The song, “Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful” rings in my head…I can’t seem to keep myself from humming. (Lyrics by John F. Wade)
Oh, come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant!
Oh, come ye, oh, come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the king of angels:
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
Never fails, every time I get to the part “Oh, come, let us adore him”…I begin to feel the tears in the back of my throat … I begin to feel the Spirit of heaven singing in my heart…I adore Him.
What it must have been like that night to have been one of the shepherds in the field…just minding their own business…minding the sheep. When out of nowhere…an angel appears!
If you have ever been at the hospital when someone dear to you has just given birth, and you have been asked to “share that good news” with other loved ones, you know that feeling of excitement you get in your heart as you begin to make calls and give the details of the birth. The size. The weight. Whether he or she has hair….who does he look like? Sharing the details of the birth is exciting! I remember well calling family and friends after my grandchildren were born…the joy I felt— the relief!
The angel chosen to deliver this blessed message to the “loved ones” must have felt such excitement! The night may have went something like this…
Just as the shepherds were beginning to wind down, as they rested around their campfire from a long day of “sheep watching”…some watching furtively…some sleeping noisily. When suddenly a bright light seemed to shine all around them, as the angel from the Lord made his sudden appearance. A few possibly even yelled out in fright or astonishment (same thing—they were scared!), but the angel calms them with his words… “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”
Did you get that? This great joy is for you and me. Even on the days we don’t feel this “great joy”….it is ours. This gift of joy is like none other. This Gift of Christmas is like none other. This gift does not require a specific size. He is a one size fits all. He fits into each heart that He is given access. All we have to do is send out the invite….He accepts. It is not even necessary for us to “clean house” before He gets there….He does the cleaning once He moves in. He tells us what should stay and what should go.
As calm settles in each shepherds heart, the excitement and wonder of the news begins to bubble up inside their hearts, as they recall stories they heard from their fathers of this very night!
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given….and he shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace, there will be no end…” Isaiah 9:6-7
Who does He look like? How much did He weigh? These are questions that usually only women would ask…so they didn’t ask. But the angel gave the pertinent details. Where they would find the infant God (John 1:1; John 1:14) . Lying in a manger. Wrapped in swaddling clothes. (Luke 2:11-12)
As the excitement of this news rustled in their hearts, it was also bursting in the hearts of the angels that were “eavesdropping” from behind the heavenly curtain. And they could hold it in no longer! “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men “. About this time, they may have even broke out in a chorus of
“Oh, come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant!
Oh, come ye, oh, come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the king of angels:
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.”
As quick as the angels departed…those shepherds did not waste a single second…they gathered their flocks
(I would imagine—because, of course, these were diligent shepherds!) and made haste!
“Oh, come, let us adore him, oh come, let us adore him, oh, come let us adore him…..Christ the Lord!” They sang as they traveled….as energetic as if they had slept all night! The adrenaline was coursing through their veins, as it probably was the sheep they were herding on their way.
They were about to behold the Gift of Christmas…the very first Gift. The ultimate Gift. The perfect Gift, from the Giver of life.
As they arrived, out of breath, chest thumping hard, more from the excitement than from the run…they looked into the sleeping face of Jesus, the Wonderful Counselor, the Prince of Peace, the Everlasting Father…the sweet face of the Mighty God and experienced something they had never known before. I believe they felt as I did the night I invited Christ to live in my heart. Clean. Whole. Complete.
“Oh, come, let us adore him…..Christ the Lord.” And adore him they did. They bowed in adoration. As they looked on the tender face of that first Gift…they were privileged to be among the first to behold Him. They couldn’t linger long…for news like this must be shared! And from the joy in their hearts they shared the delight of this incredible night!
This is the perfect Gift to give others…not only at Christmas…but throughout the year. We can give Christmas…all through the year….. “Oh, come, let us adore Him…..Christ…..the Lord.”
Father, I am so grateful that You gave….You gave us Life….through the life of Your Son. I adore You. I worship You. On my face before You I ask that You cover my life with You…so that I am not seen, but You are. May we all share the love that You poured out that night so long ago into the lives of each of us. All of us shepherds…just keeping watch over our flocks….give us that burning, exciting desire to share Christmas on a daily basis. In Your most holy Name~Amen.
From December 2007 Archives of Knightly News and my submission to Laced with Grace December 2007
Jeff & Angie 