Charles Wesley was walking to church one Christmas morning when he was inspired by the sound of all the London church bells ringing. He subsequently wrote a poem which he intended to be read every year on Christmas Day, and it eventually became one of the world's most beloved carols. The power of Christmas carols lies in the fact that the whole gospel is contained within these songs; that is especially true of this one as this carol tells us about what Jesus has accomplished for us through his birth, what Jesus has accomplished for us through his death, and what Jesus has accomplished for us through his resurrection. 

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During this Advent season, we will explore the gospel message contained in some of our favorite hymns. This week we turn to “What Child Is This?” This carol was written by William Chatterton Dix who established himself as a successful businessman managing an insurance office in Glasgow, Scotland. But during his late ‘20s he was struck with a near-fatal illness which threw him into a severe depression. While recovering from his illness, he had a spiritual awakening which changed him forever. Dix became an avid reader of the Bible which inspired him to write hymns such as this familiar classic.

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This Advent, we are engaging in a series focused on the gospel in some of our favorite Christmas carols. We begin this sermon series by looking closely at “Joy to the World,” which is based on Psalm 98. The song describes the second coming of Jesus as the risen and reigning king, to restore and renew all things. As we examine this song, we will look at the cause for joy: the Lord has come, the scope of joy: as far as the curse is found, and the call to joy: repeat the sounding joy.

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Jesus famously said, "Wherever your treasure is, there will your heart be also." We all have something we treasure, and our heart moves to be wherever we place it. In other words, our identity is bound up with our treasure. We become whatever we most love. The problem, from Jesus' point of view, is not that we treasure something. The problem is that we often treasure the wrong thing.

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Right in the middle of the greatest sermon ever told, Jesus offers the greatest prayer ever uttered. The Lord's Prayer may be the most recited prayer in the entire history of human civilization. Though it is familiar, we may fail to appreciate its significance and power. As Jesus lays out God's new way of being human in the Sermon on the Mount, he leads his followers through the school of prayer. If you have ever struggled to know how prayer works, or if prayer works, then this message is for you.

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One of the most common reasons why people reject Christianity is because of the hypocrisy of Christians. But if we have a problem with the way in which religion is often practiced, we can take comfort in the fact that Jesus is even more troubled by counterfeit forms of spirituality than we are. As we continue our exploration of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reveals the marks of false spirituality so that we might practice the real thing.

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