Day 10 – Hark the Herald Angels Sing!
When was the last time you remember being present at the birth of a child or soon after? Maybe it was the child of a friend. Or maybe your own child. Can you remember one of the first things people began saying when seeing the child?
“He looks just like you!” “She has your mouth!” “He has your nose!” It brings great joy to see the similarities in our child’s features that resemble our own.
Have you ever thought God feels the same way? Amazing to think that God chose to come dressed in human flesh! He tells us that we are made in His image, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. “ (Genesis 1:27) But He not only tells us this, He chooses to embody himself in our flesh through Jesus that we might know Him, touch Him, see Him, hear His voice, and watch His ways.
Maybe He looks at us and says to the angels, “Oh! Did you see he demonstrated my kindness to the homeless man?” or “Did you see her reveal my forgiveness rather than revenge when she was wronged?” Or hopefully, “Look how much he looks more like Jesus every day!”
And Jesus comes that we might not only be forgiven but reconciled to God, the Father, forever. In other words, when we believe that Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and receive His forgiveness, any obstruction or distance between God and us is completely eliminated. We are reconciled in our relationship with Him forever. We are granted a second birth into eternal, never-ending life in His Presence.
This carol extols God for loving us enough to do this. Let’s hold this truth in our hearts throughout this day and every day!
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King:
peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations, rise,
join the triumph of the skies;
with th’angelic hosts proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Refrain:
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King”
Christ, by highest heaven adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord,
late in time behold him come,
offspring of the Virgin’s womb:
veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
hail th’incarnate Deity,
pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus, our Immanuel.
Refrain:
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King”
Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
risen with healing in his wings.
Mild he lays his glory by,
born that we no more may die,
born to raise us from the earth,
born to give us second birth.
Refrain:
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King”
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)
“The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish. (John 1:14 The Message)
