The carols celebrating the birth of Jesus, above all Christian hymns, deserve to be pondered anew at each Christmas season for the message of hope and life they bring. The expectation of the victory of the Kingdom of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ in time and in history is perhaps no more clearly expressed than in our traditional Christmas carols.
One such carol was written during the darkest days of the American Civil War, a war which was tearing our nation apart and threatening to end our grand experiment in civil liberty and self-government – of "one nation under God"; of a government "of the people, for the people, and by the people."
And yes, it was a government ruled by the consent of the governed – not by the grace of an "earthly" monarch, nor by a power-hungry oligarchy seeking for world dominion. The American experiment in Christian liberty and Christian self-government was unique in the history of the world when all other nations were ruled by kings and governed by ironclad Ruler's Law.
The United States was fragile, and during those dark days of the Civil War (1861-1865), when brother was fighting brother, many were not certain that our nation would continue to endure. The thought that perhaps God was going to judge and destroy America was pondered around many dinner tables.
Judgment or Victory?
One especially common reason for believing that a world which appears to be growing worse and worse can herald only one response from God – judgment, and most probably the end of the world – is because we see the very real presence of evil in our midst; the ever-abounding evidence of sin and moral decay. Confronted by this evidence, it is often supposed that the only work left for God is to judge the earth, and destroy it and the evil doers from its midst.
Yet, the history of revivals and spiritual awakenings of Christianity teach us that, often, precisely the opposite has been true. In fact, there have been many who, even in the midst of prevailing evil, have formed the opposite conviction.
Oh, yes, God is judging something. In fact, Jesus pronounced that judgment when He read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Jesus looked down the corridors of time and judged everything that would oppress His people. He saw the broken hearted healed, liberty for all of Earth's captives, the opening of prison to all who were bound, and the year of the Lord's favor proclaimed.
This proclamation is the juggernaut – the huge, powerful, overwhelming force that is moving throughout human history and throughout the earth today. Yes, God is judging something; He is judging sin, injustice, and death as He seeks to bring redemption to all Earth's captives and establish His Kingdom on Earth, just as it is in Heaven. And the good news is this: He does not intend to fail in His mission.
At this moment, darkness and light are on a collision course with history – "HIS-story." But the good news is this: The "stone" cut out of the mountain, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, stands to demolish every tyranny that the mind of man can think up to try to oppose it, and that stone will grind every tyranny "to powder" (Daniel 2:34-35). As the psalmist, David, advised thousands of years ago to all the kings of the earth: "Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way" (Psalm 2:12). (Photo via Pxhere)
The mission of the "stone" is clear and certain: Daniel tells us the stone represents the Kingdom that the God of Heaven is setting up, which is destined to fill all the earth and crush every obstinate thing that stands in its way to oppose it (Daniel 2:36-45).
A Time for Choosing
Today, we have front row seats and an opportunity to participate in bringing in the victory of Christ's Kingdom. Each one of us must decide if we will be a part of "His" story or sit it out on the sidelines.
The Pharisees stood to oppose Christ and His Kingdom and lost their place, their temple, and their nation, just as they feared. Saul, too, was "a Pharisee, born of Pharisees" (Acts 23:6); but when he encountered Jesus in the blinding light from Heaven, Saul submitted to Christ's Lordship, his sins were forgiven, and he was entrusted with the revelation of the entire New Covenant. The Roman Caesars stood up against Christ's Kingdom and tried to wipe it out. Rome finally fell to the Gospel.
And here is the good news, just as Daniel foretold: As we look down the corridors of time, Christ's Kingdom is still winning. True Christianity – which is a personal relationship with God as revealed in Jesus Christ – is the "A" team.
I recently read that in the year 100 AD, 70 years after Christ's Kingdom began, the world was less populated compared to today, and a little less than 0.3% of the world's population (1 out of 360 people) were Christians.
Today, as the population of the world is the largest in history, 30 percent of world's population now professes Christianity. The growth curve for the Kingdom of God is now exponential. It is going to be amazing to see just who will be saved in this coming great harvest of 1 billion souls.
As Jesus continues to take the curse from the earth, He will continue to cause His blessings to flow as far as the curse is found. This is as sure as the promise of God given by Isaiah the prophet about the Child to be born, who would be the Almighty Father and the Prince of Peace. Around 700 years before the birth of Jesus Christ, Isaiah foretold: "Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end... The Zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this" (Isaiah 9:7).
The Message of the Bells
During the dark days of the Civil War, the verses of the Christmas carol that brought such hope to bear in the midst of a trial that seemed unto death became known as "I heard the Bells on Christmas Day," penned by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, America's most beloved poet of the 19th century. (Photo via Pxhere)
Today, perhaps more than any time in our nation's history since that war, the "message" of the bells brings a new burst of hope, joy, and faith.
The Revelation
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a devout Christian, reflected on the dark days of the Civil War. It was Christmas. It had been a time of such great joy in his family. But his wife had died in a fire, and during the months leading up to the following Christmas, he sought the Lord for peace in his heart.
Beyond this, his dearly beloved son, Charles, had left to fight for the Union without consulting him. That was sad enough. He had just received a letter from the front lines that Charles had been seriously wounded. Filled with the deepest personal grief, despair and hopelessness, uncertain of the future, he sat contemplating what would become of the United States, of his family, and the world. Night after night, Longfellow cried out to God for an answer to all his sorrow.
It was early in the morning on Christmas Day that Longfellow received the answer he had sought from God. He got out his pen and a stack of white paper and began to write:
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!
Till ringing, singing, on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime
A chant sublime,
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!
Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!
And in despair I bowed my head:
"There is no peace on Earth," I said;
"For hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on Earth, good-will to men!"
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on Earth, good-will to men."
(I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)
Whatever you do, don't miss another ELIJAH LIST email! Subscribe at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Rose Weiner
Weiner Ministries
Email:Â RoseWeinerMinistries@gmail.com
Website: weinerministries.org
Rose Weiner is an author, a speaker and, along with her husband Bob, has been a missionary to Russia, the former Soviet Union, India, and Indonesia. Rose and Bob have written a Bible study series to build a strong foundation in the Word of God, as well as books on writing God's messages, dynamic speaking to move the hearts of men, Christian history, spirit-filled living, self-education, and children's books. Rose home schooled her four children, has nine grandchildren, and resides in Gainesville, Florida. Rose presently writes for a variety of publications on topics that challenge this generation on why Marxism is not a Christian doctrine, Spirit-filled living, our American Christian history, the Protestant Reformation, Wesley, how spiritual awakenings have transformed the world, and on education. Her books can be found at weinermedia.com.
To receive more words like this in YOUR inbox, subscribe FREE to the Elijah List at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Find us on:
* Facebook click here
* XAPiT click here
It's Christmas, and on this day we ponder such profound things: precious memories, hopeful wishes, and the love we have for the ONE whose birth we celebrate this day...Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
