual on earth, first has peace with God--Romans 5:1-2--and that the fact that the slave is our brother is the good news from Galatians 3:26-29 that anyone God choses may be saved, regardless of status or ethnicity.)
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!
Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
O holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
(This line reminds me that this night is the antithesis of the chaos that so often surrounds our Christmas Eve. It centers me back on the fact that this is moment when God became man to save me.)
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
(This reminds me that the world, like the Israelites were aching for a Savior, and that I should feel that same ache, that same need.)
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,
(The soul, then and now, tormented by sin and Satan's attacks, and now there's hope for salvation. Hope for salvation! Hope that we can be changed!)
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
(The only proper response when you let the previous lines really sink in.)
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!
Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
(These two lines are such a picture of salvation to me. We are led, brought to salvation by faith. This is the gospel, God sending his Son, to draw men and women to himself. I can never sing these lines without seeing myself, a sinner with nothing, like the shepherds, the least of all, brought to the manger to receive everything!)
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here came the wise men from Orient land.
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,
In all our trials born to be our Friend!
He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger.
(This is direct allusion to the Hebrews 4:15-16, which talks about our High Priest, Jesus, who can sympathize with our weaknesses. What an amazing thing! That Christ is our friend through trials, because he's experienced them.)
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
(These four lines are pretty popular with the world because they talk about love and peace, but really they are a reminder to me that the only way we will have true peace with each other is if every individual on earth, first has peace with God--Romans 5:1-2--and that the fact that the slave is our brother is the good news from Galatians 3:26-29 that anyone God choses may be saved, regardless of status or ethnicity.)
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!
Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
Caroling, Caroling
One of the best parts of the Christmas season is the music. I mean, I just love Christmas music! Try as I might to wait until after Thanksgiving to start listening, I just can't wait. I've loved the carols ever since I was a little kid, and I know all the verses to all of them by heart. They are as familiar as the other traditions of the season. . . and therein lies the problem. Because I know them so well, it becomes so easy for me to sing the songs without ever hearing the words I'm singing. So here's the thing: I thought I'd take a few posts this season with some of my favorite carols, and things that stand out to me about the words, so hopefully when you're singing them in church or at a party this year, you'll actually stop and think about what you're saying and in a sense, be re-introduced to the wonder of these songs. If I know of a really good version of the song I'll let you know that as well. Most times, for me, I just need a version that's a slightly different tune or rhythmn, just to force me to engage and pay attention to what I'm singing.
I'll be titling each post "Caroling, Caroling" and then the song. They'll also be under the "Advent/Christmas" and "Christmas Carols" labels, so you can find them easy. Enjoy!
I'll be titling each post "Caroling, Caroling" and then the song. They'll also be under the "Advent/Christmas" and "Christmas Carols" labels, so you can find them easy. Enjoy!
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