The Twelve Words of Christmas

No, not “The Twelve Days of Christmas” although that’s a fun song to sing. Most of this blog post comes from a summary of a talk by Louie Giglio, a fantastic Bible teacher whom I’ve just discovered, thanks to my friend, Stephanie.

Louie mentions that his family, as many do, loved to sing Christmas songs among which was “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” The custom was to assign each family member a day in the song. The high point of hilarity was assigning the most tone-deaf member of the family the “first day” as he would be the verse-ender for each stanza and consequently, bring everyone to tears as they held their sides in rib-splitting laughter.

Regardless of how much joy we derive from singing Christmas songs, no one would argue that they bring lasting joy, nor do they bring eternal salvation.

That was left to the One of whom the angels sang to those frightened shepherds on that Bethlehem hillside 2,000 plus years ago.

This unique message in song from God’s messengers was even more of a stellar event because He had been silent for 400 years—from the time when the prophet Malachi penned his last words until that moment when the Baby broke that silence with his first cry.

Christmas Eve 1906 brought forth another unique happening. Reginald Fessenden had worked in Edison’s lab experimenting with sound transmission. That Christmas Eve he decided to go to the lab and see if he could transmit his voice to ships equipped with receivers sailing the Atlantic. He was successful in doing so, reading the Christmas story from Luke 2. Fessenden was a classically trained musician and had brought his violin along with him to the lab. He picked it up and began to play “O Holy Night.”

It gives me goose bumps to imagine how those ship captains must have felt when they heard, seemingly out of nowhere, the words of the Christmas story and then a beautiful Christmas carol. It had to have been the most momentous Christmas Eve of their lives.

Back to the twelve words of Christmas. They are, “A Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord.”  That trumps "The Twelve Days of Christmas" beyond measure.

Angels Around and Amongst

Mourning, anger, and fear. Shootings at schools and churches, in nightclubs, and holiday parties. Where can God be in all of this? Would you believe, right there—beside those who weep and the fearful? He has always been “there” and will always be “there.” We often don’t understand His timetable, but His time is always the right time—in the end. And the end is really what matters.

Several thousand years ago a man named Jacob was running away from home for fear that his twin brother, Esau, would find him and kill him. Jacob had a good reason to fear Esau because he had traded a bowl of delectable stew for Esau’s birthright—Esau definitely feeling food was most important. Then with a little help from his mother, Jacob stole his brother’s blessing as the firstborn. And that was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back.

In the 28^th chapter of Genesis we find Jacob running for his life, camping out in the desert, so destitute of creature comforts he uses a rock for a pillow. Somehow finding a comfortable crevice to fit his head, Jacob goes to sleep—and then to dream. He sees a ladder stretching from earth to heaven with angels going up and down. To add to this awesome setting, God is standing above the ladder speaking directly to Jacob and identifying Himself as being the Lord God of Abraham (Jacob’s grandfather) and the God of Isaac (Jacob’s father). God goes on to say He is giving the land where Jacob is sleeping to him and his descendants, the number of which will be as numerous as the dust of the earth. Most importantly, God tells Jacob, “In you and your seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”

Then God says to Jacob, “I am with you and will keep you wherever you go....” When Jacob woke up he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” Not surprising since he was camping in a pretty inhospitable area, not a spot one would consider God inhabiting.

Today we may be wandering in our own kind of desert. Maybe it’s grief due to death of loved ones or broken relationships, suffering from chronic illness, loss of a job, or fear of life in general.

All of God’s children can depend on His statement to Jacob—“I am with you”—no matter the type of desert. The truth of that statement can also be based on an event about 2000 years ago when a baby was born in a Bethlehem stable. That baby was Jesus—Immanuel—God with us. Announced by His heavenly messengers, the angels sang of His birth, this One foretold to be of Jacob’s seed. For Jacob’s son, Judah, founded the tribe of Judah from which came the Lion of Judah, the Savior of the World.

God IS with us!!