Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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There is a beloved Christmas song that actually isn’t a Christmas song.
Any idea which one it is?
Let me help you:
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let Earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing
Joy to the Earth, the Savior reigns
Let all their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love
And wonders of His love
And wonders, wonders, of His love
Did you notice all the things that is missing from our typical Christmas songs?
No mention of a baby, a birth, a manger, shepherds, angels, Mary, Joseph…none of that.
That is because this was written by Isaac Watts as a reflection on Psalm 98
This is a psalm likely written by returning exiles.
Meaning the Jewish people who had been booted from their land for some 70 years.
It’s a people needing rescue.
A people longing for the Lord to reign…He is the Lord over all…He is the King of kings.
And this psalm is longing for the day when he rules the world.
Do you find yourself there as well this evening?
Wondering how you’re going to pay for all those Christmas gifts…or lonely…hurting…reflecting on difficult family gatherings…just wishing there was peace.
We’ve made this one a Christmas song because we know that the One the Psalmist was longing for has come in the person of Christ.
And there are some connections like “prepare him room” and I think we’re thinking that’s a dig on the innkeeper…make room in your heart for Jesus unlike that silly innkeeper.
But that’s not a point that Watts was making.
And some might also believe that the lyrics in this song has some connection to Luke 1:13-17
This very well may have been on Watts’ mind.
He was in a church that would sing exclusively from the psalms—and so Watts was trying to find a way to show how all of these pointed to Jesus.
And Psalm 98 certainly does.
But here is why I share this today.
“Joy to the World” are we experiencing all that this song is calling for?
He rules the world....
Is this what his rule looks like?
Are we seeing truth and grace reign?
Well, yes and no.
We see seeds.
We saw when Jesus walked the earth little windows into heaven.
But Psalm 98 and that hymn by Watts isn’t looking to the first coming as much as it is looking to the second coming.
And so that’s really what we do in this Advent season.
It’s not only about the fact that Christ was born…it’s also a longing for the return of Christ.
But what we’re doing as we celebrate the birth of Christ is we are reflecting on how God is faithful to all of His promises.
The Savior has come.
There is a reason for joy—for great joy.
And we also use that to remind ourselves that this God who is faithful to His promise will also be faithful to His promise to return and to finally and fully set all things right.
All of the greatest problems in the world have been solved through Christ.
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