Singing          It’s not news that joyful music has always been associated with Christmas. As far back as the fourth century, Christmas carols were being written by a Christian named Aurelius Clemens Prudentius. He was born in Spain in 348 A.D. and spent most of his life serving in the Roman government. He was trained as a lawyer and also spent time as a powerful judge. Eventually he became a court official for the Emperor himself. 

           All of the recognition and honor that Mr. Prudentius enjoyed never brought him the satisfaction that he was expecting. At age 57 he turned his back on his illustrious career and spent the rest of his life writing Christian poetry. As a result, he became one of the favorite Christian poets during the Middle Ages.

           The Christmas carol O Chief Of Cities, Bethlehem was written by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius somewhere between 405 and 413 A.D. In that song he captured the core message of Christmas.

           In one verse of that carol he explained that the baby Jesus was actually God in the flesh.

 

Beyond the sun in splendor bright,
Above you stands a wondrous light
Proclaiming from the conscious skies
That here, in flesh, the Godhead lies.

          This mirrors what the Bible says in Isaiah 7:14: “… a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel

[God with us]”

           Since Jesus is God, Mr. Prudentius reminds us in the next verse that He deserves to be worshiped.

 

The wise men, seeing Him so fair,
Bow low before Him, and with prayer
Their treasured eastern gifts unfold
Of incense, myrrh, and royal gold.

           Some 33 years later, the Apostle Thomas worshiped the risen Christ, and addressed Him as “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).

           In the next verse, the song writer captures the ironic truth that Jesus is a King, yet one who came to die for our sins.

 

The golden tribute owns Him King,
But frankincense to God they bring,
And last, prophetic sign, with myrrh,
They shadow forth His sepulcher.

           Jesus Himself declared, “… I lay down My life so that I may take it again” (John 10:17).

           Then in the last triumphant verse of this song Aurelius Prudentius declares the ultimate reason why Jesus came to earth to die for those who will trust in Him.

 O Jesus, whom the Gentiles see,

With Father, Spirit, One in Three:
To You, O God, be glory giv’n
By saints [or Christians] on earth and saints in Heav’n.

           Jesus came to earth to affirm to all of us how glorious He is. Angels made that clear when they announced the birth of Christ by saying, “Glory to God in the highest…”(Luke 2:14). In one of his letters, Paul reminded Christians that, “you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:20).

           The life and death of Christ bring Him great glory, or splendor. In Jesus, God’s holy justice was satisfied. The penalty for our sin was paid for by Christ’s voluntary, sacrificial death for us on the cross. Jesus was as innocent on the day He died as He was on the day He was born. That is something that could never be said about any other person in the world. We are all sinners, sentenced to death because God is holy. Yet Jesus, who did not deserve death, died for us. That proves how much God loves us and makes it possible for us to become His children.

           As you celebrate the birth of Christ this week, embrace His gift of forgiveness and worship Him as your Lord and King.