Hymns for the Nativity: VII

Hymn VII of Charles Wesley's 'Hymns for the Nativity of Our Lord':

1. All Glory to GOD, and Peace upon Earth

Be publish'd abroad at JESUS's Birth;

The Forfeited Favour of Heaven we find

Restor'd in the Saviour and Friend of Mankind.

2. Then let us behold Messias the Lord,

By Prophets foretold, by Angels ador'd,

Our GOD's Incarnation with Angels proclaim,

And publish Salvation in JESUS's Name.

3. Our newly-born King by Faith we have seen,

And joyfully sing his Goodness to Men,

That all Men may wonder at what we impart,

And thankfully ponder his Love in their Heart.

4. What mov'd the Most High so greatly to stoop,

He comes from the Sky Our Souls to lift up;

That Sinners forgiven, might sinless return

To GOD and to Heaven; their Maker is born.

5. IMMANUEL's Love let Sinners confess,

Who comes from above, to bring us his Peace;

Let every Believer his Mercy adore,

And praise him for ever, when Time is no more.

There is a repetition of "publish" in stanzas 1 & 2. Look at what we are to publish: peace and salvation. How would it revolutionize our speech, our "tweeting," our facebooking, our writing, our worship, even our thinking if we had a single eye toward publishing "peace & salvation" in everything we communicate?

How about this line: "The Forfeited Favour of Heaven we find Restor'd in the Saviour and Friend of Mankind." We've already seen some of these words "Favour...Restor'd," "Friend" in other hymns, and here Charles brings them together. I hadn't really thought about the idea of "forfeiting" our favor with God, but that's a great way to put it. What happens in a "forfeit" in sports? A team doesn't have enough players to show up; a person gives up; rules are broken so badly that it makes it impossible for the rule-breaker to win. Now, there are limits to this analogy, but there is something to the fact that it is impossible for us, once we have forfeited the favor of God to restore it unto ourselves. But in order for there to be restoration, help has to come from God, but God has to become human so that there is real restoration. "What is not assumed cannot be redeemed." Another thing about "forfeiting" that should call us to further holiness...read Jonah 2.8: "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs." Christ relinquishes the idols' grip on us so that we can grip onto him, thereby restoring us to God's favor.

"And joyfully sing his Goodness to Men." Hmmm..."goodness" is an underused and undervalued biblical word. We want to focus on "best" and "greatness" but "goodness" isn't about being in a lower degree than those. It's a word and concept that communicates God's kind regard and love for fallen humanity. Lest we forget it's also one of the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5.22). It's God's "goodness" that "moved the Most High So greatly to stoop"...and it's a goodness, further, that "sinners forgiven Might sinless return." As Professor Collins has said well in class: "Forgiveness of sin without freedom from sin's power is merely polish for the chains that bind us." Goodness, therefore, is certainly not legalism, but neither is it a doting forgiveness that just looks past the thing that keeps us enslaved. God's goodness is tender, yet great and powerful!