THE HOLIEST OF NIGHTS

THE HOLIEST OF NIGHTS

As I sit here at my computer, it is Christmas Eve.  It is raining and cold and some say we will get a bit of snow, and just maybe we will get a rare “White Christmas.”

The tree is lovely with its packages underneath waiting for Christmas morning.  I love to just look at the tree all lit up in the dark and think how awesome this season really is.  I want to just put aside all the outside trappings of this holiday and sit in peace and remember my Lord and Savior and His Divine love to come to earth as that precious baby.  Even at His birth even as the song says, “Jesus Lord at Thy birth, Jesus Lord at Thy birth.”

Tonight, on Christmas Eve at our church will have a Candlelight Service.  We come together to sing the wonderful carols and recall the events of that night so long ago.  The lights are turned out and each person lights a candle of the person sitting next to them, and soon the sanctuary is aglow with the soft light of our candles and it is always an awesome moment, a quiet moment.  Our lit candles symbolize to me that the “Light of the World” has come and we all share in unity that Light. 

I have always considered Christmas Eve as a holy time, a time of a quiet peace.  There is a sense of awe and holiness in the air.  It is hard to explain, but maybe many of you also sense those feelings as you gather with your families or attend a church service, or even some of you may sense that in a Midnight Mass.  It is indeed a Holy Night!  Think of that night so long ago, as we recall the words to this precious carol.

O HOLY NIGHT

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

CHORUS:

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born.

O Night, O holy night, O night divine!

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.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

Let all within us praise His holy name.

CHORUS

Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever,

His power and glory evermore proclaim.

His power and glory evermore proclaim

(French Carol, 1847)

Most of our Christmas carols are timeless, written hundreds of years ago.  And as we sing them each year, do we think of what the words mean, or what the writer was trying to say?  They all have a timeless message of the coming of our Lord and Savior and the promise of a new life with Him, a new world coming of peace.  Down through the ages each generation had its problems, its wars and its struggles.  And each generation hoped that they would be the ones who would witness His coming and His world of peace.

As I looked up the history of “O Holy Night” it spoke of Jesus coming into a weary world.  In the day Jesus came they were looking for their Messiah and ruled by the Romans and they indeed were weary of the oppression of their day.  And Jesus came on that night with a promise of salvation to all who would receive Him and someday a new day would dawn when Jesus would rule forever as King of kings and Lord of lords.  He would bring hope to mankind, eternal life with Him.  But He would have to face the cross, shed His blood for our sins, and then rise from the dead on that third day, His glorious resurrection would come.  O what a holy night!  Our holy God wrapped in flesh, and He calls us to fall our knees in worship!  Let our hearts hear the angel voices proclaiming His birth.

And He is a God of love and He taught to love each other.  And this song was sung during the Civil War to remind that generation that the slaves were brothers and Jesus had called for the chains of bondage to be broken.  And we today, are called to come together in unity and to love those who are in bondage to sin and oppression.  There are many, many out there today who are bound up in chains of sin and don’t know the Savior who can set them free.  And deliverance comes in the Wonderful Name of Jesus!   He breaks every fetter, as the old chorus says.

So on this holy night, remember that Christ is the Lord!  It is not about Santa Claus and Reindeer, but it is all about Him!  And He calls us to praise His holy name forever, and to proclaim His mighty power to set men free and the promise of a new day coming.  We look around our world and we long for that day, when we see Him face to face at last.

So I call you out there to fall on your knees in solemn worship this night, this Christmas Eve, wherever you are.  Sense the awe, the presence of the Holy Spirit, sense the peace and the joy.  If you attend a service of candlelight, close your eyes and let Him bath you in His presence.  And if you don’t know this Wonderful Savior, that a wonderful time to ask Him to come into your heart and be your Lord forever.  Ask Him in the light of the candles or even the light of your Christmas tree, what a glorious moment that would be.  I have witnessed the joy of Christ coming into a heart, and it is truly a holy moment.

So stop, worship Him and sense the awe of this holy night, in Jesus’ Name, and have a Blessed Christmas!

Pastor Sharon

DO YOU HEAR THE BELLS?

DO YOU HEAR THE BELLS?

 

We are in the midst of this beautiful Christmas season.  The tree is bright with lights, packages are mailed and hopefully soon Christmas cards speaking of this season will be mailed, along with our greetings of blessings to loved ones and friends.  The second Advent candle has been lit, and it was the Candle of Peace.

 

We so long for peace in our lives, our homes and especially in our world, as we look around and see wars and tragedy and lives of people in hopeless situations, as the world seems so dark with despair.  And we long for that day when Christ, the Prince of Peace, will appear again and bring hope and peace to this world.

 

As we celebrated Advent in our church this past Sunday, we sang an old hymn, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”  I looked up the history of this hymn and it so spoke of our day also and our longing for peace on earth, and yes, the bells can ring again in our hearts as we turn our focus on our Savior and the Cross in this Christmas season.  He will bring joy and gladness to our aching hearts, all because He came.  He came to cause those bells of joy to ring again.

 

Christmas Day 1863 was not a day of “peace on earth, good will to men” in the United States.  The bloody Civil War was being waged.  At Gettysburg, only six months earlier, forty thousand men were killed, wounded, or missing.  The long siege of Vicksburg resulted in thirty thousand Confederate soldiers being taken as prisoners.  And there was no end in sight.

 

No wonder Poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow “bowed his head” in despair and said, “There is no peace on earth.”  The entire country, both North and South was bowed in despair.  But there was something about Christmas that helped Longfellow see beyond the carnage of the present and realize that God is not dead and that right would prevail.

 

The birth of Jesus Christ brings hope.  Christmas doesn’t mean that all problems disappear, but it does assure you that God is not dead, nor does He sleep.  Even the darkness of Good Friday is followed by the dawn of Easter.  Yes, the bells of Christmas are still ringing, singing on their way.  (Hymns by Petersen)

 

I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY

 

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.

 

I thought how as the day had come, the belfries of all Christendom had rolled along th’ unbroken song 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.”

 

Yet pealed the bells more loud and deep: “God is not dead, nor does he sleep; the wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, good will to men.”

 

The 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.  (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow-1807-1882)

When this song was written, when Christmas Day came the bells on the churches would ring out the news with carols.  Many of the churches had steeples and the bells chimed.  I can only imagine what that would sound like.  The air is cold, maybe snow is coming down, and that special feeling of Christmas is in the air.  I feel that awed feeling even now on Christmas Eve.  There is a holy hush in the air. 

 

So on that Christmas the bells must have continued to chime even though the nation was in deep despair, as the war continued and many families were in grief and many more lives were to be lost before the war ended.  Henry Wadsworth heard those bells and his heart was broken as he didn’t see any peace on earth, only death and dying men, a nation at war with one another.  The bells continued to chime that there was hope on earth of “peace, good will to men.”

 

We look around our world as in Henry Wadsworth’s day and wonder where is that peace that the angels promised on that first Christmas morning?  And then we have the promise and know that God is not dead nor does He sleep.  He is aware of our broken hearts, our troubled souls, and the storms that come into our lives.  As we look at troubled headlines in the news, hear the reports of violence in our land and around the world, our God is watching and waiting for the day when He Himself will finally bring “peace on earth, good will to men.”

 

Henry Wadsworth suddenly realized that his God was not dead and not sleeping and that someday, evil will be gone and righteousness will come to this earth through our Lord Jesus Christ.  We are waiting for that day, that 2^nd Advent of our Lord when He breaks the sky and does right the wrong and the bells will once again ring out “peace on earth, good will to men.”

 

And can you imagine what that day will be like, the ringing of bells, the singing of the saints, night of darkness is gone and eternal day has come? The angels once again can sing of “peace on earth, good will to men.”

 

So in this Christmas season, let the joy ring in your heart, hear the bells ringing peace on earth, and have a glorious Christmas Day in God’s peace.

 

Pastor Sharon

 

 

 

COME, EMMANUEL, COME!

COME, EMMANUEL, COME!

 

We welcome the Advent Season.  It is the time to remember our Savior’s first advent, but more importantly, we long for His second advent, to break the skies and take His children home, and bring judgment and then peace at last to our troubled world.

 

We lit the first of the four Advent candles and hung the greens in our sanctuary, pausing to welcome this lovely season and to turn our hearts toward our Lord and Savior.  The first candle was the “Candle of Hope” and we were reminded to rejoice in our hope of His soon return and to remember that the little baby in the manger was our Lord and Savior, the Father’s own Beloved Son.  He came to save us, to bring us hope in a dark world, and then calls us to rejoice, rejoice!  We now have the hope of eternal salvation, cleansing from sin and eternity with Him.

 

The cry of my heart this day is “Oh, Come, Oh, Come, Emmanuel!  Maybe this will be the season or into the coming New Year, when we will see our Lord face to face.  I counted at least five members of either our church family or family that went home this past year, and they now are beholding His face!  Yes, they will be missed this Christmas season, but oh, the joy they must be experiencing!

 

O COME, O COME, EMMANUEL

 

This hymn is ancient, not only in its text, but also in its music.  While the tune used today was not really finalized until the 1800s, it is based on plainsong, the type of music used in the church during medieval times.  The lack of strict rhythmic measures gives the tune a free-flowing style.  You can almost imagine the simple intervals echoing through a stone cathedral.

 

The text developed without the chorus as a series of liturgical phrases used during Advent.  Each stanza concentrates on a different biblical name for Christ, making this hymn a rich source for Christian meditation.  Jesus is Emmanuel – “God with us,” “Wisdom from on high,” “Desire of nations,” and Dayspring.” (Hymns, William J. Petersen)

 

O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel, that mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear.

 

Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to Thee, O Israel!

 

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, and order all things, far and nigh’ to us the path of knowledge show, and cause us in her ways to go.

 

O come, Desire of nations, bind all peoples in one heart and mind; bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease; fill the whole world with heaven’s peace.

 

O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer our spirits by Thine advent here; disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death’s dark shadows put to flight.  (Latin hymn, 12^th century)

 

As I look over the words of this lovely ancient hymn, I am reminded of the day in which Christ came.  Israel was in lonely exile, under the cruel rule of the Romans.  They were longing for their Messiah to come.  They read the prophecies of His coming, but when He came, they rejected Him, as they were looking for an earthly King to come and overthrow the Romans and sit on David’s throne.   He came and they crucified their Messiah, but He arose from the grave on that third day in His Glorious Resurrection, and now we wait and watch for His Glorious Appearing, and the prophecies of old have been and are continuing to be fulfilled for that great day. So I took the words of this song and made it a prayer, a prayer from all our hearts this Advent Season.

 

“Heavenly Father, we long for “Wisdom” from on high to come, give us Your Divine knowledge and show us how to walk in Your ways, Precious Lord!  We so need You!  We need Your wisdom every day.

 

Come “Desire of Nations!” We long, Lord, to see the day when we walk in unity one with another, and to see that day when You fill this world with heaven’s peace.  We look around, Lord, and see violence on every hand and darkness covering the earth, and God’s people desire to look on Your face, at last!  And to see Your glory cover this earth.

 

Oh, Precious Dayspring, cheer our spirits as we remember your advent when You came as that little baby, and as we look on the manger scene once again, with the angels rejoicing and shepherds worshipping and Wiseman coming from afar with their gifts.  We may have dark shadows of night all around us, in trials and storms and discouragement in this season, but You came to disperse those gloomy clouds and fear of death, but brought us light and hope and eternity with You, so Come, Emmanuel, Come!

 

In Jesus’ Name,

Pastor Sharon