Tag: Christmas

Christmas carols in the Scriptures – The First Noel

Christmas carols

While many Christmas carols sing of the shepherds and angels, including “The First Noel,” another song about shepherds takes its text straight from scripture.

Shepherds

Okay, truth be told, when I think of a Christmas carol about shepherds I immediately go to “The First Noel.” But when I read through the verses I discovered the shepherds are mostly relegated to the first verse. A more comprehensive account of the shepherds’ tale comes from “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks,” but that’s not one at the top of the Christmas carols most of us know list.

The First Noel

The first verse of “The First Noel” narrates the shepherds’ encounter with the angel who tells them of the birth of the Messiah. This well-known carol is probably the most familiar account of the shepherd’s role in the nativity story. It is not however the most complete.

While Shepherd’s Watched Their Flocks

That honor goes to “While Shepherd’s Watched Their Flocks,” which is pretty much the full account of the scripture passage about the shepherds in song. Here’s the narrative in the King James Version.

Scripture passage

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:8-14 KJV

Traditional Christmas carols

Of course when my Bible study came to this part of scripture we thought of all the traditional Christmas carols we remembered:

The First Noel

Silent Night, Holy Night

Angels We Have Heard On High

Hark the Herald Angels Sing

O Come All Ye Faithful

Joy to the World

Shepherds in their routine

One thing I notice as I look at these Bible verses is that the shepherds were at work, in their routine, out in the fields when heaven sent a messenger to tell them of the good news, the joyous news.

Appearance of an angel

The unexpected appearance of an angel startled, even frightened them. Why?

God’s messenger

Were they surprised to hear from heaven because it was unusual or because they didn’t think they were the type to receive a message from one of God’s messengers?

Live in expectation

How do we approach this season? Are we in the middle of our routine, one in which we might unexpectedly encounter the hope of heaven? Do we live in expectation of the joyous news?

As we go about our days in this Advent season, may our hearts be open to hear from heaven.

Beyond The First Noel

Did you know that although the wise men and the shepherds are merged in “The First Noel,” they are not found in the same Gospel account of the birth of Jesus? For insight into their whereabouts, read the missing manger part 1 and 2.

The Christmas story and the missing manger part 1

The Christmas story and the missing manger part 2

Christmas carols in the Scriptures – O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Christmas carols in the Scriptures – O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Christmas carols draw us into the season and some, like “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”, lead us into Scripture. Find connection to the carol and to Jesus as we take a closer look at this song of Advent.

Jesus in New Testament

When my Bible study read through the Bible we came across Jesus much sooner than we thought we would. We knew the story of the birth of Jesus was in the New Testament. We didn’t know where (it’s not in all the Gospels), we just knew Christ’s birth came in the New Testament.

Jesus in Old Testament

Imagine our surprise when we recognized references to the Son of God in Old Testament books like Isaiah and Malachi.

Now that I think of it, finding Jesus in Isaiah, a Major Prophet, and Malachi, a Minor Prophet, makes sense now, but it didn’t then.

Scripture and Christmas carol

We’d read a passage of Scripture and find among the verses a familiar phrase of a Christmas carol – though which one wasn’t immediately clear.

The verse out of context caused us to rack our brains to figure out which song the words were from, but that was half the fun.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

One such song was “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” which may not be as well known in caroling circles, but it has some of the richest connections to Scripture in my mind, starting with the title.

Waiting for Emmanuel

“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” speaks to the anticipation, the waiting for Emmanuel to arrive.

Who is this Emmanuel? I thought we were talking about Jesus. We are. Emmanuel is Jesus.

Emmanuel, God with us

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 1:23 KJV

Emmanuel. God with us.

In this season of chaos I like to remember this phrase, Emmanuel, God with us.

Passage in Isaiah

This verse references a passage in Isaiah.

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 KJV

Emmanuel and Immanuel are the same Jesus.

Matthew’s Gospel draws forward the prophecy given in the Old Testament Book of Isaiah.

Wow, all that from a song title.

Root of Jesse

Another phrase I came across while we were reading was from Isaiah 11:10. I recognized most of one of the verses of the hymn.

 “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.” Isaiah 11:10 KJV

If this wording seems a little confusing, don’t worry. Paul brings up this passage from Isaiah in the Book of Romans.

While the King James Version is reflective of the song verse, we’ll look at the New International Version for a slightly different translation of the words.

“And again, Isaiah says,

‘The Root of Jesse will spring up,
    one who will arise to rule over the nations;
    in him the Gentiles will hope.’” Romans 15:12 NIV

Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah

So who exactly is Jesse?

Jesse was the father of David (Ruth 4:22), King David (Matthew 1:6), who is in the family line of Jesus. (Matthew 1:1)

“This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Matthew 1:1 NIV

Receive Christ

“Root of Jesse” reminds me of a verse from the New Testament book Colossians.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” Colossians 2:6-7 NIV

Live our lives rooted in him. Emmanuel, God with us.

Another song with Scripture connection:

Music Speaks: Is He Worthy? – Scripture in song

Piano books and Bible books – an easy way to learn

Starting with simple arrangements was an easy way to learn Christmas songs on the piano. What if understanding the Bible were just a matter of repetition?

Piano books

When I was growing up, I wanted to learn how to play the piano. Well, actually, I don’t know that I wanted to learn as much as I wanted to already know how to play. Whenever I walked past the church piano I’d plunk a few notes, not knowing the names of the keys, just wishing I could play.

I eventually took piano lessons as an adult and really enjoyed learning Christmas songs. The melodies were familiar and piano books full of Christmas music abound at every level. From simple melodies played one note at a time to chord accompaniments and artful arrangements, you can find music that matches whatever skill you have.

Increasing skill – start with the easy versions

This was such a wonderful discovery for me. I could start with the easy versions, then gradually move to more challenging arrangements. This process didn’t feel like work because I could find something easy to play and enjoy playing as I slowly increased my skill for the next layer of difficulty or challenge.

Playing Christmas carols

One year as I sat at the piano playing the Christmas carols I had learned the year before, I realized they were easy! What I had initially struggled with and worked hard to learn was now within my ability.

When had that happened?

A strategy

I engaged this as a strategy for playing. I would start the holiday season with the songs I had learned the previous year, which gave me a great boost of confidence. Then I started learning a slightly more difficult arrangement or song that required a little more technical skill.

The gradual increase in challenge kept the process from feeling tedious and I still enjoyed playing the Christmas music, which was kind of the whole point, right?

Learn gradually

So now, every year, I start with the songs and arrangements I already know, then move on to the next degree of mastery. I learn gradually and the process doesn’t feel tedious.

I am rewarded with finding deeper layers of richness in the music.

Each year I see how far I’ve come, what all I have accomplished in the interim, and discover what new skills I’ve acquired.

Bible books

Reading the Bible can be like that too.

Start with a children’s version of a story, picture books are best, then seek out the scripture passage in the Bible. Don’t worry if you don’t understand the Bible version on the first read. Or if it feels boring to read.

If you keep coming back to it you’ll probably discover something new you didn’t notice before.

You’ll also acquire observation and study skills over time drawing out more of the treasure of what you are reading.

Keep coming back to the Bible. I think you’ll be glad you did.