Christmas is upon us

Let us sing, "Joy to the World"

I find it refreshing at this time of year to hear the carol “Joy to the World”, among others, being played or sung in Christmas specials and in public. It seems to me many sing it without recognizing the import of the lyrics:

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King;

let ev’ry heart prepare him room

and heav’n and nature sing,

and heav’n and nature sing,

and heav’n, and heav’n and nature sing.

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!

Let men their songs employ,

while fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains,

repeat the sounding joy,

repeat the sounding joy,

repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow

nor thorns infest the ground;

he comes to make his blessings flow

far as the curse is found,

far as the curse is found,

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,

and wonders, wonders of his love.

This beautiful hymn echos the words of the angel to the shepherds that one starry night just over 2000 years ago:

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:10

This is good news of great joy! This is the reason to celebrate Christmas. So many have lost sight of this and are left asking questions such as: “a Savior? A Savior for what, or from what?” “Who wants a ‘lord’? Didn’t we do away with those when the feudal system ended?”

The fact is, whether people now acknowledge Him as such or not, Jesus is Lord, and one day, all will recognize it:

For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Phil. 2:9-11

So, from what did He come to save us? From our sin, as the song says, “no more let sins and sorrows grow.” Though at times we don’t like to admit it, even the irreligious know that they commit acts that are wrong, that are against God, that are sinful. Rejection of God, more often than not, is the result of preferring to live in and enjoy our own sinfulness:

This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

Jn. 3:19-21

We all have a proclivity to sin. It is simply part of our being, and when we give in to sin, we make ourselves slaves to it:

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

Jn. 8:34

Jesus came to set us free from that slavery. This is the true meaning of the oft-cited phrase, “…the truth shall set you free.” Most repeat this phrase talking about freeing one’s conscience from a lie, but there is a deeper meaning:

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

Jn. 14:6

Jesus is the truth. It is not when we tell the truth that we are free; it is when we know the truth, when we know Him. He is the truth that sets us free, free from slavery, free to be obedient to God:

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Jn. 8:34-36

This is truly cause for celebration. This is reason for “heav’n and nature” to sing. Through Jesus come truth and grace (Jn. 1:17), as the song recites. Through Him we are set free.

Why do we celebrate Christmas? Because the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King. For unto us a Savior has been born, who is Christ, the Lord, and He has come to set us free. Let us rejoice!