The favorite Christmas song poll made the round in our mini-van as we traveled to my in-law’s family Christmas celebration. We had to name our favorite song and artist. I have two favorite – one serious and one not so much. My favorite (traditional) Christmas song is “I heard the Bells on Christmas Day” by Casting Crowns.
One only needs to read the news headlines to know the truth of the lyrics from “I heard the Bells on Christmas Day”:
“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 me”
Those lyrics reminds me of this quote by Sinclair Ferguson:
The world, all of mankind, desperately needs the only one who can bring true and lasting “Peace on earth, Good will to men” – Jesus Christ. That is worth celebrating.
My non-traditional, non-serious favorite Christmas song is “Heat Miser” by Thousand Foot Krutch.
Heat Miser is my anthem as I’m confined in my basement pedaling to nowhere on the trainer. Maybe, it’s a secret prayer for the Heat Miser to warm things up so I can escape the trainer and get back on the road.
I consider it a grave sin to listen to Christmas music prior to Thanksgiving. However, the link to Joy to the World by Pentatonix was a temptation that I could not resist.
I confess a degree of self-righteousness as I listened to Pentatonix’s performance. I piously wondered if they really believed what they were singing. Consider the lyrics:
Joy to The world! the Lord is come
Let earth receive her King
Let ev’ry heart prepare him room
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven and nature sing
Joy to the world! the Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love
And wonders of His love
And wonder wonders of His love
I don’t know what the members of Pentatonix believe. I hope they believe that the Savior, the King, the Lord has come. I hope they believe that He rules the world with truth and grace and that their hearts have prepared room for Christ.
They may believe or it may just be a song that will make them money during the Christmas season.
My self-righteousness was confronted with my hypocrisy. I wondered how many times that I have sung Joy to the World without meaning it; how many times has a worship song emanated from my lungs and not my heart; how many times have I nodded along with a secular song, glorifying vileness…and meant it.
This Christmas season there will be an array of motivations that will not glorify God. We will get the opportunity to see them in the market and pew. I suggest that before we rant against those who are missing the “reason for the season”, we check to be sure that we truly mean what is coming out of our own mouths.
May this Christmas season be a personal season of worship to the glory of God – it is a matter of infinite importance.
“The Great God values not the service of men, if the heart be not in it: The Lord sees and judges the heart; he has no regard to outward forms of worship, if there be no inward adoration, if no devout affection be employed therein. It is therefore a matter of infinite importance, to have the whole heart engaged steadfastly to God.”
― Isaac Watts, (wrote Joy to the World in 1719)
A DEVOTED LIFE 