I was sitting in the dark listening to the music of Christmas. I was skipping secular songs and ones that I didn’t know the words. I like them but I wanted the inspiration so I was focusing on the real Christmas carols. Joy to the World came up and I was immersing myself in the message. I kept waiting for one particular verse and it never showed up. I knew there were four verses but they only sang three. What did they leave out?
The verse about sin.
“No more let sin and sorrow grow”It seems that even classic Christmas carols must be edited to stifle the message of Christmas. Our world loves to be reminded of Joy to the World. It is not so anxious to be reminded that the problem that Christmas was addressing was sin.
Yes, there was a baby in a manger and a young mother. Yes, there are shepherds and wise men. Yes, the angels had a great message. No, that was not the complete story. There is a reason God had to break into history. There is a reason the Eternal Son became man. There was a reason for the virgin birth.
We needed a savior. That is what the name Jesus means.
Sing all the verses this year. If you can’t get it on your recordings then do it in your heart. Take the time to get out a hymnal and look at the actual words.
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns.
Merry Christmas.
homo unius libri
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Comments are welcome. Feel free to agree or disagree but keep it clean, courteous and short. I heard some shorthand on a podcast: TLDR, Too long, didn't read.