Christ in the Carols Series Episode 6

Hello, my walking friend! Today is the 6th episode in the Christ in the Carols series. In each podcast during this series we will listen to the lyrics of different Christmas carols and learn a little about the history of the song.

Today’s Christmas carol is O Holy Night and the Bible verse we will be meditating on is Philippians 2:10-11:
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Let’s listen to the lyrics of O Holy Night:

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of our dear Saviour’s birth.
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night divine, O night, O night Divine.
Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here come the wise men from the Orient land.
The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger;
In all our trials born to be our friend.
He knows our need, to our weaknesses no stranger,
Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend!
Behold your King, Before Him lowly bend!
Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;
And in His name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever,
His power and glory evermore proclaim.
His power and glory evermore proclaim.

O Holy Night has a very fascinating origin story and proves to us that God can use all kinds of people, even those who don’t believe in him, for his purposes. In 1843, a parish priest in the south of France had recently renovated their church organ. The priest, Father Petitjean asked Placid Cappeau, a member of the community, to write a poem to celebrate the renovation of the organ.

Now, Cappeau has a very interesting story himself. His father was a cooper. A cooper is someone who would have made casks, barrels, and the like. Placid would have followed in his father’s footsteps, except that when we he was a child, his friend accidentally shot his hand. His hand had to be amputated and Placid turned to a life of academics instead of being a cooper. He was a well-educated man who had a focus on literature.

This was probably why Father Petitjean asked Placid Cappeau, an avowed athiest, to pen the poem that would later become O Holy Night. Placid agreed and, after studying the gospel of Luke, wrote the poem.

An opera singer named Emily Laurie read the poem and asked her friend, a Jewish composer named Adolphe Adam, to write the music for the words. Emily Laurie later sang the new song, O Holy Night, at the church and the parishioners loved it. And that was the birth of one of our most beloved carols – a poem written by an atheist, with music composed by someone from the Jewish faith, to commemorate the renovation of an organ.
When you listen to the words of the song and hear the beautiful melody – does it amaze you that they were written by men who didn’t even acknowledge the deity of Jesus? It seems to me that God inspired these men to use their talents to bring Jesus glory – and that takes us right back to today’s verse Philippians 2:10-11:
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Take some time to let the words and meaning of O Holy Night, and the words of Philippians 2:10-11 sink deep into your heart and soul.

You are now at the halfway point of your walk. If you need to be back in 10 minutes, this would be the time to turn around and head back.

The second half of our walk is an opportunity for reflection, meditation, and prayer. For many of us, myself included, this might feel challenging. But the spiritual rewards of developing this discipline are great and so is the power of the Holy Spirit to help us. So let’s start with some questions to guide you followed by a short interlude for reflection.

One of the verses says in the carol O Holy Night:
The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger;
In all our trials born to be our friend.
How does it make you feel to know that Jesus understands your trials and tribulations because he, too, had trials and tribulations?

Jesus is our Savior. Jesus is the King of Kings. But Jesus is also our friend. Take some time to consider that Jesus, your friend, walks with you always.

In the carol, we are reminded:
Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Jesus is love and he loves you. Think of ways that you can tangibly show Jesus you love him.

Now let’s listen again to today’s verse one more time Philippians 2:10-11:
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Is there anything else you would like to talk to Jesus about? Remember, he is right there with you, walking with you, and he is eager for you to share all that is on your heart and mind with him. Take some time to talk to and to thank Jesus now.

Now I am going to pray for us:

Dear Jesus,
It was a holy night when you entered our world as an innocent baby. It’s hard to fully understand a love as great as yours. It’s humbling to know that you love us so much that you would leave heaven to come to earth to suffer for us. Oh, it was a holy night, a night divine, and there is nothing we can do to deserve the gift of salvation you came to give us. Your gospel is peace, Jesus, peace between sinful people and a holy creator. We pray that the hearts of people everywhere would be open to receive your love. Help those of us who call you Lord always remember that one day you will come again in glory and let us live to love you until you return. Amen.

Well, you did it! Another 10 minutes of walking and another opportunity to build the spiritual discipline of prayer and quiet time with the Lord. I’m grateful for you and I’m grateful you took the time to walk with me today. But more importantly, you walked with Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

For more Walk with Jesus resources, including the Walk with Jesus 21 day scripture, devotional, and guided prayer journal book for walkers, go to WalkwithJesusDevotional.com. You will find the URL for the show notes for this podcast in the episode description. The show notes will include a video of the carol, O Holy Night.

I hope we can walk together again tomorrow, friend. Until then, God bless you as you walk with Jesus.