In our Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series), we’re still looking at the shepherds in the field hearing the Good News proclaimed by the angels regarding Christ’s birth.  These shepherds are never named.  They’re just shepherds watching their flocks.  They could have been anybody.

Today’s carol goes by four different titles:  (1) How Great Our Joy! (2) While by the Sheep, (3) While by My Sheep, and (4) The Echo Carol.  Even the author is uncertain.

The words are apparently part of a traditional German carol dating back to the 1600s, but the music arrangement most common in our hymnals is one from 1890 by composer Hugo Jüngst who was born and raised in Dresden, Germany.  This is his only hymn of note.

All of this may be uncertain or certainly unspectacular, but this hymn is a great tribute to a spectacular event.

Luke 2:8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.

I selected this hymn for two reasons.  First, it highlights that each of us must respond to the Good News.  The shepherds didn’t just hear the Good News and say,

Oh well, so many sheep, so little time.  I’m not going to herd all these sheep together to go see this.  I don’t have a baby gift, time to shop for one, and really, I don’t even know this couple.  I guess I can wait to go to Bethlehem next year when maybe I’ll know the family.  When you’ve seen one baby, you’ve seen them all.”

Even the lowest on the social scale among the Jews knew that the birth of the Messiah was a profound event, one that was not to be missed!  It was a drop-everything-and-go spectacular that they were privileged to witness.  They went and are only recorded in Scripture as shepherds.  We don’t even know who they were, but we do know their response.  They drop everything and go.

The second reason I chose this hymn is kind of sad, really.  It’s about opportunities lost.  So many of our hymns have been German, French, and English ones.  Those places were at one time the epicenter of the growth of Christ’s Kingdom.  Not anymore.

Today, Europe leads the way in moral relativism, secularism, and intellectual opposition to the Gospel.  America is rapidly becoming a contender for first place in those same categories.  I cannot help but reflect on the Germany that produced some of these great choral traditions and how much of Germany today greets the Gospel with a mighty yawn, if not a sneer.  It doesn’t excuse us from trying to echo the past and remind Europe of why the Gospel is Good News.  It doesn’t excuse us from trying to save America from the same apostasy and apathy we see overseas.

I like this hymn especially when performed the way the Expressions Choir and orchestra music  ministry of Calvary Lutheran Church, Golden Valley, MN does it.  It’s full of exuberance and a perfect echo response!  This is the kind of joy that we ought to know—just as the shepherds did—that we are blessed with an opportunity to respond to the best news one could ever have: the Savior is born!  It’s Good News that we should be joyfully echoing worldwide!

Thought Focus for Today:  That the shepherds are not named allows us to place ourselves in their sandals.  Can you remember the first time you heard the Good News?  How have you responded to it?  Do you know the Messiah, the Christ who is born on Christmas Day?  Do you know How Great Our Joy?

While by the sheep we watched at night,

Glad tidings brought an angel bright.

Refrain

How great our joy! (Great our joy!)

 Joy, joy, joy! (Joy, joy, joy!)

Praise we the Lord in heaven on high!

 (Praise we the Lord in heaven on high!)

There shall be born, so he did say,

In Bethlehem a Child today.

Refrain

There shall the Child lie in a stall,

This Child who shall redeem us all.

Refrain

This gift of God we’ll cherish well,

That ever joy our hearts shall fill.

Refrain

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

Lo How a Rose E’er Blooming is the next traditional Christmas carol in our Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series telling of the birth of Christ.  This time the focus is on His being born from the Virgin Mary.  Lo How a Rose E’er Blooming is not in all the Protestant hymnals with good reason: there’s debate about whether the Rose is Jesus (as asserted by Protestants) or Mary (as preferred by some Catholics).  I cannot explain it any better than in the notes offered here on a web site called Hymns and Carols of Christmas:

Originally published in 1582 (or 1588) in Gebetbuchlein des Frater Conradus, this 19-stanza Catholic hymn’s focus was Mary, who is compared to the mystical rose praised in the Song of Solomon 2:1: “I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys.” The hymn is believed to have originated in Trier, and once [sic] source stated that on one Christmas Eve, a monk in Trier found a blooming rose while walking in the woods. He placed the rose in a vase, and placed it before the alter [sic] to the Virgin Mary. Some sources indicate the hymn might date back into the 14th Century.

By 1609, however, the Protestants had adopted the hymn, and changed its focus from Mary to Jesus (citing Isaiah 11:1). According to Keyte and Parrott, in medieval iconography, the tree of Jesse is often depicted as a rose plant. They also note that it’s unclear whether Ros’ (rose) or Reis (branch) was the original reading of line 1. The revision first appeared in Michael Praetorius’ Musae Sioniae in 1609. Praetorius is occasionally mistaken as the author.

The words and music of Es ist ein Ros entsprungen (Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming) first appeared as 23 verses in the Alte Katholische Geistliche Kirchengesäng, (Cologne, 1599).  Gradually reduced to nineteen verses and then to six in the Catholic Church, it was translated into English as only verses 1 and 2 by Theodore Baker (1894).  A third stanza appears in some hymnals written by Harriet Krauth Spaeth as Behold, a Branch Is Growing.

The music itself has a madrigal sound—the tune appearing in most Protestant hymnals as an arrangement written by the aforementioned German composer Michael Praetorius.

Theologically, this is another weaker hymn in many regards.  Much of its focus has been devoted to the Virgin Mary (in the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary) but I include it for a specific reason.  The prophecy from Isaiah underpinning this hymn points to something truly important.

Isaiah 11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him– the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD– 3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

This Messianic prophecy goes back to Jesse, King David’s father.  That is the stump…and the Holy Seed will be the stump remaining in the land.  That comes a few chapters earlier in Isaiah.

Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” 9 He said, “Go and tell this people: “‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ 10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” 11 Then I said, “For how long, O Lord?” And he answered: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, 12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. 13 And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the Holy Seed will be the stump in the land.”

At a time when the world is at war, when desolation seems everywhere, when houses are deserted, fields ruined, lives torn up by discord, violence, and hatred, God’s solution is the Holy Seed in the stump.  A precious Branch that bears fruit.

This is the Messiah, Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate. 

He alone is the answer to the discord and chaos of the world then and our world today.

Jesus may be a son of David, but interestingly David isn’t the stump, his father Jesse is.  Jesus doesn’t come about as a man of human origin alone whose ancestry can be explained by simple human lineage.  He skipped generations spiritually, going back to the stump to prove that God didn’t send a really good regular guy who would grow up to be the Messiah by living a good life.  He sent His Son, born as our Savior; born as our Lord, and born as our King–all of which He was even before His birth because He is God.  He is Immanuel, God with us.  He is the eternal Word made flesh.  He is the Holy Seed, born of a virgin whose name was Mary.

As you listen to this version by the Baylor Bronze Hand Bell Choir, ponder the Thought Focus for Today.

Thought Focus for Today: Jesus’ Incarnation was miraculous.  He was born of a virgin named Mary.  It’s an event that never happened before and will never happen again.  God went back to the stump in the land in a spiritual sense and yet the Holy Seed Jesus does have a physical lineage too. 

How does veneration of the Virgin Mary risk jumping the gap to becoming worship of a woman who was a really good woman, but not divine like her son Jesus, the unique Son of God?

Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming from tender stem hath sprung!

Of Jesse’s lineage coming, as men of old have sung.

It came, a floweret bright, amid the cold of winter,

When half spent was the night.

Isaiah ’twas foretold it, the Rose I have in mind;

With Mary we behold it, the virgin mother kind.

To show God’s love aright, she bore to men a Savior,

When half spent was the night.

This Flower, whose fragrance tender with sweetness fills the air

Dispels with glorious splendor the darkness everywhere

True man, yet very God, from sin and death He saves us

And lightens every load.

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

What Child Is This? is proof positive of the old Sunday School joke that the answer to every question is “Jesus.”  It’s the next carol in our Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series).  The lyrics are actually select verses from a poem by William Chatterton Dix entitled The Manger Throne written in 1865.

Born in Bristol, England, Dix was given a middle name that was not a family name, but rather from Dix’ father’s biography of the poet Thomas Chatterton, demonstrating that family names may not always be passed on to the next generation, but avocations and passions often do.

Dix worked as a marine insurance company manager but was, in God’s strange providence, afflicted with a severe illness, leaving him bedridden and depressed, but during which he experienced the saving grace of God.  His spiritual rebirth resulted in writing lyrics and poetry to some of the most beloved hymns we know: today’s carol, What Child is This?, Alleluia! Sing to Jesus!, and As with Gladness Men of Old.  His near-death experience had brought him through the depths of depression and What Child is This? is one of the most evangelistic carols of Christmas.  Dix would carry his passion for Christ through the remainder of his life.

What Child is This? may have been written in England, but its popularity in the United States surpasses that of its country of origin.  Perhaps it’s due to the haunting beauty, the soulful sentiment of the tune Greensleeves which was, even at the time, a well-known traditional English folk song.

No one seems to know who associated the lyrics with Greensleeves, but this tune is quite old and this link will take you to an extensive history of the tune with talk of Tudors and disputes dating back to the 1500s regarding ownership rights.

Far more certain than who owned the actual rights to the tune, however, is the carol’s theology.  The lyrics discuss the adoration of the shepherds who visited the Christ Child at the manger, and in true Victorian tradition, it suggests the Wise Men come (although less explicitly) to the manger.

The question and response characterizing this carol’s style is what each of us does when we come to meet Jesus.  The question is:

What Child is this?  (And by association, “Who is Jesus?”)

To this question, each of us individually responds by answering who we believe He is.  Ironically, in most hymnals even, the powerful refrain to the second verse of Dix’ poem has been changed to

This This is Christ the King
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

By doing so, many secular artists embrace this as a less religious song of Christmas and many Christian hymnals strip this carol of its most powerful words, removing the Cross, the nails, and the spear—all of which point to the sacrifice of Christ which made Him our Savior.  Dix’ words made clear that each of us must come to know Jesus, the babe, the Son of Mary as the unique Son of God, as the perfect Sacrifice for sin, born to be our Savior, and born to be Christ our King.

As you listen to this version by the incomparable Norwegian soprano  Sissel Kyrkjebø, ponder the Thought Focus for Today.

Thought Focus for Today:  What Child is This?  Who is He?  Why do we celebrate His birth?

1. What Child is this who, laid to rest

On Mary’s lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,

While shepherds watch are keeping?

This, this is Christ the King,

 Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;

 Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,

 The Babe, the Son of Mary.

2. Why lies He in such mean estate,

Where ox and ass are feeding?

Good Christians, fear, for sinners here

The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,

 The cross be borne for me, for you.

 Hail, hail the Word made flesh,

 The Babe, the Son of Mary.

3. So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh,

Come peasant, king to own Him;

The King of Kings salvation brings,

Let loving hearts enthrone Him.

Raise, raise a song on high,

 The virgin sings her lullaby.

 Joy, joy for Christ is born,

 The Babe, the Son of Mary.

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

I have been wrong a lot in my life.  I had always thought that The First Noel was French because Noël sounded French and had the dieresis above the letter ë like the French sometimes do.  I guess I was naïve.  A lot of carols were French after all, including the Cantique de Noël.  But not The First Noël.

The First Noel is a traditional English carol, of Cornish origin apparently.  It is well known, having been brought again to public attention in Carols Ancient and Modern (1823) by William Sandys whose book offered the first appearance of traditional English carols such as God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, I Saw Three Ships, and yes, The First Noel during the Victorian revival of the Christmas holiday.

Perhaps this is where the confusion arose.  Many people have thought that The First Noel is much older, even back to the 13^th century.  Why?  Largely due to writers such as Charles Dickens, for whom the revival of Christmas was steeped in a nostalgia of uncertain origin, even from within the mind of the writer himself.  Books like A Christmas Carol (1843), looked back on the past and encouraged child-centric reminiscing in many Christmas traditions.  In such an environment, these hymns developed reputations for being sixteenth century or even earlier as Christmases past were romantically rewritten.

In the minds of writers who wanted the dream-like Christmas of the imaginary childhood, the Christmas narrative of England was in need of fixing.  You see, they were living in the aftermath of the time Christmas had been publically banned.

According to Time-travel Britain here’s reality:

In January 1645 parliament enlisted the help of a group of ministers to create a Directory of Public Worship establishing a new organisation of the church and new forms of worship that were to be adopted and followed in both England and Wales…

As well as disliking the waste and debauchery that went along with the celebration of Christmas, the Puritans viewed the festival (Christ’s mass) as an unwanted remnant of the Roman Catholic Church and, therefore, a tool of encouragement for the dissentient community that remained in both England and Wales. They argued that nowhere in the Bible had God called upon his people to celebrate the nativity in this manner. They proposed a stricter observance of Sundays, the Lord’s Day, along with banning the immoral celebration of Christmas — as well as Easter, Whitsun and saints’ days. Preferring to call the period Christ-tide, and thus removing the Catholic ‘mass’ element, the Puritans reasoned that it should remain only as a day of fasting and prayer.

The Victorian Web goes on to describe how Christmas had become, for a period of time, a non-holiday:

Christmas, with its apparently timeless customs and traditions, often seems to have been around forever. However, as late as the 1820s, the writer Leigh Hunt labeled it an event “scarcely worth mention,” (Qtd in Pimlott, 85), and it was widely believed that the holiday, both in England and throughout Europe and North America, was destined to die out. Banned under Oliver Cromwell, Christmas in England was restored with the monarchy in 1660, where it appears to have flourished as an increasingly less and less religious event. Nonetheless, by the 1800s, it had shrunk almost beyond recognition. In the 1840s, holidays observed by governmental departments had decreased from roughly a week in 1797 to just Christmas day itself (Pimlott, 77). But in a remarkable turn of events, under the Victorians Christmas flourished to an extent unprecedented in earlier centuries. This reemergence during the nineteenth-century gave birth to many of the traditions that are today indistinguishable from the holiday itself. Christmas trees, cards, dinners, presents, and carols are all either products of, or were revived during, the Victorian period.

Christmas, a less and less religious event.  Does that sound like today, or what?

The theology of The First Noel is right out of Scripture and the inclusion of “Born is the King of Israel” and pointing to the Crucifixion are both helpful in filling in the Christmas story.

That said, the timing is inaccurate.  Here we have introduced—taught through song—the notion that the Three Wise Men came to our nativity scenes with gold, frankincense, and myrrh.   In reality, the un-numbered Magi (aka 3 Wise Men) didn’t show up until later…in the unromanticized version we see in the Bible where Jesus is at home already.  Not in the manger.

Matthew 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

The gold, incense, and myrrh would come in very handy to fund the family’s escape to Egypt, demonstrating that where God sends, He also aims to provide.  So the timing on God’s part was perfect.  Sandys’ was a little off.

Furthermore, in the final verses less commonly included in our hymnals we see perpetuated the belief that our good works contribute to our salvation when they do not.  There is also a hint at universal salvation when that doesn’t happen either.  So most hymnals leave that verse out.

Still, the carol is among the best known and favorite hymns of Christmas.  It’s been performed in many different genres from jazz to choral to pop to gospel to classical.  To prove my point, enjoy these versions by

• Victorian carolers at Disney to fill that Victorian caroler idea
• Aretha Franklin from the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony  
• Sierra Boggess and Lindsay Mendez singing The First Noel as a medley with Still, Still, Still,
• And finally, Ricky Barbas as a One Man A Cappella 

Thought Focus for Today: How has the true meaning of Christmas disappeared in favor of traditions?  How might we regain the Christmas story from within our traditions?

The first Noel the angel did say

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;

In fields where they lay tending their sheep,

On a cold winter’s night that was so deep.

Refrain 

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,

Born is the King of Israel.

They lookèd up and saw a star

Shining in the east, beyond them far;

And to the earth it gave great light,

And so it continued both day and night.

Refrain 

And by the light of that same star

Three Wise Men came from country far;

To seek for a King was their intent,

And to follow the star wherever it went.

Refrain 

This star drew nigh to the northwest,

Over Bethlehem it took its rest;

And there it did both stop and stay,

Right over the place where Jesus lay.

 Refrain

 Then did they know assuredly

Within that house the King did lie;

One entered it them for to see,

And found the Babe in poverty.

Refrain

Then entered in those Wise Men three,

Full reverently upon the knee,

And offered there, in His presence,

Their gold and myrrh and frankincense.

Refrain 

Between an ox stall and an ass,

This Child truly there He was;

For want of clothing they did Him lay

All in a manger, among the hay.

Refrain 

Then let us all with one accord

Sing praises to our heavenly Lord;

That hath made Heaven and earth of naught,

And with His blood mankind hath bought.

Refrain 

If we in our time shall do well,

We shall be free from death and hell;

For God hath prepared for us all

A resting place in general.

Refrain 

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

Today in Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) we continue our look at the angels communicating the good news of great joy to the shepherds.  One of the great surprises of the Christmas story is that it was announced to shepherds who were considered the dregs of society.  Seriously, shepherds?  (That might have been the popular reaction at the time.)  You’ve got the birth announcement of royalty—the King of Kings—being announced… to shepherds?  (Insert hysterical laughter here.)

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks was versified by Irishman Nahum Tate, a hymn writer and Poet Laureate.  Of the many works with which Tate was involved, this time in collaboration with Nicholas Brady, While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks is really the only one to endure and appear in our present-day hymnals at all. Tate, in spite of his continual striving for public favor, ended his years fleeing from his creditors.  Perhaps it’s a good time to revisit our own ideas of what it means to be a success.  For many of us, our legacy won’t be a hymn or carol; it won’t even be money or property of any kind, but rather our legacy will be in the lives we touched with the Gospel message that the angels proclaimed!

Luke 2:8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 “And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

Do you see how the angels pointed to Jesus?  They succeeded in the most important way possible: showing the Way, the Truth, and the Life even though at the time, He was but a baby in a manger.

In the Church of England at the time of this carol, only the Psalms of David were permitted to be sung.  Therefore, this work was included in a supplement to New Version of the Psalms of David (1696) and became the only Christmas hymn permitted to be sung in addition to the Psalms.  The reason for that is many carols (like some of the French ones we’ve seen) had their roots in folk music.  Therefore, they were considered commoner’s secular music, insufficiently holy to be used in church services.  This persisted until the end of the 18th century as Christianity moved to the wider culture of the unchurched (folk, commoners, seculars and the slave community) in revivals such as those in the Great Awakening.

The carol is most commonly sung to Winchester Old (United Kingdom) and an arrangement of a George F. Handel aria arranged by Lowell Mason (United States).  Two other tunes Martyrdom and Shackelford—both from the 1880s—are less commonly associated with While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks.

Theologically, not surprisingly given the Church of England’s tight control over what was sung at the time, While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks is pretty much straight out of the Gospel of Luke.  As you enjoy this beautiful version on harp ponder our Thought Focus for Today:

Thought Focus for Today: the angels proclaimed a message that they were compelled to share though they had no stake in its blessing.  Yet they rejoice in this Good News and praise God….in the presence of shepherds.  If they had any reservations about sharing the Good News with the lowest of society, they certainly did not show it.  What is known about angels is that the angelic host of God do exactly what God tells them to do!  God says, share the Good News with shepherds.  Boom.  Done. 

How ought we view sharing the Good News, even with those who are from different social circles?

While shepherds watched their flocks by night,

All seated on the ground,

The angel of the Lord came down,

And glory shone around,

And glory shone around.

“Fear not!” said he, for mighty dread

Had seized their troubled mind.

“Glad tidings of great joy I bring

To you and all mankind

To you and all mankind.

“To you, in David’s town, this day

Is born of David’s line

A Savior, who is Christ the Lord,

And this shall be the sign,

And this shall be the sign.

“The heavenly Babe you there shall find

To human view displayed,

All meanly wrapped in swathing bands,

And in a manger laid,

And in a manger laid.”

Thus spake the seraph and forthwith

Appeared a shining throng

Of angels praising God on high,

Who thus addressed their song,

Who thus addressed their song:

“All glory be to God on high,

And to the Earth be peace;

Good will henceforth from Heaven to men

Begin and never cease,

Begin and never cease!”

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

It Came Upon a Midnight Clear is the next carol in our Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series).  This one is a beautiful song of peace written during a time of great strife in the United States.  In 1849, we were seeing great westward expansion as “gold fever” was driving people to rush for their share of riches to be found in American soil.  The Industrial Revolution—a blessing and yet also a distraction away from our ancient faith to self-reliance in a new industrial material world—was consuming America.  We were in the last days of slavery before the Civil War would set the slaves free at the cost of many abolitionists’ lives.  With all these dark events drawing America to division and greed, times not unlike today, Edmund Sears would pen this hymn to peace that we’ve come to associate with Christmas because of the message given by the angels to shepherds in the field.

Luke 2:10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

Theologically, however beautiful this hymn to peace is, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear is incredibly weak in its Scriptural underpinnings.  The focus is on peace, not the Peace-giver.  The focus is on the angels, not on the message they gave of the baby who was the Christ Child and Savior.  Sears’ good news was that the angels sing of peace to a world in distress, but the real Good News is that Jesus Christ was born into the world–a world in distress because of human sin–and yet this world could be reconciled to God because of who this Savior is, fully man and fully God.

In case you might think it’s a minor point, part of the backstory of this hymn is that Edmund Sears was a Unitarian pastor and the Unitarians do not believe in the unique divinity of God’s only Son, Jesus Christ.  If you read his lyrics carefully, you will note that Jesus isn’t mentioned at all.  Peace is exalted.  The Prince of Peace is not.  The “King of heaven” is the Unitarian idea of God the Father, not the orthodox Christian view of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The tune, entitled simply Carol was written by Richard Storrs Willis who was a noted composer and publisher of hymns including his arrangement of Fairest Lord Jesus.

I have included this hymn, not only because it points to the angelic message of our Savior’s birth and telling the Christmas story fully, but because it raises an important point for our faith.  No matter how beautiful is peace, no matter how desirous we are of unity as people, no matter how tired we are from the wrongs of this world, and no matter how we might seek other human ways of solving them, peace is not that simple.  We cannot forget that peace with God came at a much higher cost to release us as slaves to sin than even the Civil War cost to set American slaves free.  Peace with God cost God His Son, our Savior whose shed blood makes our peace possible by bearing the full weight of God’s wrath against sin.  Reconciliation with God is of greater worth than gold…even gold of harps, streets, or gold mined from the ground in gold fever.  And we must always check everything against the Word of God to understand its truth.

For this reason, many variations of this hymn have arisen to change the fourth verse to the much improved:

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet seen of old,
When with the ever circling years
Shall come the time foretold;
When the new heav’n and earth shall own The Prince of Peace their King

And the whole world send back the song Which now the angels sing.

Enjoy this version by Jana Mashonee from her album American Indian Christmas    I cannot understand a word of the Oneida language, but her voice is splendid.  I do not know if she’s singing the lyrics below or with the revision above, but the message proclaimed by the angels as it appears in the NKJ version still rings true:

Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

Thought for Today’s Focus:  Knowing the rest of the story, read Sears’ original lyrics in light of American culture and his Unitarian background.  Revisit the new fourth verse that states Jesus explicitly as the Prince of Peace instead of leaving Him for the hearer to read Him between the lines. 

Remember that Christmas celebrates the birth of our Prince of Peace, our King, Lord Jesus.  His birth as God’s only Son made peace with God–the only true peace–possible.

It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth,
To touch their harps of gold;
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
From Heaven’s all gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.

Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats
O’er all the weary world;
Above its sad and lowly plains,
They bend on hovering wing,
And ever over its Babel sounds
The blessèd angels sing.

Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not
The love-song which they bring;
O hush the noise, ye men of strife
And hear the angels sing.

And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow,
Look now! for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road,
And hear the angels sing!

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet-bards foretold,
When with the ever circling years
Comes round the age of gold;
When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendors fling,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

Charles Wesley’s second contribution to our Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) is Hark The Herald Angels Sing which first appeared by a slightly different name (1739) in Wesley’s Hymns and Sacred Poems.  Remember how I said that his carols and hymns are often uplifting?  Well, apparently that’s not entirely due to Mr. Wesley himself who was a very serious and solemn man.

Wesley’s original version was called Hark, How All the Welkin Rings.

Hark, how all the welkin rings,
“Glory to the King of kings;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”

Joyful, all ye nations, rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
Universal nature say,
“Christ the Lord is born to-day!”

OK, I’ll admit I had to look up “welkin” since this day of my writing must be officially International Vocabulary Expansion Day.

Worldwide Words writes:

We don’t use this much nowadays — dictionaries usually tag it as archaic or literary — except in the set phrase make the welkin ring, meaning to make a very loud sound.

What supposedly rings in this situation is the vault of heaven, the bowl of the sky, the firmament. In older cosmology this was thought to be one of a set of real crystal spheres that enclosed the Earth, to which the planets and stars were attached, so it would have been capable of ringing like a bell if you made enough noise.

The word comes from the Old English wolcen, a cloud, related to the Dutch wolk and German Wolke. Very early on, for example in the epic poem Beowulf of about the eighth century AD, the phrase under wolcen meant under the sky or under heaven (the bard used the plural, wolcnum, but it’s the same word). Ever since, it has had a strong literary or poetic connection.

It appears often in Shakespeare and also in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales: “This day in mirth and revel to dispend, / Till on the welkin shone the starres bright”. In 1739, a book with the title Hymns and Sacred Poems introduced one for Christmas written by Charles Wesley that began: “Hark! how all the welkin rings, / Glory to the King of kings”. If that seems a little familiar, it is because 15 years later it reappeared as “Hark! the herald-angels sing / Glory to the new born king”.

There ya’ go.  My problem is that I never read enough Shakespeare or Chaucer.  I guess I can be glad that two other famous people had a hand in forming the version of Wesley’s original into what we know today.

1. George Whitfield, yes, amazing preacher of the Great Awakening, tweaked the opening couplet to become Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, Glory to the Newborn King!
2. Felix Mendelssohn (whose real name is Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy) you may know from his famous Wedding March was born into a Jewish family, but as his parents later came to faith, he and his siblings were baptized as Reformed Christians.  It was Mendelssohn who composed a cantata 100 years after Wesley’s commissioned original tune which had been more somber in tone.  This cantata was in commemoration of Johann Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press, and later adapted by one of Mendelssohn’s choristers–an English musician, organist, and tenor named William H. Cummings–to fit the Whitfield-Wesley version of Hark The Herald Angels Sing into what we know and love in most churches today.

All this to say, in the Body of Christ, we are better together!  Praise the LORD!

The theology, as one would expect from Charles Wesley, is profound.  He goes all the way back to mankind’s sinful start in the Garden of Eden—not at Creation but when Adam and Eve rebelled against God and we needed for the Second Adam (Jesus Christ) to restore us in relationship to God.

Rise, the woman’s conquering seed, Bruise in us the serpent’s head. Goes back to Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

Now display thy saving power, Ruined nature now restore; Now in mystic union join Thine to ours, and ours to thine. Goes back to the whole idea of the Incarnation!  Emmanuel, God with us! The Incarnation is the magnitude of God’s love, His grace, His mercy, His wrath, and His unfathomable wisdom and power on full display.

Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface; Stamp Thy image in its place. Second Adam from above, Reinstate us in thy love. Let us Thee, though lost, regain, Thee, the life, the inner Man: O! to all thyself impart, Form’d in each believing heart. This is from Romans 5:6-21 summarized in Romans 5:17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)

It’s a glorious carol, fitting to instruct our hearts as we listen to the lyrics.  In this version by the Celtic Women, read through the lyrics of Hark The Herald Angels Sing while it is playing (so all the glitz doesn’t distract you from the powerful words).

Thought for Today’s Focus:  Imagine Hark! The Herald Angels Sing as the words proclaim a triumphant victory of Christ—in His birth, in His life, in His death, and in His exaltation as Lord, Savior, and King!

 Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
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;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.

Refrain

Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
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.
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine.

Refrain

Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart.

Refrain

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

You’d think that there was only one hymn about the angels making the A-list since they are so often all lumped together.  YouTube has many versions labeled Angels from the Realms of Glory that are actually Angels We Have Heard on High.  Oh well, just like Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can’t trust everything you read on the Internet.”

YouTube may seem all mixed up, but fortunately for all of us, the angels themselves were not the least bit confused about titles and the message they needed to communicate from God to the shepherds.

Luke 1:8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

Angels We Have Heard on High which is today’s hymn in the Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) tells this story from Luke.  The words are a translation by Englishman James Chadwick of a traditional French carol entitled Les Anges dans nos campagnes, (meaning “Angels in Our Countryside”) composed by an unknown author.  Of course, God knows who the author is and the angels of heaven probably high-fived the author on his arrival for such a great portrayal of a high point in their angelic lifetimes.  The Savior was born.  That’s a high point for sure!

1 Peter 1:10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

They may have announced His birth, but regarding the saving, they didn’t know how He was going to do it.  They longed to know.  Angels We Have Heard on High celebrates that birth announcement sent from God to a bunch of shepherds with the marvelous angelic refrain “Gloria in Excelsis Deo!” (which is Latin for “Glory to God in the highest” from Luke 1:14).  It’s appropriate, therefore, that the refrain is not only memorable in words, but the tune to which this carol is sung would have this as a high point.  I’m sure it was for the angels.

The French carol tune Gloria, as arranged by American organist Edward Shippen Barnes, is how it is traditionally sung in the US.  In England, however, the other A-list angel song James Montgomery’s Angels from the Realms of Glory from yesterday is sung to this tune with a few contour changes including the “Gloria in excelsis Deo” refrain instead of the “Come and worship” refrain.  I was fully prepared to blame the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on that error until I discovered that the King’s College Choir did the same thing in their Lessons and Carols…and they were just the two leading the pack!  And now I understand: It’s a British thing kind of like putting a bunch of u’s where they don’t belong: colour, armour, favour, etc.. (Just razzing my British friends.)

Anyway, the “Gloria in excelsis Deo” does a beautiful justice to how many of us imagine the angels singing that night of announcing the Savior’s birth.

Tempting as it was to return to the Piano Guys for the sake of making a few friends really happy, do a modern a Capella version by Tonic Sol-fa that I’m not sure communicates that 1^st century AD angel voice, or do the amazing tenor Andrea Bocelli singing it in Latin (but due to his viewers’ stupid comments that I can’t bring myself to give voice to that) instead, let’s listen to this version by Libera (a boy’s choir) and ponder our Thought Focus for Today.

Thought Focus for Today:  The angels have longed to discover how it is that men and women are saved.  They wouldn’t find out until the Ascension of Christ. 

This beautiful praise “Glory to God in the Highest” is proclaimed by angels about God’s plan to save mankind, not even angels.  Praising God for something good happening to someone else.  How does this make sense?  Do we often begrudge good things happening to someone we think is undeserving?

Angels we have heard on high

Sweetly singing o’er the plains,

And the mountains in reply

Echoing their joyous strains.

Refrain

Gloria, in excelsis Deo!

Gloria, in excelsis Deo!

Shepherds, why this jubilee?

Why your joyous strains prolong?

What the gladsome tidings be

Which inspire your heavenly song?

Refrain

Come to Bethlehem and see

Christ Whose birth the angels sing;

Come, adore on bended knee,

Christ the Lord, the newborn King.

Refrain

See Him in a manger laid,

Whom the choirs of angels praise;

Mary, Joseph, lend your aid,

While our hearts in love we raise.

Refrain

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

Angels play a significant role in the Christmas story and many hymns point to this fact.  An angel, Gabriel, brought good news to Mary about the favor she had with God and how she would be the one—the only one—in all human history to bear the Christ Child.  Angels were the host of heaven as a mighty army of singers praising God and announcing the Good News to the shepherds when Jesus was born.

We make a mistake when we view angels as being like Precious Moments figurines.  They are mighty warriors of God and it’s why Mary was greatly troubled and why the shepherds were terrified.

Luke 1:26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.

Today’s hymn in Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) is Angels from the Realms of Glory.  What a classic!  It was written by a Scottish poet and newspaper editor by the name of James Montgomery.  On Christmas Eve in 1816, Montgomery’s poem was published in his Sheffield newspaper called The Iris though it didn’t receive much notice until it was republished in the Christian Psalmist nine years later.

Montgomery, aside from his editorial work, was deeply devoted to humanitarian causes such as the efforts to abolish slavery and to end the exploitation of child labor.  He is most noted, however, for his hymn writing and this Christmas carol is one of his best.

The tune from the majority of my hymnals is called Regent Square and was written by composer Henry Smart.  He wrote Regent Square during the part of his life when he had lost his sight and composed his music by dictation to his daughter Ellen.  Regent Square is one of his best known hymn tunes and has been called “splendid…with lots of lift”—most fitting for angelic worship of God Almighty.

Theologically, this poem is superb, except perhaps for this verse (being picky that I am):

• Sinners, wrung with true repentance,
•  Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
•  Justice now revokes the sentence,
•  Mercy calls you; break your chains.

Justice didn’t “revoke the sentence” except that it was paid by another:  God’s Christ.  We could not break our own chains, but God could!  And that’s why the Gospel is such Good News for those of us doomed for guilt but who place our faith in this Messiah celebrated at Christmas.

As you listen to this version on organ, ponder our Thought for Today’s Focus.

Thought for Today’s Focus:

We do not worship angels, but they are powerful heralds of God.  Jesus didn’t die to save any of the angels who have fallen, but in God’s mercy He sent Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, to save us.

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.

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;

Yonder shines the infant light:

Refrain

Sages, leave your contemplations,

Brighter visions beam afar;

Seek the great Desire of nations;

Ye have seen His natal star.

Refrain

Saints, before the altar bending,

Watching long in hope and fear;

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.

Refrain

Though an Infant now we view Him,

He shall fill His Father’s throne,

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.

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><

As we continue to Carol Me, Christmas, we’ll look at one which is a bit lesser known.  Lift Up Your Heads O Mighty Gates may be used for Advent and is present in a few hymnals for that purpose, but it’s not as well known as many other Advent hymns.  It’s another one from the Germanic chorale tradition, yes, translated by Catherine Winkworth.  Georg Weissel (1590-1635) wrote this as Macht hoch die Tür, originally to be performed on the first Sunday of Advent.  Of the twenty or so hymns written by Weissel—a pastor of a church at Königsberg—this is his only hymn to endure.

The hymn music is the anonymously written Truro as recorded in Psalmodia Evangelica, a hymnal published by Thomas Williams and intended for use by churches that had broken away from the Church of England.

Some verses of Lift Up Your Heads O Mighty Gates have fallen by the wayside in many hymnals.   Of the six verses, verse two is often omitted which may be due to its being less theologically grounded.  The final two verses are often rewritten as

4 Redeemer, come!  I open wide

my heart to Thee, here, Lord, abide! 

Let me Thy inner presence feel:

Thy grace and love in me reveal

5 So come, my Sovereign, enter in!

Let new and nobler life begin! 

Thy Holy Spirit guide us on,

until the glorious crown be won.

Although they may have been rewritten as a greater reflection of the “personal Lord and Savior” idea, shown in the particular use of first person pronouns.  (Me oh my!  Maybe not an improvement).  Here are the original six verses from the German, including the second verse.  As you read these words of Psalm 24, listen to this version by West Side Presbyterian Church of Ridgewood NJ’s choir singing verses 1, 4, and 5 as part of their 2010 Lessons & Carols tradition, then ponder our Thought for Today’s Focus.

Psalm 24:1 Of David. A psalm. The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. 3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. Selah 7 Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. 9 Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is he, this King of glory? The LORD Almighty– he is the King of glory. Selah

Thought for Today’s Focus:  Jesus is King of Glory and Lord from before His birth.  Ponder the majesty He deserves as the King of Glory and the kind of reverence one would show to such a Sovereign. 

How might your heart become a more suitable temple for Him to enter?

Lift up your heads O mighty gates;

Behold, the King of glory waits;

The King of kings is drawing near;

The Savior of the world is here!

A Helper just He comes to thee,

His chariot is humility,

His kingly crown is holiness,

His scepter, pity in distress.

O blest the land, the city blest,

Where Christ the Ruler is confessed!

O happy hearts and happy homes

To whom this King in triumph comes!

Fling wide the portals of your heart;

Make it a temple, set apart

From earthly use for heaven’s employ,

Adorned with prayer and love and joy.

Redeemer, come, with us abide;

Our hearts to Thee we open wide;

Let us Thy inner presence feel;

Thy grace and love in us reveal.

Thy Holy Spirit lead us on

Until our glorious goal is won;

Eternal praise, eternal fame

Be offered, Savior, to Thy Name!

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Carol Me, Christmas (2014 Advent Devotional Series) began November 30th.  By way of reminder, if you haven’t signed up yet, you can receive these devotional studies in your email throughout Advent 2014 by entering your email address on the SeminaryGal.com home page in the space provided in the sidebar.  Or “Like” the SeminaryGal Facebook page to access them there.  If you like these devotionals, I’d really appreciate your letting others know so I can continue to spread the Good News far and wide.  Blessings to you, in Christ always, Barbara <><