Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Christmas Carols

There are two types of people in the world. Those who love Christmas carols and those who hate them.

There may be a third kind, the kind who have no strong feelings either way, but I’m certain you’re in the minority.

Advent

Advent season is a season of preparation.

We do all sorts of preparing at this time of year. Preparing for Christmas parties, preparing for family visits, preparing for the new year.

But in Advent we’re encouraged to take a step back from the madness of the world around us and to pause and remember the true meaning of Christmas. That God came some 2000 years ago as a man to dwell with us. And that this man, Jesus, will return again one day and call all who trust in him to live with him and enjoy life in perfection with him forever.

So I thought we’d try something a little bit different this year and as a way of pausing. I thought we could stop and reflect on some of the more famous Christmas carols that are repeated endlessly this time of year and remind ourselves of their true and deep meaning. And in doing so, hopefully when you’re out and about and you hear these songs on the shop radios, or in your car or at another service, you’ll be reminded to pause and think deeply about these great words that tell us about Jesus.

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

The History

"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems. Its lyrics had been written by Charles Wesley. Interestingly, Wesley requested and received slow and solemn music for his lyrics, not the joyful tune that we just sang. His version also contained more verses and a different opening. Not Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, but "Hark! how all the welkin rings / Glory to the King of Kings". - Welkin is an old English word that refers to the heavens.

So how did it become Hark! The Herald Angels Sing? Well, that was thanks to Wesley's co-worker George Whitefield who changed the opening line to the one we all know today. Felix Mendelssohn composed some music to go with the song 100 years later in 1840 and an English musician by the name of William H. Cummings made some further adjustments to the tune and we ended up with the carol we know and love and sing often each Christmas. All this information you’ll see if you’ve got your Hymn book open to Hymn number 227 is contained at the start and end of the hymn.

The Carol

Based on Luke 2:10-14

Luke 2:10–14 NIV (Anglicised, 2011)

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 Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.’

Verse 1 - Jesus’ birth is cause for celebration

A poetic retelling of this biblical story. Of the Angels appearing to the Shepherds and giving them the good news. Christ is born in Bethlehem and this is good news. Why? Because through him God and sinners will be reconciled. That is with the coming of Christ, his birth, life, death and resurrection, you and I now have a way to be made right with God. To have our sins forgiven.

So it is only right that we rejoice and are joyful. That we sing songs like this and join with the angels in praising God and saying Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests”

The coming of Jesus to earth, born as a baby is an event that ought to bring joyful praise from us because thanks to Jesus’ birth, life, death and resurrection we can be reconciled to God.

Now, many of us know that Christmas is a time for celebration.

We celebrate our families

We celebrate getting presents

We celebrate having time off work

We celebrate the end of another year and look forward to what will come in the new year.

There are work Christmas parties, and social club Christmas parties, and really I think from now until New Years Day you could almost be endlessly at events celebrating.

But this hymn reminds us of the truth of scripture that unless we are reconciled to God then our celebrations are in vain. Without this newborn King, there is no peace, no reconciliation, but instead we remain sinners under God’s wrath and judgment.

In John’s gospel we read:

John 3:36 NIV (Anglicised, 2011)

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.

The road to rejoicing with the angels for the birth of Jesus, is simply believing what the bible says about him. And if you do, then the joy that this tune by Mendelssohn and Cummings so naturally produces in us as we hear it and sing it will be a deep and true joy. Not a temporary and fading one.

Verse 2 - Jesus is God in human form

It is focused on his incarnation.

What does that mean?

Well we use the language of incarnation in our regular lives sometimes, when we talk about famous people.

So for example if I said to you I just saw The Queen down in the Lindisfarne Shops, you might reply, what on the TV? And i’d say no, in the flesh!

And if I said that you’d know that I meant that I’d seen The Queen in real life just down the road.

Well that’s what the incarnation is about. I’ve seen God in the flesh in the person of Jesus.

Jesus, who is born of a virgin

He is God made man (as the hymn puts it - veiled in flesh the Godhead see). In Jesus we see God.

In Jesus, God has come to dwell with us. He is Immanuel - a word that literally means God with us.

This verse reflects something of what we read in the opening of John’s gospel

John 1:14 NIV (Anglicised, 2011)

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

I wonder if you’ve ever thought to yourself, I wonder what God is like? Or I’d believe in God if he just showed himself to me in some clear and unmistakable way.

Well the Christmas story answers both those questions.

What is God like?

Jesus. Jesus is God in flesh. The one who came to live amongst us and show us exactly what God is like.

You want to know what God is like, read the story of Jesus in the bible.

And you want God to reveal himself to you clearly? He has. He became a human being some 2000 years ago.

Now fair point that was a while back. But none the less Jesus is a historically verifiable person who has had a massive impact, probably more than any other man ever on the course of human history. Which isn’t surprising given he was God in the flesh.

Jesus’ birth is cause for celebration not only because of what he does for us, in reconciling us to God, but also because of who he is, God Himself.

Verse 3 - Jesus brings new life for us all.

The final verse and it’s focused on the new life we have in Christ.

We are raised from death to life. Jesus’ birth means we no longer die.

That is we are born again (given second birth)

We are given life eternal.

If we believe in the truth of the story of Jesus. If we submit our lives to him. Then we receive life.

This verse reflects on parts of the Bible like we read in John’s gospel in Chapter 3.

There a Pharisee named Nicodeums comes to Jesus to find out more about him. In the course of that conversation, Jesus says,

John 3:3 NIV (Anglicised, 2011)

Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.’

Nicodeums doesn’t really get what that means, but Jesus explains that we need the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to who Jesus is. And at the end of this conversation about being born again we get these famous words in John 3:16

John 3:16 NIV (Anglicised, 2011)

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.

When the Spirit goes to work in our hearts it causes us to believe in Jesus. That he is the Son of God. That there is more to life than simply living in the here and now. That there is an eternity of perfection with God that awaits all who believe and trust in Jesus.

Christmas is a time of joy and rejoicing not only because God came to earth, not only because Jesus won forgivenss of our sins, but because with Jesus we see what it is to really truly live.

Carols of Christmas

I have mixed feelings about Christmas carols. On the one hand I think it’s wonderful that for 1 month every year people who may very rarely think about God or Jesus will happily listen to and even sing songs like this one about Jesus. About the good news that he reconciles us sinners to God.

And yet at the same time I’m filled with immense sadness. For it actually reveals a great spiritual blindness in many people. That you can sing of the wonders of salvation and it have no effect on you is so tragic.

So if you’re not sure what you make of Jesus, may you use this advent season to prepare yourself. As we reflect on some of these carols over the next 4 weeks may you take the time to seriously investigate the story of Jesus.

And if you know who Jesus is. Then may you use this season of advent to stop from the crazy business of Christmas, and as we reflect on the carols of Christmas, may you find renewed joy and peace from knowing God’s love and mercy in your life.