We’re coming up on the Christmas holiday. With that will come the carols and songs of the seasons. We’ll gladly hum or sing along. But when we do that, are we really aware of what we are singing?

We’ll sing “Joy to the World.” And we’ll smile as we join in the chorus. But listen to the words:

Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King. Joy to the world, the Savior reigns. He rules the world with truth and grace and makes the nations prove the glories of His righteousness.

Those words, sung so readily, echo massive Biblical ideas. There is a King who is currently reigning over the world. A Savior has come to rescue people from death and sin. This great Savior King is ruling the world and is making His grace and truth and glory and righteousness known. Yes, we don’t yet see the fullness of the expanse of His rule, but that doesn’t mean the world is spinning out of control, that His sovereign reign is at risk, or that we who know this Savior are not already on “the winning side” (by grace alone!).

Here’s how the author of the letter to the Hebrews put it:

“‘You [God] have put all things in subjection under His [the Son’s] feet.’ For in subjecting all things to Him, He left nothing the is not subject to Him. But now we do not meet see all things subjected to Him. But we do see Him.” (Hebrews 2:8-9)

So, do we know the words? Do we whole-heartedly grasp the Biblical reality that forms the foundation for the carols we sing? Our celebrating the coming of Jesus into the world might just become more profound and deeply felt, more overflowing with passionate joy, if we paused and reflected on the truth of the words we so readily sing.

(If you want some encouragement to think more deeply about the “Christmas story,” consider joining us for an online class on “What the angels knew” about Christmas. Find more information here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/christmas-what-the-angels-knew-tickets-465772456957)