Tis’ the season to be singing, hymns of joy, hymns of light, hymns of royal beauty bright, hymns of one most Holy Night! Thanks to the hymn writers, Christmas is never without a soundtrack — melodies rich with heritage sung across generations, in sanctuaries, on street corners, and in the quiet of firelit homes.
Christmas hymns have the power to proclaim the season’s arrival... but does their familiarity lull us into missing their notes of truths? This Christmas, can our hearts wake up to the words we sing?
WordGo’s Advent course, Born to Dwell, pairs Scripture with four classic Christmas hymns to rekindle your heart. To sing these songs anew, together let’s examine a few verses, then ask three questions to respond...
Think:
Who are the key players and what are they doing?
What details of conversation, declaration, or action seem important?
Notice facts from the hymn, then try recapping the verses:
- Angels, messengers from God’s presence, declare Jesus’ arrival.
- Shepherds faithfully at work receive Light’s news, God’s here!
- Believers today worship and wait for the Lord to come again.
- Sinners repent and receive freedom from guilt and death.
- Infant Jesus is King of all.
Witnesses of the Incarnation worship Christ as King, and call us to worship!
Think:
What do these lyrics reveal about God? About people?
What promises, warnings or commands do you see?
Pull truths from the text, then draw a few conclusions:
- God is ... Creator, Messiah, Christ, King, God with us, Lord, Justice, Mercy, Trinity.
- We are ... earthly, sinful, longing, hopeful, fearful, repenting, once guilty, made free.
- Command: Come and worship! Promise: Christ is Messiah.
The God of all glory became God with us to make His justice and mercy known.
Christ is the Light who breaks sin’s chains; He will come again to rule and reign.
Jesus is worthy of worship today, and one day will be worshipped by all.
Think:
How can I praise God for who He’s revealed to be?
Does my thinking or behavior sing in tune with this hymn?
Respond with a prayer of your own, reflecting the hymn’s renewed meaning in your heart.
God, You are all-powerful, dwelling above me in every way. But God, You came to Earth — You set foot on the ground as a baby. Angels declared Jesus’ arrival, and faithful people worshipped You even then.
Lord, I don’t worship You wholeheartedly, though I know the whole story — Jesus’ life, death, and Resurrection. Lord, thank You for King Jesus who bore my death sentence and frees me from sin’s grip.
Cause me to bow rightly before You and repent in confidence of Jesus’ Name. May my worship be in truth. May my whole heart long to worship Christ always!
Take a moment and sing the hymn out loud. Does your heart and mind newly connect to the words? Across time, hymn writers have modeled how to take the truths of Scripture and offer them back to the Lord as a joyful declaration of who He is and what He’s done. So who could you share this activity with? Could your Bible study, church group, or family slow down and gather round a Christmas hymn to ask...
...what’s this hymn about?
...what do we learn?
...and how will we apply it?
May the words we sing be more than a Christmas soundtrack or seasonal tradition — let them ring out as God’s greatest news going forth to the world from the hearts of Christ’s own!
