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What a fantastic picture by this artist!  It is one of my favorite things to do at Christmas time is to sing the carols.  So...I added a whole sermon of carols this year to show the difference between the "red" songs, the "relax" songs, and the "religious" songs of Christmas.  I titled the sermon, "There's A Song In The Air!"

We didn't touch the "red" songs about the plump man in a red suit.  I figured he has plenty of air time.  It is quite a shock to move from "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..." to "O holy night, the stars are brightly shining..."  You switch from songs that focus on you to carols that point you to the Kings of kings and the Lord of lords.  You move from a perfect setting of snow and everyone happy to being told of a world in sin and error pining and Satan's power which influences our going astray.  The "relax" songs speak of the moment but the "religious" songs speak of the Who who has come that affects our eternity.  

I end the sermon with "Angels From The Realms Of Glory."  Many hymnals include the verses about shepherds, sages and saints but leave out the verse on sinners.  Here is that verse.

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

Sinners are called to turn (repent).  Since we are all sinners, for all have sinned, our doom or destination is hell.  We are away from the presence of God and enduring pain.  But God has a plan, a provision, and a passage to another destination.  The sentence has been revoked by the justice provided by Jesus on the cross.  This merciful act calls out to sinners to follow Jesus.  "Come all ye who are weary and heavy burdened and I will give you rest" and "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more."  

The "religious" Christmas songs tell us the true story of Christmas.  Grace has come to provide justice in such a merciful way.  I think the appropriate response and posture is given to us in the carol "O Holy Night."  At the end of the first verse it says,

"Fall on your knees!  O hear the angel voices!"

Christmas is a time to find ourselves on our knees before our heavenly Father who gave His one of a kind, unique, beloved Son to pay the price for our salvation and eternal life.  May we find some time this Christmas season to be in this position.

Adam



A simple man serving a great God and the local pastor of Stillwater Community Chapel (stillwater-chapel.org). We are in our 38th year of full time ministry. God directed us to this local body of believers on the Western Range of the Rockies to grow with them in mission and mindedness of Christ.

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