Sing Forth His Praise

by Dr. Paul Chappell

"I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works. I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High."

Psalm 9:1-2

Christ was born! Lift up your voice in praise to Him!

Martin Luther once wrote this poem on the occasion of Christmas:

Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child,

Make thee a bed, soft, undefiled,

Within my heart, that it may be

A quiet chamber kept for Thee.

My heart for very joy doth leap,

My lips no more can silence keep,

I too must sing, with joyful tongue,

That sweetest ancient cradle song,

Glory to God in highest heaven,

Who unto man His Son hath given

While angels sing with pious mirth.

A glad new year to all the earth.

Imagine yourself at the birth of Christ. It was a normal cold winter night in Bethlehem. You had been traveling all day and were finally at your destination. But this wasn't the destination of a vacation or even to visit family. This was the place where you would be counted so the government would know how much to tax you. You had gone through this long hard journey and you still had to pay for it!

You would probably be murmuring and grumbling about the government, Caesar, and taxes. But as you lay down that night, your mood changed at the sight of a bright star in the sky. Suddenly you heard angelic music and you realized that this was the night you had been looking forward to your whole life! Your ancestors had told stories of this night and it was finally here! Christ was born!

What emotion and overwhelming joy would have flooded your heart. To know that no longer would you be enslaved to sin, but that God had fulfilled His promise that night. Your only reaction would have been singing, laughing, joy, and praise to God for His Son!

Why should your attitude be any different this Christmas? What has changed? Has God not provided His Son? Don't let the commercialism of Christmas hinder you from praising God. Imagine you are back in Bethlehem on that first Christmas morning. Christ has been born! Sing His praises today as you focus on His glorious birth!