Night Of Carols 2024

for several years. It started out with just, it started out with one, we decided to do this for the very first time and I think the whole congregation sang for an half hour to 45 minutes and it about killed us.

And so after that we decided to do something a little bit different and this has developed over the years and I'm so thankful for it.

You know music is a gift from God to mankind and it's a wonderful, wonderful gift as we've already seen in the prelude here with the young people or the children playing for us.

But we ought to use it as well for worship and so tonight we're going to worship God through music.

So I'm gonna pray and then we will get started and in our worship as we sing to the

Lord, as we hear others sing and bring the message to us. So let's pray. Father, we are so thankful that music is a part of the good gifts you've given to all men and we're thankful that as your people we can take that good gift and use it to honor and glorify you by singing to you, by hearing the

Word of God sung to us in all these things that we do here tonight. We pray that you would be honored, that we would catch again an understanding, a deeper understanding of what it means for the

Lord Jesus to have come to earth to bear our burdens, to become one of us so that we might live.

And so now Lord we commit this time to you and we thank you and pray that you would accept our worship through Jesus as we sing together, as we as we listen and as we worship here in Jesus' name.

Amen. Those who dwelt in the land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.

You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy. They rejoice before you as with the joy of the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.

For the yoke of his burden and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his presser, you have broken as on the day of Midian.

For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name should be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. The increase of his government and of peace there will be no end.

On the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish it and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time and forevermore.

The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will do this. I'll have morms in lonely exile here.

The Son of God rejoices on times it's gay.

To save us all from Satan. Blessed be the child because Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly.

He resolved to divorce her quietly. But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the

Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace

Mary as your wife. For the one conceived in her is from the

Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you are to give him the name

Jesus because he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the

Lord had said through the prophet. Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and they will call him

Emmanuel, which means God with us. When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the

Lord had commanded him and embraced Mary as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son and he gave him the name

Jesus. On the screen as we sing,

O come all ye faithful. The Lord appeared and they were filled with fear and the angel said to them, fear not for behold

I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a

Savior who is Christ the Lord and this will be a sign for you. You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, glory, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased.

When the angel went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the

Lord has made known to us. And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger.

And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.

And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen as it had been told them.

This knee -top, worn out and cold feet, a dab, the voice of Dawson, oh fierce, and yet strangely calm.

Be of use of great joy, your

Savior is come. He is as a son, asleep on, he loves your say as a son.

There was a boy, went for a walk down by the streams.

Picked out some rocks and stepped out on the battlefield.

No shield or sword for him to wield.

The giant jeered and boasted loud. Just tell this

Christ, and slung it round singing to God.

For those that speak of Jesus, so far as Christmas carols do go.

But one that's played again and again asks Mary if her son, she really did know.

I've always found this carol somewhat ludicrous. She was his mother after all.

The bond between a good parent and a child is one of the strongest to recall.

But yet, but yet, Mary was human and though again and again she was told, yet the human mind is a finite mind and there are things it just cannot hold.

Mary was told plainly on that awesome night that the Son of God she would bear. But I'm not sure she fully understood all that would mean for her.

And in the cave beside the inn, the pain -filled night of his birth, I'm not sure she fully understood why the shepherds were told, peace on earth.

Then there was the mad rush to the temple where she was told a sword would pierce her soul. I've no doubt she chewed on this one for three decades, plus a few years more.

And then there were the magi and then to Egypt they flew. After that, things descended into simple chaos as her children grew.

And here is where it gets interesting because again and again she was told, yet the human mind is a finite mind and there are just some things it cannot hold.

When Jesus was 12 and at the temple, she seems to have forgotten who he was. All that comes out in that tale is the power of a mother's deep love.

Mary remembers at the wedding in Cana but seems to forget later on. For some reason, she thinks that madness has gripped her extraordinary son.

Mary is there at the foot of the cross, grieving as Jesus entrusts her to John. But I still don't think she fully understands until the spirit comes to her later on.

So why this oddity? Why does Mary sometimes know and sometimes not?

Can it be as simple as during the business of life, this important thing was simply forgot?

Amazing as it sounds, I think the answer is yes. Because though again and again she was told,

Mary was human and a human's finite mind has some things it just cannot seem to hold.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was

Simon, Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel and the

Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the

Lord Christ. And he came to the Spirit and to the temple. And when the parents brought in the child

Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and blessed

God and said, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word.

For my eyes have seen your salvation, that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples a light for the revelation to the

Gentiles and for the glory to your people Israel. Thank you. People said this is a great time of the year.

I'm going to pray and close this out in prayer in a moment. But I want to invite everyone here to enjoy food and drink and fellowship in the back.

And so I'll pray over this night. I'll pray over this food and the fellowship that we'll get to enjoy now together.

Let us pray. Oh Father, what kindness you have shown to your people. What unthinkable mercies and grace when we consider our great sin, when we consider

Jesus Christ who is our great Lord, our great King, our great Savior. Our sin was great, but his grace was greater.

So Lord, help us to be a happy people. Let us be a joyful people. Let us this Christmas season be so filled with joy that Jesus Christ has come, true

God, true God, taken on true flesh, true flesh, so that we can be close and near to you.

So Lord, let us worship him while we eat. Let us worship him while we fellowship.

Let us worship him this Christmas season for he is worthy of it all.

So we praise you and thank you. Bless this food to our body. Bless this evening that we have. May our conversations glorify you.

And may our hearts lift up to you because you have done good things for your people. So we praise you and we thank you in the name of our