EquippedMama

In 1847 a French poet wrote a poem for a Christmas mass. The lyrics of this poem “Cantique de Noel”, were quickly put to music and brought to America about ten years later.

In 2020, a year of pandemic, political and social unrest, isolation, and layoffs, this hymn speaks to the true hope offered in Christmas. A portion of the song reads as follows-

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appeared and the Spirit felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

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

O night divine, the night when Christ was born;

O night, O holy night, O night divine!

O night, O holy night, O night divine!

For some, this Christmas will come as a painful reminder that a loved one passed away. For others, Christmas will be a meager affair, due to financial setbacks caused by the pandemic. These are dark times, and we can agree with the writer of Romans that the whole creation, “Groans and suffers together until now.” (Romans 8:22 b). Everywhere we look, we see hurting and broken people.

The world is weary. It is weary from Sin and Hurt, and Injustice and Evil, yet is incapable of doing anything to chance it.

And in the cacophony of clamoring voices giving dead-end solutions, Christmas offers us the only hope that can bring true relief.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God.

Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.

John 1:1, 14, New English Translation

God became flesh. He was born of a woman, and lived life among those whom He had created. He made himself poor so that we could be made rich (2 Corinthians 9:8).

We need Jesus.

We need Him because we are sinners, and these sins have separated us from the Holy God who created us (Romans 3:23) and the penalty that we face for these sins is death. But the One who created us, Jesus Christ, became human and took up residence among us. This is the glory of Christmas- Immanuel- God is with us. Jesus died a substitutionary death for our sins, and rose from the dead to satisfy God’s Justice, and allow us opportunity to be forgiven (John 3:16, Romans 5:8, Acts 2:23-24). Now those who confess their need for salvation from their sins and trust Jesus to be their Savior can experience true peace with God.

Personal salvation is the hope of Christmas. Jesus Christ did what we could never do for ourselves and offered us a way to be forgiven our sins. If for no other reason, we have ample reason to rejoice this Christmas. For the weary state our world finds itself in this year, there is true hope in the Gospel that God does love us and He has made a way for our sins to be forgiven.

The world will not always be weary. We are promised in Revelation 21 that one day God will create a new heaven and a new earth-one that is free from the bonds of sin. This world will be home to those who have trusted in Christ. The joy in this world will be unending- for here God will be Immanuel- God with us- forever.

 “Look! The residence of God is among human beings. He will live among them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.”

Revelation 21:3b-4

We live in a world that truly is pining in the devastation of sin. This is a weary world, indeed. However God has shown us mercy! Those who understand the reality of the incarnation and the glorious riches that God has made available through his Son have reason for hope. A weary world can rejoice.

Christ has come!

Fall on your knees and thank Him.

Note-Information gathered for the story behind “O Holy Night” at the following sources; “O Holy Night” (billygraham.org), The Story Behind the Song O Holy Night | Ann H. Gabhart.