Monday, December 9, 2024

           Most of us enjoy the music of Christmas.  The traditional carols teach us wonderful theology but also offer us rich opportunities to praise and thank God for the gift and grace that we celebrate at Christmas—the birth and coming of Jesus to save us from our sins by His suffering at the cross.  Charles Wesley, brother of John Wesley, was a prolific hymn writer.  He gave us a Christmas carol that many of us enjoy singing at this season of the year.  The song is “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus.”  Though only two verses long, this celebration of Jesus’ birth teaches us some beautiful and good theology to understand who Jesus is, why He came and what His birth brings.  Wesley wrote these words… “Come, thou long expected Jesus,
born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us,
let us find our rest in thee.
Israel's strength and consolation,
hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation,
joy of every longing heart.
 
Born thy people to deliver,
born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever,
now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal spirit
rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all sufficient merit,
raise us to thy glorious throne.”
            Christ came to set us free from our sins and the fears that accompany them.  Our hopes are in Him and Him alone to be our strength and consolation. He is the hope of all the earth—apart from Christ we are hopeless and irredeemably lost to sin and its eternal consequences.  Wesley teaches us that the “merit” of Christ is the only goodness or merit that counts.  Our best efforts or deeds cannot match the righteousness or merit that Christ has won for us and extends to us by our faith and trust in Him alone.  It is the merits of Christ and the righteousness of Christ alone that raise us up from the pits and perils of sin to a place with Him beside His glorious throne.  Worthy is the Lamb who was slain!
            Our Savior has come to rule and reign in our hearts.  May the throne of our lives be occupied by Him alone—without competition or lesser kings and things.  These days leading up to the birthday of Jesus give us so many moments to cherish His coming and the victories that He won for us through His cross and resurrection.  But we are also reminded that our Savior is coming again.  He will one day appear in the sky to claim His people.  He will one day descend to earth to reign in splendor and royal majesty.  Prepare for His Second Coming as you celebrate His first coming.  The best gift for this King is your faith and trust in Him and Him alone!  May Christ be, in the words of Wesley, your strength and consolation.  Have a great day!  Remember you can always share our worship at YouTube.com/FirstBaptistKannapolis.    

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