Joy to the world! the Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods
Rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy

When Jesus was entering Jerusalem a few days before he was crucified, many of his followers paid tribute to him. They had seen him perform miracle after miracle and believed he was about to take on his role as some sort of king. They shouted, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” The religious leaders of the day didn’t take too kindly to anyone being compared to God, so they politely asked Jesus—or maybe not so politely—“Jesus, tell those people to quit saying that about you… tell them to quit worshipping you in that way!”

The New Testament writer Luke tells us what Jesus said in response… and Jesus didn’t BACK down from what people were saying about him. He DOUBLED down: “Well, if THEY stop saying it... if they stop worshipping me” says Jesus, “The ROCKS will cry out and say it.” In other words, what they are saying is going to be said, one way or another. Now, whether rocks REALLY would have started singing… who knows… he was probably just trying to get a point across. And here’s his point: “People are recognizing who I am and they are going to worship me. But even if they don’t, nature itself will draw attention to me.”

In the song “Joy to the World,” the writer wants us to sing… expressing joy to the world that Jesus, our Saviour, reigns! “Let men their songs employ” is what the song says. We should SING! But, according to the song, we won’t be alone. Not only will people sing about their King, Jesus, we have a choir backing us up, REPEATING our songs… maybe not in our OUR words, but in their own way. After we sing, this song reminds us: fields, water, rocks, hills, the grass… they will all REPEAT the sounding joy we make.

So when the song “Joy to the World” plays, sing loud and proud. We have a King worth celebrating, and nature itself is listening to our praises—and even nature is going to repeat those praises we sing to our King.

Heavenly Father, thank you for bringing joy to the world. I worship you. Thank you for sending Jesus to me.

God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day

“God rest ye merry gentlemen, let nothing you dismay. Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day…” At first glance, those words might feel trite or dismissive, especially if you’re going through a difficult time.

You could hear it like, “Just rest and don’t worry because Jesus was born on Christmas.” But this isn’t the Christian version of that Bobby McFerrin song “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”

It’s not a “God’s got this, so don’t worry” kind of message; it’s a “God’s got YOU no matter what and he’s with you every step of the way.” It’s not “Ignore your circumstances.” Instead, it’s “Remember that your circumstances don’t have the last word.”

The song is asking for God to rest your heart. And we need God to bring rest because there is so much around us to dismay or to be concerned about.

But how do you rest in the middle of disruptive circumstances? You rest by remembering what Jesus has done for you and that your story isn’t finished.

The world is not as it should be. Not even close. But that’s exactly why God sent Jesus to redeem the world and to make things right again. He gave his life so that we could have hope and rest as we trust in him.

Matthew recorded Jesus’s words when he said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20b)

We are not alone. He is always with us.

So, what is causing you to dismay? What are you most concerned or worried about? And what can you do this week to let God rest your heart?

Heavenly Father, thank you for knowing what my heart needs. Help me to trust that you are with me no matter what may come my way.

Come and behold him
Born the king of angels

If you had to make a list of the most famous performers over the past 50 years, who would be on it? Who is it that, in their prime, would pack arenas full of people screaming at the very sight of them? Hanging on their every word… or watching every move they made. Who’s on that list? Or let’s narrow it down to even one. Who is ONE person over the last 50 years that created more energy and had more of a following than anyone else? Who would you say?

Whoever it is, when you think of that person, imagine how crowds were (or are) when they’re around that person. People can’t contain themselves. They’re absolutely overwhelmed. After all, people are thinking, Someone like ME is in a room with someone like THAT! This is amazing! Thousands of people are all focused on one person.

Now, imagine at one of these events, out of nowhere... down from the sky... an angel appeared and showed up onstage right in the middle of this famous PERSON’s event. Well… the show’s over. We’re no longer paying attention to this person’s show or talents, no matter how famous they are. We’re watching this ANGEL now. After all, angels are a WAY bigger deal than any human! We would shift our attention immediately to the angel.

But now—and pretend for one more second—instead of a stadium full of PEOPLE, imagine if that stadium were full of angels. FULL of these powerful creatures who have supernatural abilities. Full of these messengers from God. Not just ONE of them onstage, but tens of thousands of them in the seats—or standing, since their wings might be in the way. It’s almost unimaginable.

Well, in the same way WE would react to an actual ANGEL—one angel—coming onstage, those thousands of ANGELS would react to being in the presence of Jesus. How could we lowly angels find ourselves in the presence of someone like HIM?

In the song “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” we’re told to “Come and behold him,” the one who is “Born the king of angels.” That doesn’t mean Jesus is some sort of angel—the King Angel. It means all the angels report to him. He’s the King OF angels. They bow to him.

The writer of the New Testament letter Hebrews said, “When God brought Jesus into the world, all angels worshipped him.” And the writer even emphasized the point by asking a question, “For to which of the angels did God ever say, ‘You are my Son?’” The answer is rhetorical. None.

As much as we wouldn’t be able to imagine the presence of an actual angel in our midst, angels are continually in awe of being in the presence of Jesus, their King.

“Oh, come, let US adore him”—the only one worthy to have angels bow at his feet.

Heavenly Father, help me remember your greatness and the lengths you went to in order to reach me.

No crowds were waiting
No royal celebration
Just a humble father
And a blessed young mother
And the sound of hope and peace from the cries of a homeless king.

The Savior of the world was born, but no crowd was there to celebrate the occasion. There was no royal proclamation of the birth of this King. This was not the customary plan for the arrival of a new monarch. This King was born to a young couple who were far from home with no one there to welcome their new baby.

What must Joseph and Mary have thought in the moments after Jesus was born? An angel had appeared separately to each of them nine months earlier to unveil part of God’s plan. They weren’t even married at the time, but they had been chosen to be the parents of the coming Savior. And now here they sat in a barn in Bethlehem listening to the sounds of a baby. It’s as if God, in chapter one of Jesus’s young life, began painting a picture of his grand plan. He would not be like other kings who were served by many attendants. This King arrived in the lowliest of settings with a purpose.

Nearly thirty-three years later, Jesus shared these words with his disciples shortly before he was crucified: “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 26–28)

Jesus, the Son of Man, came to earth on a mission, not to be served but to serve. He was fully God and fully man born to be a ransom for many.

Joseph and Mary could not have known all that would happen in the years ahead as they held their newborn son. But God knew. It was all part of his plan: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16–17)

Heavenly Father, I’m in awe of your great love for me. Thank you for sending Jesus to be my Savior and doing for me what I could never have done for myself.

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

Born that man no more may die. That’s a pretty big promise, isn’t it?

A few months ago, my dad passed away somewhat unexpectedly. So this Christmas season feels a little like a ball of tangled-up and often-conflicting emotions. I love the joy of the season, but it’s quickly followed by the gut-punch of the absence of someone I love.

Death broke in and disrupted, destabilized, and destroyed what we had. But death will always feel like that. Death will always feel like an intruder, because we were not made to die. We weren’t made for sorrow. We were made for joy.

One of the most influential Christian authors of our time, C.S. Lewis, said, “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.”

Our time here on earth and our time spent suffering will be such a small part of our forever existence because we were made for more. We were made to live, but not just here. We were made to live forever with our Father in heaven.

Paul, a persecutor of Christians who became a Jesus follower himself wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:17–18, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

It’s hard to see past where we are. We can’t see it with our eyes. It requires hope and trusting what our eyes can’t see.

Jesus came so we didn’t have to die... not in any way that’s final. At some point, all of our earthly bodies will fail, but because Jesus took our place—died on the cross, conquered death, and we can live forever with him.

What stands between you and real, genuine hope this year? What can you do this week to remind your heart to place your hope in Jesus?

Heavenly Father, this season can be really difficult for so many different reasons. Thank you for the hope I have in Jesus. Help me to live in that hope today.

They looked 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

In general, most of us would agree that we feel like we can see things better during the day.

But, there’s a reason we always look at Christmas lights at night. You can definitely go during the day, but it’s a little anticlimactic, because the lights shine so much brighter in the darkness. And the darker the night, the more brightly they shine.

The same is true in life. When things are going well, it feels like we’ve got a good handle on things. We think we’re seeing clearly what matters most.

But it’s really when things get dark that we see and experience the nearness of Jesus the most. His light in our lives shines so much brighter when we’re lonely, when we’re faced with the impossible, and when we’re at the end of our rope.

Psalm 34:18 says: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Think about a time when you went through something really difficult, but you knew God was with you. Find a way to share the hope of your story with someone else this week.

Heavenly Father, thank you for leaning in close when I’m hurting and things are difficult. Help me to remember that I can always trust you.

Away in a manger
No crib for a bed

In the song “Away in a Manger,” that word “manger” gets glossed over. A lot. We see pictures of nativity scenes of the baby Jesus, perfectly swaddled, of course, in this finely crafted wooden container—like a miniature crib—which, by the way, happens to fit his little body perfectly.

But in reality, the manger wasn’t made of wood at all. It was more than likely hard, cold stone. Now certainly Mary and Joseph would have tried to add a little bit of cushion by throwing in some soft materials—maybe a little bit of hay, some clothing, a blanket. But this little box, probably carved out of limestone—used mostly for animals’ drinking water, occasionally used for food—this manger was no place for a newborn.

This is what makes what the angels said to the shepherds so significant. In Luke 2:11, they tell the shepherds: Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

And we can be sure the shepherds believed the angels. The message they sent wasn’t in doubt. After all, if an angel from heaven told you something, wouldn’t YOU believe it? But there were other little babies in Bethlehem. And this birth wasn’t posted on social media. So how in the world were they supposed to know WHICH baby was the Messiah? They tell them:

This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.
And there’s the word that makes no sense in the context of a baby being born—manger. A baby has NO business being in a manger. It would be like saying today, “You’ll find the baby wrapped in some towels on a farm in this particular small town in Georgia, in the barn, under a heat lamp where the chickens stay warm.” We’d NEVER think to look for a baby there. But that’s exactly how the shepherds would know they found the right one.

The manger is out of place… except for two things… one we already mentioned. It made it very clear to the shepherds where the baby was. But secondly, Jesus came into this world modeling something he would pass on to all his followers: When we follow Jesus, we follow someone who deserved BETTER, but focused on making life better for everyone ELSE. He never diminished himself or lacked confidence; he just spent more of his energy focused on how he could serve and ultimately give his life away for the sake of others.

And the word for that is “humility.” He was born in the most humble of circumstances, and he lived his life in a way that prioritized others. Did he deserve better circumstances regarding where he was born? Sure. Did he deserve better treatment as an adult? Of course. But like Jesus, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can shift our attention away from what we think we deserve and more on how we can give our lives away for others.

Heavenly Father, help me treat others the way you have treated me through Christ. Amen.

Whispers of a coming king
No ear had heard, no eye had seen
Through years and years of silent nights
The stars broke forth in brilliant light

For centuries, God promised the people of Israel he would use them in a mighty way. They would have a land of their own. They would be a nation of influence. They would be a blessing to the entire world. And, maybe most importantly, they would produce a king… a king sent from God… someone who would rule on their behalf forever. God made these promises through people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Old Testament prophets like Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Micah spoke of a coming day when this King would arrive and deliver on these promises God had made.

But for years and years, those promises seemed empty. Toward the end of the Old Testament, Israel found herself as a divided nation with no real sense of identity. And instead of living in their homeland together, many Israelites were scattered around the region after being exiled by conquering nations. The future was not looking too bright.

And even more difficult, for the next 400 years (which is the amount of time between the Old and New Testaments), God would remain silent. That’s around 15 generations where there were no words from prophets, no supernatural interactions, no reminders of his promises. God’s people were left in a broken state… limping along with a lot of their people still living in foreign lands. But ALL of them, regardless of where they lived, were under the authority of the Roman Empire.

They were certainly a far cry from the people group that was supposed to have its own land, its own identity, and to be this huge blessing to the rest of the world.

They were left to wonder… Is this it? We thought God had promised to use us to one day restore everything… in a sense, to make things right, to bless the world. But all they had were WHISPERS of a coming king one day. In all the watching, all the waiting… no ear had heard and no eye had seen any hints of this new ruler.

After four centuries without any clear direction from God, the people of Israel had to ask themselves… Do we have any reason to hope?

Through years and years of silent nights
The stars broke forth in brilliant light

So… while God may have seemed silent, he was never still. He would use the nation of Israel to pave the way for perhaps the most climactic part of God’s story for humanity… where he would begin restoring a broken relationship with his creation. And this coming king would not just be for Israel, he would be for ALL people!

The promised Messiah had indeed come. Jesus is here.

Heavenly Father, help me remember that though it can seem like you’re silent, you’re never still. You’re always at work.

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight.
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia,
Christ the Saviour is born!
Christ the Saviour is born

Have you ever experienced something that took your breath away? Maybe you’ve seen the Grand Canyon or a beautiful sunrise over a vast ocean. Maybe you’ve witnessed the birth of a baby or the loss of a loved one. You’ll never forget how those moments made you feel.

For most of us, there aren’t many things that truly take our breath away.

We can imagine that was also true for the shepherds in the Christmas story. These were tough guys who slept outside exposed to the elements. These were guys who fought off bears and lions to protect their sheep. And let’s be honest; they probably didn’t smell great. These were guys who weren’t at the top of anybody’s “Invite List” for parties or dinner gatherings. But they had seen some things in their time and they were not easily startled. And then...

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
(Luke 2:9–11)

These men were fearless, but then there was this one night. This quiet... dare we say silent... night. We can imagine the sky was clear and the stars were shining and this group of shepherds was settling in for the night.

But God…

God sent an angel to tell these men that he was coming to live with them. God’s own Son would become flesh and live among his people as Emmanuel, God with us.

And then it wasn’t just one angel... it was a massive choir of angels, singing of God’s goodness and kindness to the world. He was giving us his Son!

In his wisdom, God didn’t choose to share his good news with kings and nobles. He didn’t look down the list and decide which VIPs should hear first... or did he?

It was intentional that God made his world-changing announcement to the lowliest of people. He was following his plan to flip the script on “life as usual.” He was telling the world that in his kingdom, we would all be equally welcome at his table. He had come to rescue all people everywhere, to mend what was broken and make a way to bring his people back to him.

It was a silent night. But the booming message of hope pierced through the silence and changed the whole world.

Maybe things aren’t going well and you feel like God is silent. Or maybe everything is going just fine. Christmas is a reminder that no matter who we are or what we’ve done, we’ve all been invited to experience the hope that Jesus brings.

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending a message of hope that was for all people. When it seems like you’re silent, help me see that you’re near.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till he appear’d and the soul felt its worth.

Once, when I was younger, I got lost and separated from my mom at a store. I don’t remember exactly what distracted me, but I stopped to see something and when I looked back, my mom was gone. I don’t remember how it happened, but I remember feeling so afraid.

Oh, no! I had become one of those lost kids I’d always heard about. What if I never found her again? What if she just went home and I was forgotten forever? What if… what if… what if?

I was so scared.

But then somehow, over the almost deafening sound of my own racing heart, I heard it. I heard her. I heard the voice of my mom. She was looking for me, calling out my name as she came to find me, confirming to me that I was worth finding.

Think about the people of God who had been living during all those years of waiting before Jesus finally came. They would have grown up learning that a Messiah would one day come. They’d been doing their best to follow the law, honoring the generations before them, trusting that God would deliver them, but having no idea how he would do that or what it would mean for them.

So often, we do the same. We move through our days, weeks, and months, living our lives making the best choices and plans we can but without a deep sense of meaning or confidence in who we were made to be. Sometimes we wonder if we matter or if it would make any difference at all if we weren’t here.

But God sent Jesus to change all of that. He knows our worth and our value because he built it into us! We are image-bearers of the God of all creation.

And when God sent his only son, Jesus, to live among us, to be God with us, he was reminding the world that we were worth pursuing. From the moment sin separated us from him, God’s plan has always been to make a way back for us. And on that night, over 2,000 years ago and every moment since, God is relentlessly coming after us. When he appeared, the soul (for the first time ever) truly felt it’s worth. We are not lost and alone.

And while the voices of our day might want us to believe that we are what we can achieve, Jesus entered the scene with a different message—one of hope…

Someone is looking for you. Someone is coming for you. You are worth finding.  

How do you measure your own success and worth? What would it look like to live fully confident that your worth is found in Jesus alone?

Heavenly Father, help me to be mindful of ways I try to determine my value apart from you. Help me to remember I’m made in the image of God.

Shepherd, why this jubilee?

Come to Bethlehem and see
Him Whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee
Christ the Lord, the newborn King

When we sing the songs telling the Christmas story, we usually include the same central characters: Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the shepherds, and the angels. And while they also appear in “Angels We Have Heard On High,” this song is written from a unique perspective—that of curious observers, passersby who've overheard angels singing and are wondering why they’re so excited. It appears from the song that the listeners have gone to the place they heard the chorus of angels and have found shepherds there, delighted by the angels’ news—but the angels are already gone. “Why so happy?” the observers ask the shepherds. What happened? Or, in their words: Shepherds, why this jubilee?

So… they’re a little late to the party. They showed up just after the big announcement when something great has been proclaimed. Apparently, they're asking the question: What’d we miss?

And the shepherds responded. You may have missed the big reveal, but you didn’t miss the more important thing: You can still experience what this great news is all about. It’s not too late. Come with us. We’ll show you. They say, Come to Bethlehem and see him, whose birth the angels sing; Come, adore on bended knee, Christ the Lord, the newborn King.

They maybe missed out on a little of the fanfare, but in no way did they miss out on the main thing—Jesus. And maybe you can relate. Maybe you feel late to the party.

Maybe, for whatever reason, you feel it’s too late to really start a relationship with God… or it’s too late to make God a priority or to be serious about your faith.

But wherever you are—whatever that next step is for you—it’s never too late to take it.

Heavenly Father, give me the strength and courage to take whatever steps I need to take toward you.

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

Around 750 BC, the nation of Israel was in shambles. It had been conquered by a foreign nation. Many Jews—particularly young and strong ones—were exiled into the cities of their conqueror. Things seemed hopeless for Israel, even though God promised centuries before to make a great kingdom out of this nation and for them to be a blessing to the entire world.

During this season of despair, all those promises seemed forgotten. But the prophet Isaiah arose and reminded the Israelites of a coming future—one where their enemies would no longer be victors. He told them to look for a sign to remind them of that promise:

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

Isaiah was acknowledging a sense of desperation in the present, while at the same time giving a glimpse of hope for the future. Ultimately, this is what the song “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” is all about. It’s in reference to Israel crying out: Rescue us from our enemies, Lord! Whoever this Immanuel is, please send him soon! We are mourning, and we need you.

As the song says:
O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here, until the Son of God appear.

It’s worth noting “Immanuel” wasn’t necessarily referring to someone’s name but a description. The word “Immanuel” means “God with us,” so Isaiah is praying on behalf of the people, “God, be with us. Send someone to ransom us… to set us free from our captors.”

Fast-forward centuries later… one of Jesus’s friends, Matthew, connected the dots. Once Matthew embraced who Jesus was, he was reminded of the words written by Isaiah as he told the story of an angel speaking to Joseph prior to Jesus’s birth:

Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). (Matthew 1:20–23)

At the time of Isaiah, Israel needed someone to ransom them from their enemies... someone to save them. But Matthew recognized Jesus as the one who would be the permanent ransom. Jesus was “God with us” and would ultimately set ALL people free, not just the people of Israel. It would be Jesus who would establish himself as the one who would destroy the greatest enemy of all—sin. People no longer have to be captives to their sin. Immanuel, God with us, has come.

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus as my ransom.