Silent Night! Holy Night!
Silent night!
Holy night! Son of God,
love's pure
light
Radiant beams
from thy holy face
with the dawn
of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord,
at thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.
This powerful little carol has so worked
its way into people's hearts all over the world that it isn't really Christmas
unless you sing it at least once, preferably on Christmas Eve, preferably with
the lights down low, children's faces lit only by the lights on the Christmas
tree.
An Austrian village priest wrote these
beautiful words in 1816, and a schoolteacher/organist quickly penned a simple
tune to fit, although probably it was played for the first time on guitar in
1818.
Deep theology radiates from these simple
words and pure pictures. The incarnation of Christ was not the actual
blood-redemption, but it was the dawn. With the arrival of God's Son on earth,
the long centuries of waiting were over and God's plans were in motion.
Possibly all was not so very calm nor
bright 'round yon virgin mother and child. In fact, if Jesus was like almost
every other baby, he squawked just like us when he needed food or fresh diapers.
In your mind's eye, just look at God's Son and Mary's Son lying there. Imagine
the heavenly radiance that glowed from his little face and be certain of
this-God must love me very, very much.
"For to us a child is born, to us a
son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be
called Wonderful Counselor,Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace" (Isaiah 9:6).
Comments
Post a Comment