"Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus"

"I remember no one who was born a king except Jesus..."

These words from Charles Spurgeon jumped out at me earlier this week as I read about "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" in Robert J. Morgan's  "Near to the Heart of God - Meditations on 366 Best-Loved Hymns."

"On December 23, 1855, London's new preaching sensation, twenty-one-year-old Charles Spurgeon, wove this carol by Charles Wesley into his Christmas sermon as skillfully as a weaver braids a golden thread into a tapestry; 'A very unique singular thing is this, that Jesus Christ was said to have been born 'king of the Jews.'

"'Very few have ever been 'born king.' Men are born princes, but they are seldom born kings. I do not think you can find an instance in history where any infant was born king. He was the Prince of Wales, perhaps, until he had to wait a number of years, till his father died, and then they manufactured him into a king, but putting a crown on his head; and a sacred chrism, and other silly things; but he was not born a king.

"'I remember no one who was born a king except Jesus; and there is emphatic meaning in that verse that we sing, 'Born thy people to deliver; Born a child, and yet a king.' The moment that He came on earth He was a king.'"

Come Thou long expected Jesus

Born to set Thy people free

From our fears and sins release us

Let us find our rest in Thee

Israel's strength and consolation

Hope of all the earth Thou art

Dear desire of every nation

Joy of every longing heart

Born Thy people to deliver

Born a child and yet a King

Born to reign in us forever

Now Thy gracious kingdom bring

By Thine own eternal spirit

Rule in all our hearts alone

By Thine all sufficient merit

Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

(For the previous two posts in this series, see here and here.)

"Away in a Manger"

"Away in a Manger" may be the first Christmas song a child learns. While it may be considered a "children's song," it is still a favorite for many during this special season.

This post is the second in a little series on the history of some favorite Christmas hymns. (See here for the first post.) The following is from Robert J. Morgan's  "Near to the Heart of God - Meditations on 366 Best-Loved Hymns."

"For years, everyone assumed Martin Luther had written this carol; in songbooks it was usually subtitled 'Luther's Cradle Hymn.' According to tradition, the Reformer had written this hymn, which consisted of only two stanzas at the time, for his little son, Hans.

"We now believe the first two stanzas of  'Away in a Manger' came from an anonymous German Lutheran in Pennsylvania, not from Luther himself. We also know who added the tender third verse that begins, 'Be near me, Lord Jesus.' It was John T. McFarland, who was born January 2, 1851, in Mount Vernon, Indiana, and passed away on the morning of December 22, 1913, at his home in Maplewood, New Jersey.

"McFarland was a Sunday school leader and children's worker whose life's mission was to nurture children in the instruction of the Lord. It was McFarland who introduced graded instruction to American Sunday schools. How fitting that he would complete the most famous children's Christmas carol of all time."

Away in a manger no crib for a bed 

The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head 

The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay 

The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay. 

The cattle are lowing the baby awakes 

But little Lord Jesus no crying he makes. 

I love you Lord Jesus; look down from the sky 

And stay by my side until morning is nigh. 

Be near me Lord Jesus I ask you to stay 

Close by me for ever, and love me, I pray. 

Bless all the dear children in your tender care, 

And fit us for heaven, to live with you there.