CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST
December 9, 2007
25424 Aldine-Westfield, Spring, TX. 77373
www.geocities.com/adon77373/cypresswoodbulletin.htm
PRAYER REQUESTS:
Our congregation Various friends, relatives and co-workers
Our nation, military, and leaders The spread of the glad tidings
HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING
"Suddenly a great company of the heavenly hosts appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests'" (Luke 2:13-14).
Charles Wesley wrote nearly nine thousand poems during his lifetime (1). He and his brother John were involved in the spiritual revival in the middle to late 1700s in both England and America. John would preach and Charles was the song leader, though he also preached. His music has influenced generations. In our songbook, we have eighteen of his hymns, among them Christ the Lord is Risen Today and Love Divine (2).
The carol we are examining was based on Charles Wesley's work by another name, called Hark How All The Welkin Rings. The word "welkin" means sky or heaven. Wesley's original carol contained ten verses of four lines each and was Biblically and doctrinally rich in imagery (3).
Hark, how all the welkin rings! Glory to the King of Kings,
Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled.
Over the years the words changed for several reasons. One was a doctrinal disagreement between the Wesleys who were Methodists and George Whitefield who disagreed with their view of the atonement (4). Those changes became more popular though the Wesleys were not that keen on changing the words. Over the course of time, the ten lines ended up with three verses of eight lines each. These too vary depending on the songbook one is using (5).
Hark! The herald angels sing, "Glory to the new born King,
Peace on earth, and mercy mild; God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful all ye nations, rise, Join the triumph of the skies,
With angelic host proclaim, "Christ is born in Bethlehem!"
The first verse pulls from Luke 2 with an emphasis on why Jesus came. The angel announces and is join by the heavenly host, which in my mind, would include more than angels, saying that the Messiah has come. Expectations were high at the time. After years of foreign occupation, the people encouraged by religious leaders, wanted a change. They had formed their view of who the Messiah would be: a conqueror of Rome, a King to sit on David's throne in Jerusalem, and one who would cleanse the Temple. The reality was that no one was prepared for what God would do.
The key to understanding this is in the idea of sinners being reconciled. That view was not in mind in the days of Christ. The idea was explained and expanded by the teachings of Christ and the apostles; that Israel would come out of its long exile to sin and enter into the rule and realm of God in Christ.
It would go beyond Israel however. Isaiah 2 expresses the idea that it would be for all nations. Revelation pictures the nations coming to the heavenly Jerusalem. The challenge however was that Jesus is Lord and no one else is. Rome would resist that idea even though it wasn't a political rebellion that was been advocated. And other nations would oppose the Messiah as well. Even today, in the birthplace of this song, a study group in England has suggested doing away with Christmas because England is no longer a Christian nation. What should bring joy brings sadness today.
Mild, He lays His glory by, Born that men no more may die;
Born to raise the sons of earth, Born to give them second birth.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell, Jesus our Immanuel.
This verse is rich in Biblical imagery. Wesley pulled from Philippians 2:5-11. There Paul tells us that Jesus considered His position not as something to grasp or hold on to, and He humbled Himself, becoming a man and dying. John 1 also comes into play in the verse. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Literally it means to tabernacle among us or to take up His dwelling among us. The Word, God, came into this world. Immanuel means "God with us" and comes from Isaiah 7:14 and the context from Isaiah 7-9. When we sing this song, we are expressing the idea that God loved His creation so much that He came into it, and lived among us; 1) to show us who He really is - "if you have seen me, you have seen the Father" (John 14:8-9), and 2) to do what no one could, save humankind from sin.
The second line, in my mind, is a clear reference to baptism. References to this would be found in John 3 where Jesus told Nicodemus about being born again and in Romans 6 where Paul explains that baptism is a burial in the likeness of Jesus death and being raise in the likeness of His resurrection. All of this is God's initiative, His desire to save all. Wesley indeed grasped this idea.
Christ, by highest heaven adored; Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come, offspring of the virgin's womb.
This is one of the changes that we would find in different songbooks (6). At just the right time, Paul tells us, Christ came into this world (see Galatians 4:4). God had prepared the world for the coming of the Lord. We can look at it in the sense of a time of relative peace, easy travel, and a language understood by many (Greek). Rome was in Israel by God's will for this very purpose and among others from its own perspective. Looking at it from God's perspective presents us with a view other than what historians present. All was ready for salvation to come.
Hail the heaven born Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings, Risen with healing in His wings.
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.
Here we see reminders from the prophets such as Isaiah (9, 11). The child born would be known among others things as the Prince of Peace. Mankind seeks peace but has difficulty finding it. Until hearts and minds are changed, peace cannot be found. It is more than the absence of war. It is the reconciliation of God with man and man with man, found only in Christ (see Ephesians 2:11-22). Anger and hatred grows in our world in various ways. We often think of the terrorism that is so often reported but we can even look at road rage here, and closer, the impatience of the holiday season as people get frustrated in any number of ways looking for some gift or special to bring "joy" to someone. The peace and joy of the Spirit isn't in gift giving but in receiving the gift of God, the Messiah.
Even though the second part of the verse repeats verse two, we are reminded that death has been conquered in the resurrection of Jesus. For Christians, that is true peace and joy. This song reminds us of what Jesus has done to bring God's love into the world.
This song is rich in imagery, rich in meaning, not just to sing about the birth of Jesus, but to give meaning to that birth and life. We do ourselves a disservice to sing it only at this time of year because it draws so much into the meaning of His life, death and resurrection; the meaning and definition of the gospel or glad tidings.
What really highlight's it in my mind is that it is a song of joy. We can draw out much more from this song. Needless to say, Wesley had a vibrant view of both the Old and New Testaments, as he draws from both in the poem to enrich us.
George B. Mearns
(1) William E. Studwell, An Easy Guide to Christmas Carols, The Lyre of Orpheus Press, 2006.
(2) Praise for the Lord, John Wiegand editor, Praise Press, 1997.
(3) Ian Bradley, The Daily Telegraph Book of Carols, Continuum, 2006.
(4) The Wesleys were Arminians and Whitefield was a Calvinist who had a limited view of who could be saved. This disagreement continues today though some on both sides have "lightened" up in some of their views.
(5) see www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com for variations
(6) A Classic Christmas Caroling Songbook, Hendrickson Publishers.