God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. —1 John 1:5 Light has been a consistent motive found in Christmas celebrations throughout history. From the legend of St. Lucy’s candle headdress which enlivens the winter solstice in Scandinavia, to the “star singer” processions of central Europe where children re-enact the visit of the Magi while singing hymns,…
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. —Matthew 2:16 December 28 (or in our case,…
One of the joyous difficulties of the Advent season is finding a way to include in the service all the wonderful hymns and carols that we only get to sing during this time of year—an impossible task, for sure. Today, we will get to sing one of the more obscure members of the Christmas carol tradition. Come All You Worthy…
Marvel now, O Heaven and Earth That the Lord chose such a birth. Last week, we heard from Psalm 24:1-2 about Christ as the mighty creator of the universe. Next week, we’ll celebrate Him as the coming “King of Glory” (Psalm 24:7-10). But this Sunday, many of the Advent hymns we’ll be singing focus on the incarnation of Christ as…
Q. How doth Christ execute the office of a prophet? A. Christ executeth the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by His Word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation. —Westminster Shorter Catechism Have you ever noticed how many Advent hymns and carols are based on texts from the Old Testament prophets? This morning, we’ll sing…
This may be the last Sunday in November, but it is also the first Sunday of the church year: the beginning of the season of Advent. Advent is usually observed as a season of confession, preparation, and anticipation, looking forward to the birth of Christ on Christmas Day. You’ll notice several added elements in the service this morning: lighting…
Here at the end of November, our hearts turn to the coming Thanksgiving holiday, as do many of the hymns in this morning’s service. We begin worship with the hymn Come, Ye Thankful People Come, which reminds us of the Lord’s provision for our earthly needs (“God, our maker, does provide”), and looks forward to the final harvest (“For the…
As we continue this series on the Psalms, which we began last week and will continue through Advent to Epiphany, we’ll look at Psalm 19 for the next two weeks. The first half of this psalm celebrates God’s general revelation: how the “book of nature” (as medieval theologians called it) declares God’s glory. A number of the hymns this morning,…
Nick Batzig is an associate editor for Ligonier Ministries and is a pastor at Wayside PCA in Signal Mountain, TN. Nick served as the organizing pastor of New Covenant Presbyterian Church in Richmond Hill, GA from 2009-2018. Nick also served as the editor of Reformation21 and the Christward Collective—sites of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. Nick regularly writes for Tabletalk…
G.K. Chesterton famously wrote, “Thanks are the highest form of thought” and “gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” Having been away from Parish for an entire month, Karen and I feel the truth of that perhaps more than ever. We know that we are blessed beyond measure—and we are so glad we are able to express it so clearly together…