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7 episodes with holy infant
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2 episodes with holy infant
3 episodes with holy infant
2 episodes with holy infant
2 episodes with holy infant
2 episodes with holy infant
2 episodes with holy infant
This week The Daily Pause is diving into the archives and revisiting the journey through well-known Christmas Carols that God us through last year. Each day we will open with prayer to immerse in the presence and love of God, and then we will engage with a well-known Christmas carol, hearing something of the story behind the carol, as well as the deep soul-stirring theology of the lyrics. We will get to embrace these age-tested songs in a fresh way, giving the Holy Spirit ample space, time, and truth to restore our souls in this unique season. Enjoy today's journey as God uses the story and lyrics of Silent Night to strengthen our faith and enrich our lives. Merry Christmas! Silent night, holy night!All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and child.Holy Infant, so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night!Shepherds quake at the sight;Glories stream from heaven afar,Heav'nly hosts sing, Alleluia!Christ, the Savior is born!Christ, the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night!Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy faceWith the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth,Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
The Rev. George Ruwisch, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Nashua, NH, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study the hymn “Silent Night, Holy Night.” Open your hymnals to page 363 and grab a candle, it's time to study “Silent Night, Holy Night.” Whether sung in English, German, or both, this hymn has been a perennial favorite among Christians. Jesus' birth in a stable surrounded by animals likely wasn't as silent as this carol suggests, but it certainly was holy! In this episode, learn more about how this cherished hymn came to be and how it can help us reflect on the significance of Christ's coming that first Christmas! Learn more: https://hymnary.org/hymn/LSB2006/363 Celebrate the birth of our Savior with Thy Strong Word's Countdown to Christmas, a special series where we explore 10 of the most beloved Christmas hymns found in the Lutheran Service Book. Learn the history and meaning of these beautiful carols and how they reflect the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Each weekday we dive into every stanza of these classic hymns and discover the rich theology and joy it expresses. Don't miss this opportunity to prepare your hearts to receive Christ anew and rejoice with Thy Strong Word: Countdown to Christmas. Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God's Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Through the mission gifts of people like you, LHF translates, publishes, distributes and introduces books that are Bible-based, Christ-centered and Reformation-driven. Learn more at lhfmissions.org. Lutheran Service Book 363 1 Silent night, holy night! All is calm, all is bright Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace. 2 Silent night, holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight; Glories stream from heaven afar, Heav'nly hosts sing, Alleluia! Christ, the Savior is born! Christ, the Savior is born! 3 Silent night, holy night! Son of God, love's pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth. Text Information First Line: Silent night, holy night! Title: Silent Night, Holy Night Author: Franz Joseph Mohr, 1792-1848 Translator: John F. Young, 1820-85 Meter: 66 88 66 Language: English Publication Date: 2006 Scripture: Luke 2:7-16; Colossians 1:13 Tune Information Name: STILLE NACHT Composer: Franz Xaver Gruber, 1787-1863 Meter: 66 88 66 Key: B♭ Major Source: Traditional setting Learn more: https://hymnary.org/hymn/LSB2006/363
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Trio Oriens: triooriens.org --- Philippians 4:4-9 NIV --- Silent night, holy night,All is calm, all is brightRound yon virgin mother and Child.Holy Infant so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night,Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar;Heavenly hosts sing alleluia.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Wondrous star, lend thy light.With the angels let us singAlleluia to our King.Christ the Savior is born!Christ the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night,Son of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace,Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,Jesus Lord at Thy birth. --- Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We who have so much to do and seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day, We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!' Amen.
Join Johnnette as she welcomes callers to Women of Grace on EWTN Radio.Today, callers discuss: the Holy Infant of Prague, Little Nellie of the Holy God, and praying for children to return to the Church.
Join Johnnette as she welcomes callers to Women of Grace on EWTN Radio. Today, callers discuss: the Holy Infant of Prague, Little Nellie of the Holy God, and praying for children to return to the Church. All this and more on EWTN Radio's Women of Grace!
Join Johnnette as she welcomes callers to Women of Grace on EWTN Radio. Today, callers discuss: the Holy Infant of Prague, Little Nellie of the Holy God, and praying for children to return to the Church. All this and more on EWTN Radio's Women of Grace!
Join Johnnette as she welcomes callers to Women of Grace on EWTN Radio. Today, callers discuss: the Holy Infant of Prague, Little Nellie of the Holy God, and praying for children to return to the Church. All this and more on EWTN Radio's Women of Grace!
Prayer to the Child Jesus
January 6 is Tree Kings Day, commemorating the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child told in Matthews Gospel. Many artistic depictions of this event include an African as one of these Wise Men coming to worship the Holy Infant. This episode explores the art, culture and esoteric meaning behind the Magi, especially the Black King as a message for our times. For an Itinerary and Booking Information for In Search of Sacred Origins in Africa: The Golden Heart of the World. http://www.sophiaservices.ca/ #Divinefeminine #Sacredfeminine #blackmadonna #antrhoposophy #threekingsday #threemagi #thechristiancommunity --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/stephanie-georgieff/support
This week the Daily Pause will take on a little different format fitting for the season we are in. Each day we will open with prayer to immerse in the presence and love of God … then we will engage with a well-known Christmas Carol, hearing something of the story behind the carol as well as the deep soul stirring theology of the lyrics. We will get to embrace these age tested songs in a fresh way giving the Holy Spirit ample space time and truth to restore our souls in this unique season. - Silent night, holy night! All is calm, all is bright Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight; Glories stream from heaven afar, Heav'nly hosts sing, Alleluia! Christ, the Savior is born! Christ, the Savior is born! Silent night, holy night! Son of God, love's pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
Merry Christmas from Reflecting LIght! Join Mandy as she walks you through the Judean Hillside to take in the events of the Saviors birth. Happy Holidays!
Sleep in heavenly peace.This is a silly phrase for a newborn.Anyone who has ever been around a newborn knows that they mostly don't sleep and when they are not sleeping it is anything but peaceful. Yet here's the lyric from Silent Night: “Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright. Round yon virgin, mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”This peace, peace from God, heavenly peace is different from the peace this world offers.This is Week 2 of Advent here at Church Public. Current Events from a Christian PerspectiveThanks for watching! Thanks for listening!At Church Public we create compelling content to equip you to follow Jesus and engage in the public square.Find Me:Website: churchpublic.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChurchPublic/Twitter: https://twitter.com/churchpublicInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/churchpublic/Support:www.patreon.com/churchpublichttps://paypal.me/churchpublic?country.x=US&locale.x=en_USToday is a great day to start your own podcast. Whether you're looking for a new marketing channel, have a message you want to share with the world, or just think it would be fun to have your own talk show...podcasting is an easy, inexpensive, and fun way to expand your reach online.Following the link in the show notes let's Buzzsprout know we sent you, gets you a $20 Amazon gift card if you sign up for a paid plan, and helps support our show.https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1132064Support the show
One of the things I love about Christmas is the different nativity scenes. And one of the things about nativity scenes is that they seem so peaceful. It's hard to imagine a more peaceful scene than Joseph and Mary with newborn baby Jesus, surrounded by sheep and shepherds under the night sky. We even sing about peace in one of the most popular Christmas carols: “Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright. Round yon virgin, mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”We all desire peace, and yet peace is sadly lacking in our world. People are full of worry and anxiety. Relationships are full of conflict and stress. This world is full of conflict and wars.But that's where Jesus comes in. Because Jesus is not only our hope at Christmas, He is also our peace. And it is only in Christ that we will ever truly obtain peace. As someone said: “There will never be agreement at the peace tables of the world or rest in the individual heart until the Prince of Peace reigns supreme in the hearts of everyone!
Episode Notes Tonight, the Lord of Hosts, Judge of Nations and terror of the wicked- is a small, helpless, vulnerable baby who is crying and wants his mother. The Man of War is a crying baby, and his mother coddles him, wraps him tightly in strips of cloth and holds him close and nurses him. This is the man of war, a plump little baby crying for his mother. We must feel some tenderness knowing the holy baby Jesus. Tenderness that His mother feels for him. For all the talk of war, and enemies, and hard brutality and destruction- On this night, this festival reveals our God, our man of war as He also is to us, a tender precious, gentle, weak, vulnerable baby. This sentiment is every bit as central to our faith as that of war and the destruction of the Devils works- more so, because the war will end but the tenderness will only grow and the sweet fragrance that we enjoy in this festival of Christmas will wash away all the residue of the ugly and hard battle of our punishment.
Pat Maier, cofounder of Visual Faith™ Ministry, and Amy Meyer, cofounder of Neighboring Life, join Justin Rossow, founder of Next Step Press, to talk about Chapter 10: Infant Holy, Infant Lowly in the resource Light in the Darkness: A Hymn Journal for Advent & Christmas. John 1 is the traditional reading for Christmas Day, and after a brief intro and opening prayer, we'll hear about the Word becoming flesh as Pat reads from the English Standard Version. Then Amy will read the same verses from The Message paraphrase. You can find that reading on page 97 of the hymn journal. After discussing those verses, we'll hear from Pat Maier about her artwork on page 95 that keeps Jesus at the center of our Christmas celebrations, and about the mission of Visual Faith™ Ministry to provide resources that help you slow down and experience time in prayer and in Bible study more intentionally. Once we've looked briefly at the corner art on page 98, you'll hear Justin read the devotion on that same page. You can share that reflection with your friends by posting or emailing a link to the blog version of this chapter's devotion, "For His Bed a Cattle Stall." After we hear Brooke and Brendan sing their version of "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly," we'll turn to the Prayer Experiment on pages 100-101 and hear from Amy Meyer about the soon-to-be-launched online community called Neighboring Life. Founded by Amy and her husband, Jeff, Neighboring Life invites you and your household to imagine neighborhoods where every person belongs, where every person knows they matter and have a contribution to make, a story to share. We'll make sure to let the Next Step Community know when Neighboring Life goes live sometime in 2022. Before we are done, we'll get an update on the Pat's neighborhood sketch on page 101 and Amy's experiments to build community in her new apartment living. You can follow Pat's lead with this recipe for her Fresh Orange Muffins (links to other Visual Faith resources are included in the article). As you can probably tell just by reading their names, Amy Meyer and Pat Maier are not related, although we did discover that Pat lives on Meyer Avenue, a happy coincidence. The two will team up again next year, September 23-25, 2022, for one of Camp Arcadia's women's retreats. Make sure to check it out! This episode of the Next Step Podcast was supported in part by the generosity of Next Step Patrons. Please consider becoming a Next Step Patron before the end 2021. To see different options for support, including monthly and annual options, visit https://www.patreon.com/findmynextstep, or email justin@findmynextstep.org to make a one-time gift. The A Light in the Darkness CD from Brooke and Brendan is now available on your favorite streaming services as well as on YouTube. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/mynextstep/message
Hark! the Herald Angels Sing and Infant Holy Infant Lowly Music from the December12, 2021 Worship Service Groveport UMC, Groveport Ohio Jonathan Mann, Pastor
“Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright. Round yon virgin, mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”Week 2 of Advent here at Church Public. This week we are talking about Peace. The peace of Christ. The peace that Jesus brings that ONLY comes from him.We all long for peace, but there is sadly so little of it.Wars in the Middle East.War in China with Hong Kong and Taiwan.Then there's political unrest of the last couple years in America.Not to mention all the fear from the virus.But for the believer we know that Jesus IS our peace.Only in Christ can we actually have peace.Thanks for listening!At Church Public we create compelling content to equip you to follow Jesus and engage in the public square.Find Me:Website: churchpublic.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChurchPublic/Twitter: https://twitter.com/churchpublicInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/churchpublic/keywords:keepthefaith, church public, churchpublic, church public podcast, church, public, faith, hope, love, Jesus, culture, spiritual, religious, faithandculture, podcast, philosophy, speaker, blogger, christianity, truth, lutheran, theological, seminary, youtube, values, chicago, graduation, new life, living waters, cornerstone, non denominational, progressive, churches, open, minded, small, ltsc, Bible, word, news, politics,
The devotion to the Holy Child Jesus has long been a tradition of the Catholic Church for a very long time. This devotion is a veneration of our Lord's sacred Infancy. On today's WOMEN OF GRACE host Johnnette Williams ask listeners to call in with their stories on devotion to the Holy Infant. Many call in telling how their family had a statue in their home and dressed it according to the season or feast day. Johnnette shares that many graces, blessings, favors and miraculous healings have been received by many who petitioned before the Infant Jesus.
The devotion to the Holy Child Jesus has long been a tradition of the Catholic Church for a very long time. This devotion is a veneration of our Lord's sacred Infancy.
Silent Night is one of the most beloved carols of the Christmas season. Silent night, holy night All is calm, all is bright Round yon virgin Mother and Child Holy infant so tender and mild Sleep in heavenly peace Sleep in heavenly peaceIt seems to epitomize the essence of Christmas. This hymn conveys the silence, beauty and peace at the heart of Christmas. Christmas celebrates our intuitive awareness of our innate union with God, which I call unitive awareness or nondual awareness. This is represented in the Christ child. The harsh patriarchal judge that is the usual symbol for God gives way to God as an infant, so fender and mild. The Tao te Ching uses this image for the Tao, comparing the Tao to a newborn child. God as an infant holy, infant lowly as another Christmas carol says. In the Silent Night, holy night of Christmas, we know that we are one with God in heavenly peace. For a moment we remember that this is our natural state, the Reality that we were born into and born from. This is true of every one of us, not just the Babe of Bethlehem.
Welcome to Faith Palm - the podcast where we discuss the weird happenings of the Christian Faith! In today's episode, we're talking about the Holy Infant of Atocha. If you like what you hear and would like to continue to support us in our effort to explore the Christian tradition (and have fun doing so), please like, subscribe, follow, and rate our show wherever you get your podcasts! Follow us on Instagram @faithpalmpodcast If you have any questions, corrections, or suggestions, contact us via email at faithpalmpodcast@gmail.com or through Anchor at anchor.fm/faithpalm Music: "Sunbeam" https://www.purple-planet.com
Welcome to the Carols of Christmas. Each day leading up to Christmas, I talk about a particular Christmas carol, explaining some of the history and background behind the carol, and then finally, I will sing a verse of it for you. Some will be familiar and some probably not, but they all point us toward the true reason for the season: our Savior Jesus Christ. For my other music, novels, podcasts, and more, please visit me at www.authormichaelyoung.com. Music Credits: We Wish You A Merry Christmas by Yoshinori Tanaka / 田中 芳典 | https://soundcloud.com/yoshinori-tanaka-guitar Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US The First Noel by Yoshinori Tanaka / 田中 芳典 | https://soundcloud.com/yoshinori-tanaka-guitar Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/michael-young37/support
PHPC Sanctuary Choir Steve Jobman, Director Bradley Hunter Welch, organ
Ladies Ensemble - Infant Holy, Infant Lowly by Clays Mill Baptist
Comedian/Antarctic Explorer Jordan Goodwin helps Lucas and Nathan solve a "spooky" themed New York Times crossword puzzle. There's some confusion about the plot of Cold Mountain. Jordan has the utmost confidence in his lawyers. Nathan talks about his first foray into theatre. Remember to give the show a review on Apple Podcasts, it really does help other people discover our show!
Brianna Rennix is an immigration lawyer and a Senior Editor at Current Affairs magazine. She works near the border in Dilley, Texas, helping prepare detained immigrant women for their asylum hearings. This is a job that requires you to ask people about the worst things that have ever happened to them. And if you fail, they may be deported to their death. Immigration has been in the news a lot recently, particularly the torturous conditions immigrants are being held in. Unfortunately, a lot of this coverage isn't properly contextualized and there's a lot of misinformation about how our immigration system actually works. I've wanted to have Brianna on for a while because, as I tell her, she writes about immigration with more analytical and moral clarity than anyone else I've come across. We touch on a lot of it here, and I really encourage you to read her work on immigration that can be found in the show notes. We cover: Brianna's work as an immigration lawyer, how Clinton and Obama laid the groundwork for Trump's immigration policies, the push and pull factors driving immigration, America's role in stoking violence in Central America, the origins of MS13 and Barrio 18, Trump's efforts to destroy the asylum process, asylum claims in theory and in practice, the intensity of asking people to relive their worst experiences day in and day out, and what you can do to help. Brianna's work: This Week in Terrible Immigration News 7-29-19 Waiting for the Holy Infant of Atocha The Case for Opening Our Borders Crammed into cells and forced to drink from the toilet – this is how the US treats migrants Things You Can Do Beyond Calling Your Congressperson Understanding the Administration's Monstrous Immigration Policies What Would Human Immigration Policy Look Like? Can We Have Humane Immigration Policy? Links: Majority of undocumented immigrants show up for court, data shows A Century of U.S. Intervention Created the Immigration Crisis US Involvement in Regime Change in Latin America Polls: Most Voters Are Cool With Trump's Deportation Raids, But Not His Racist Tweets How to Create a Crisis Observing immigration court Never Again Action Video of Ihlan Omar being welcomed home ‘Nobody Opened the Door': Neighbors Rally During an ICE Raid in Houston Video: Town Of Trump Voters Angry After Local Businessman Gets Deported Movimiento Cosecha
Infant Holy, Infant LowlySeries: Advent 2018: Christ in the Carols Speaker: Rev. Jeremy GrahamMorning ServiceDate: 30th December 2018Passage: Luke 2:25-35
He made Himself small for us, and we still know him as the Holy Infant.
Special Music on Sunday, December 23, 2018: "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly" (Jan Wells and Pastor David Harris).
December 26 St. Stephen (d. 36 A.D.?)All we know of Stephen is found in Acts of the Apostles, chapters Six and Seven. It is enough to tell us what kind of man he was: At that time, as the number of disciples continued to grow, the Hellenist (Greek-speakin
Worship audio from Dec 24, 2017 - Christmas Eve Candlelight service.Bulletin here, text at the bottom.Green Pastures with Jesus is the daily podcast from Shepherd of the Lakes Lutheran Church of Fairmont, MN. Here you’ll find a variety of segments to lead you to the green pastures of the Word of God, where our Good Shepherd feeds our faith. Find us online: www.shepherdofthelakes.net or http://facebook.com/shepherdofthelakes Worship is Sunday mornings at 9:30 AM.Bible class & Sunday School follow at 10:40 AM.323 E. 1st St – Fairmont, MNpastorhagen@icloud.com or (507) 236-9572 iTunes & iPhone: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/green-pastures-jesus-shepherd/id1183522558?mt=2 Stitcher link: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=127180&refid=stprOr simply search for “Green Pastures with Jesus” in your podcast app. Intro & Outro courtesy of Koine - The Church Band. Check them out at www.koinemusic.com, or find them on iTunes & Amazon: Search for Koine. Bible text from Biblegateway.com - EHV. elcome to Shepherd of the Lakes! We’re here to shepherd Christ’s flock and seek the lost sheep by sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with all. Come, let us worship!For your convenience, in the back corner of the sanctuary there is a room for any parents with children in need of a quiet place. The restrooms are located on the lower level. Please ask if you have any further questions or concerns. Lord Jesus, bless our Christmas celebrations. You know me far better than I know myself; you came to this world as a baby in order to create peace between me and you. Grant me a quiet heart to hear your Word, and remind me again with the joy of your birth; AMEN.The Gift of Christmas:“In the obedience of this person Jesus . . . Christ has covered all our disobedience, which dwells in our nature and its thoughts, words, and works. Our disobedience is not charged against us for condemnation; it is pardoned and forgiven out of pure grace alone, for Christ’s sake.”Formula of Concord, Article 3 (Concordia p. 545)Our worship this evening is an adaptation of the Lessons and Carols service traditionally held at King's College, Cambridge, England, on December 24th every year. Lessons and Carols was first held on Christmas Eve, 1918. It was planned by Eric Milner-White, who at the age of thirty-four had just been appointed Dean of King’s College after experience as an army chaplain. The lessons for tonight have been used for almost 100 years to recall God’s promise to send a Savior, as well as that promise’s fulfillment. EXHORTATION & PRAYERPlease rise.Dear people of God, in this Christmas season, it is our duty and delight to hear again the message of the angels and, in heart and mind, to go to Bethlehem and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us — the Christ Child lying in a manger, born to save us.Let us read and learn in Holy Scripture the story of the loving purposes of God from the first days after our fall into sin to the glorious redemption brought to us by this holy child.But first, let us pray for people all over the world who would delight with us to know the good news of Jesus Christ and who would join with us in singing his praises. Let us pray for the people of our community and our church.And, because this would please the Lord, let us remember in his name the poor and helpless, the cold, the hungry and the oppressed, the sick and those who are sad, the lonely and the unloved, and the elderly and the little children. We especially remember all those who do not know the Lord Jesus, those who do not love him, and those who by unrepentant sin have grieved his heart of love.Finally, let us remember before God all those who rejoice with us in heaven, who live in greater light than we, that multitude which no one can number, whose hope was in the Word made flesh, who died in faith, and who live before the throne of God and praise him each day in his temple. We confess that we are united with them as we are united with one another.To sum up all these petitions, let us pray as Christ himself taught us:Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever; Amen.OPENING HYMN: 55 – Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful FIRST LESSON: Genesis 3:8-15God promises that a descendant of Eve, as the champion and substitute of all mankind, would win a victory over Satan and rob him of his power.8They heard the voice of the LORD God, who was walking around in the garden during the cooler part of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9The LORD God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10The man said, “I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.” 11God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat?” 12The man said, “The woman you gave to be with me—she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” 13The LORD God said to the woman, “What have you done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14The LORD God said to the serpent: Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all the livestock, and more than every wild animal. You shall crawl on your belly,and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. 15I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel. SECOND LESSON: Genesis 22:15-18God repeats his promise: All nations will be blessed through Abraham’s descendent. 15The Angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16and said, “I have sworn by myself, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17I will bless you greatly, and I will multiply your descendants greatly, like the stars of the sky and like the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the city gates of their enemies. 18In your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” CONFESSION OF FAITHFrom the Augsburg Confession, Article 3:M: Our churches teach that the Word, that is, the Son of God, assumed the human nature in the womb of the Virgin Mary. C: So there are two natures — the divine and the human — inseparably joined in one person. There is one Christ, true God and true man, who was born of the Virgin Mary, truly suffered, was crucified, died, and was buried. He did this to reconcile the Father to us, and to be a sacrifice, not only for original sin and guilt, but also for every sin of all humanity. He also descended into hell, and truly rose again on the third day. Afterward, he ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father. There he forever reigns and has dominion over all creatures. He sanctifies those who believe in Him, by sending the Holy Spirit into their hearts to rule, comfort, and make them alive. He defends them against the devil and the power of sin.The same Christ will openly come again to judge the living and the dead, according to the Apostles’ Creed.THIRD LESSON: Isaiah 9:2, 6-7The Promised One will rule on David’s throne forever.2The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.On those living in the land of the shadow of death, the light has dawned. ... 6For to us a child is born. To us a son is given. The authority to rule will rest on his shoulders. His name will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7There will be no limit to his authority and no end to his peace. He will rule on David’s throne and over his kingdom to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from now on and forever.The zeal of the LORD of Armies will accomplish this. HYMN: 42 – Come, Your Hearts and Voices RaisingFOURTH LESSON: Micah 5:2-4God points to the place where the Messiah will be born.2“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come the one to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from ancient times, from eternity.” 3Therefore he will surrender them until the time she who is in labor gives birth to a child. Then the remainder of his brothers will return to the children of Israel. 4He will stand and shepherd with the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. They will dwell securely, for at that time he will be great to the ends of the earth. FIFTH LESSON: Matthew 1:18-25The angel’s announcement to Joseph.18 This is how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. His mother, Mary, was pledged in marriage to Joseph. Before they came together, she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her. So he decided to divorce her privately. 20 But as he was considering these things, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”22 All this happened to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 “Look, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son. And they will name him Immanuel,” which means, “God with us.”24 When Joseph woke up from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him. He took Mary home as his wife, 25 but he was not intimate with her until she gave birth to her firstborn son.[f] And he named him Jesus.CONFESSION OF FAITHAdapted from Dr. Martin Luther’s seventh sermon on John 1, from 1537/8. (LW 22:102f)M: John’s Gospel says: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” Earlier, John called the Word ‘God,’ then a Light which came into the world and created the world - and yet, was not accepted by the world. C: With this word ‘flesh,’ we see how God has assumed our human flesh and blood. Human reason cannot comprehend the mercy of our God, choosing to share our humanity. M: We Christians learn to prize and esteem these words, for herein we see the gospel. The Son of God did not take on himself the nature of angels, but humbled himself and took on the seed of Abraham. C: Jesus Christ, who is of my flesh, blood, and soul, is seated in heaven at the right hand of God the Father. The humanity of Christ is enduring proof of God’s mercy toward me, on account of Jesus. M: These words are not given for you to misuse or merely take up on occasion; these words are given for you to believe. C: Therefore, we should constantly have such words in our heart and on our lips. Let us learn not to argue with the devil when he tempts us; rather, let us put him to flight with the heartfelt words: “The Word became flesh for me!”M: The eternal Son of God ‘committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth;’C: And though he was not guilty of death, he became man for our comfort and salvation. Yes, he became a curse and sin for us, in order to deliver us from the eternal curse, and to justify us. M: We believe the Scriptures and confess with the holy Christian church, which existed at all times and will endure until the end of the world: This article of our Christian faith, together with all the others, is firmly and solidly established by the apostles & prophets, the spokesmen of the Holy Spirit:All: That Christ, our Lord and God, assumed true human nature; and that he became a natural man like any other man. He dwelt among us, with a human body as you & I have; he was nourished and grew as every other human, except without sin. SIXTH LESSON: Luke 2:1-7The birth of our Lord.In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governing Syria. 3And everyone went to register, each to his own town. 4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the town of Nazareth, into Judea, to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was from the house and family line of David. 5He went to be registered with Mary, his wife, who was pledged to him in marriage and was expecting a child. ( . . . continued . . . )6And so it was that while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7And she gave birth to her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. HYMN: 61 – Hark! The Herald Angels SingSEVENTH LESSON: Luke 2:8-20The angel’s announcement to the shepherds.8There were in the same country shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified! 10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all people: 11Today in the town of David, a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord. 12And this will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude from the heavenly army, praising God and saying, 14“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward mankind.” 15When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Now let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17When they had seen him, they told others the message they had been told about this child. 18And all who heard it were amazed by what the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. HYMN: 263 – All Glory Be to God on HighSermon based on Luke 2: A Song about PeaceOFFERINGAfter the offering, an usher will come to your pew and light the candle nearest the center aisle. Please then light the candle next to you until all the candles are lit in the pew. When all the candles are lit, the lights will be dimmed. Remember to tip the unlit candle and leave the lit candle vertical.PRAYERO God, who makes us glad with the yearly remembrance of the birth of your only Son, Jesus Christ; grant that, as we joyfully receive him as our Redeemer, so may we also behold him with sure confidence when he shall come to be our judge; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever;Amen.BLESSINGMay he who by his incarnation gathered things earthly and heavenly into one, fill us with such joy that comes with the knowledge of the forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life. And the blessing of God Almighty - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit - be upon you and remain with you always;Amen!CLOSING HYMNPlease be seated for our closing hymn:Silent night! Holy night! All is calm, all is bright, Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.Silent night! Holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight. Glories stream from heaven afar; Heav'nly hosts sing, Alleluia; Christ, the Savior, is born! Christ, the Savior, is born!Silent night! Holy night! Son of God, Love's pure lightRadiant beams from thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.December 31 worship at 9:30 AM & 7 PM. All are welcome to the parsonage (517 Tilden St) for fellowship after New Year’s Eve worship. Adult confirmation for Ingrid Chrisman, Josh Chrisman,Travis & Ventura Ulrich will be next Sunday. THIS WEEKToday Joshua 12 9:30 AM - Advent 4 Worship with Holy Communion 6:30 PM - Christmas Eve Candlelight WorshipMonday Joshua 13Tuesday Joshua 14Wednesday Joshua 15Thursday Joshua 16Saturday Joshua 17 9:15 AM - Bible Basics: Fellowship & EvangelismSunday Joshua 18 9:30 AM - Christmas 1 Worship with Holy Communion 7 PM - New Year’s Eve Worship with Holy Communion Looking Ahead to Next Sunday:Theme Christmas 1Color WhiteLiturgy CW p. 15 with Holy CommunionHymns 78, 77, 5, 76Readings from Isaiah 45, Colossians 3, Luke 2; Psalm 111Verse of the Day Colossians 3:15
Silent Night,平安夜（每年12月24日），是西方的传统节日，也就是我们所熟悉的圣诞节前夕，又被称作为圣诞夜（Christmas Eve），是西方的传统节日，跟中国的除夕类似。如今，由于中西文化的融合，平安夜已成为一个世界节日。平安夜的来历耶稣诞生的那个晚上，在旷野看守羊群的牧羊人，突然听见天上传来了声音，告诉他们耶稣降生的消息。根据《圣经》记载，耶稣来到人间，是要作人世间的王，因此天使便透过这些牧羊人把消息传给更多的人。后来，人们就仿效天使，在平安夜的晚上，到处传讲耶稣降生的消息。直至今日，就演变成报佳音这个活动。《平安夜》歌曲：（德语：Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht）是一首十分流行的传统圣诞颂歌，原始的歌词由Josef Mohr使用德文写成，作曲则是由奥地利一所小学的校长Franz Gruber完成。现代传唱的版本的乐曲与Gruber原始版本有些微的不同（特别是在最后部分的变化）。此歌已知被翻译成世界上超过44多种语言，依然是最流行的圣诞歌曲。没有音乐伴奏人们也会经常吟唱，在路德教会它有特殊的重要意义。2011年，这首歌被联合国教科文组织宣告为非物质文化遗产。yon： pron.彼处之人或物; adj.彼处的，那边的;infant: n.婴儿，幼儿; holy: adj.神圣的; 值得尊敬的Silent night, holy night 平安夜，圣善夜！ All is calm, all is bright 万籁寂静，光华射，Round yon Virgin Mother and Child 照着圣母也照着圣婴，Holy Infant so tender and mild多少慈详也多少天真Sleep in heavenly peace 静享天赐安眠Sleep in heavenly peace 静享天赐安眠
En este episodio les recomendamos el canal de YouTube OLA English with Greghttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLvWfeNuywHjhxI17zkMqBgRecomendamos la cuenta de Twitterhttps://twitter.com/englishebooks1La canción recomendadahttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUxCh-DUicISILENT NIGHTThis was originally a poem written in 1816by an Austrian priest called Joseph Mohr.His friend, Franz Xavier Gruber composedthe melody.Silent night, holy night.All is calm, all is brightRound yon Virgin Mother and Child.Holy Infant, so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace.Silent night, holy night.Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar.Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!Christ, the Saviour is born.Christ, the Saviour is born.Silent night, holy night.Son of God, love's pure light.Radiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace.Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.NOCHE DE PAZOriginalmente era un poema escrito en 1816 por un sacerdote austríaco llamado Joseph Mohr.Su amigo, Franz Xavier Gruber compusola melodía.Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Todo está calmo, todo es brillanteAllí la Virgen Madre y el Niño.Niño Sagrado, tan compasivo y bondadoso,Duerme en la paz celestial,Duerme en la paz celestial,Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Los pastores tiemblan ante la vista.Las glorias salen del cielo a lo lejos.Los habitantes celestiales cantan Aleluya!Cristo, el Salvador ha nacido.Cristo, el Salvador ha nacido.Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Hijo de Dios, la luz pura del amor.Rayos de luz radiantes de Tu rostro sagrado,Con el amanecer de la gracia redentora.Jesús, Señor, en Tu nacimiento.Jesús, Señor, en Tu nacimiento.Pueden seguirnos en twitter en:https://twitter.com/bimbalablanca https://twitter.com/Javtweet https://twitter.com/JossGreeno en nuestra página webhttp://llavealingles.com/Feed: http://feedpress.me/llavealinglesUn podcast de PodcastSm.com
En este episodio les recomendamos el canal de YouTube OLA English with Greghttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLvWfeNuywHjhxI17zkMqBgRecomendamos la cuenta de Twitterhttps://twitter.com/englishebooks1La canción recomendadahttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUxCh-DUicISILENT NIGHTThis was originally a poem written in 1816by an Austrian priest called Joseph Mohr.His friend, Franz Xavier Gruber composedthe melody.Silent night, holy night.All is calm, all is brightRound yon Virgin Mother and Child.Holy Infant, so tender and mild,Sleep in heavenly peace,Sleep in heavenly peace.Silent night, holy night.Shepherds quake at the sight.Glories stream from heaven afar.Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!Christ, the Saviour is born.Christ, the Saviour is born.Silent night, holy night.Son of God, love's pure light.Radiant beams from Thy holy face,With the dawn of redeeming grace.Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.NOCHE DE PAZOriginalmente era un poema escrito en 1816 por un sacerdote austríaco llamado Joseph Mohr.Su amigo, Franz Xavier Gruber compusola melodía.Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Todo está calmo, todo es brillanteAllí la Virgen Madre y el Niño.Niño Sagrado, tan compasivo y bondadoso,Duerme en la paz celestial,Duerme en la paz celestial,Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Los pastores tiemblan ante la vista.Las glorias salen del cielo a lo lejos.Los habitantes celestiales cantan Aleluya!Cristo, el Salvador ha nacido.Cristo, el Salvador ha nacido.Noche de paz, noche sagrada.Hijo de Dios, la luz pura del amor.Rayos de luz radiantes de Tu rostro sagrado,Con el amanecer de la gracia redentora.Jesús, Señor, en Tu nacimiento.Jesús, Señor, en Tu nacimiento.Pueden seguirnos en twitter en:https://twitter.com/bimbalablanca https://twitter.com/Javtweet https://twitter.com/JossGreeno en nuestra página webhttp://llavealingles.com/Feed: http://feedpress.me/llavealinglesUn podcast de PodcastSm.com
Ravin' Girls Special Episode: All The Crooked Saints Episode Summary: Shannon and Nievita sit down and review Maggie Stiefvater's new release, All The Crooked Saints! Join us for an informal discussion of saints, family, darkness, symbolism, metaphors, music, love, and how sometimes prose just begs to be read out loud. NOTE: Spoiler section begins AFTER the sign-off at timestamp 46:20 (approx. depending on your player) so stick around for the second portion if you've already read ATCS, OR if you don't care about being spoiled. Bonus: you will learn which “character” Nievita identified with most strongly! Subscribe at: https://ravingirls.podiant.co or wherever you get your podcasts. - - - - - Next Episodes: 11/2/17-- Ravin' Girls Episode 3, covering chaps. 9-11 of TRB 11/16/17 -- Ravin' Girls Episode 4, covering chaps. 12-14 of TRB Follow Us: Twitter: https://twitter.com/ravingirls Tumblr: https://ravingirls.tumblr.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/ravingirls WordPress: https://ravingirls.wordpress.com - - - - - Links to Articles, Websites, and Other Discussions: Publishing Reviews: Excerpt on Mashable: http://mashable.com/2017/05/19/maggie-stiefvater-all-the-crooked-saints/#um_TFNi8.qqk Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/maggie-stiefvater/all-the-crooked-saints/ Tor Review (SPOILERS): https://www.tor.com/2017/10/12/book-reviews-all-the-crooked-saints-by-maggie-stiefvater/ Genre: Magical Realism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_realism Tall Tales: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tall_tale Fabulism: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fabulism Research: Holy Infant Painting: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Infant_of_Atocha Strange happenings in San Luis Valley, CO: https://www.ourstrangeplanet.com/the-san-luis-valley-monitoring-a-hot-spot/ Lechuza, or the women who turn into owls: http://www.texasescapes.com/MikeCoxTexasTales/156Lechuza.htm Controversy: Original EW article: http://ew.com/books/2017/03/21/maggie-stiefvater-all-the-crooked-saints-cover-reveal/amp/ Responses: https://www.twitter.com/bookwormwanders/status/844276996490346496 https://onlybylaura.com/2017/03/23/staying-in-your-lane-and-other-publishing-woes/ Review by Francisco X. Storm, one of the sensitivity readers and author of Marcelo In The Real World: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2158613746 Diversity in YA: http://www.diversityinya.com (written by the amazing Anna-Marie McLemore. I highly recommend her book When The Moon Was Ours as an example of contemporary Magical Realism. I can't believe I forgot about it during the episode. -N) Recommendations for Contemporary Magical Realism: https://www.twitter.com/Bookwormwanders/status/844280445122625536 Latinx Reviews (limited to folks who have read the book): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show?id=1949787674 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1894031167 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1909378479 http://abookandacupofcoffee.blogspot.rs/2017/09/arc-review-all-crooked-saints-by-maggie.html?m=1 Maggie talks about her husband: http://maggiestiefvater.blogspot.com/2010/04/on-young-love-all-that-jazz.html?m=1 - - - - - Acknowledgements: All The Crooked Saints and all affiliated properties are copyright Maggie Stiefvater and Scholastic, Inc. The Ravin' Girls reference these properties for the purpose of literary analysis. Intro and Outro music by Damiano Baldoni, used under CC Attribution License: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Damiano_Baldoni/Lost_Dinasty/ The original tracks have been edited for the podcast. - - - - - Tags: special episode, ravin' girls, raven cycle podcast, ya lit, literary analysis, trc, the raven cycle, maggie stiefvater, all the crooked saints, atcs
Ravin’ Girls Special Episode: All The Crooked Saints Episode Summary: Shannon and Nievita sit down and review Maggie Stiefvater’s new release, All The Crooked Saints! Join us for an informal discussion of saints, family, darkness, symbolism, metaphors, music, love, and how sometimes prose just begs to be read out loud. NOTE: Spoiler section begins AFTER the sign-off at timestamp 46:20 (approx. depending on your player) so stick around for the second portion if you’ve already read ATCS, OR if you don’t care about being spoiled. Bonus: you will learn which “character” Nievita identified with most strongly! Subscribe at: https://ravingirls.podiant.co or wherever you get your podcasts. - - - - - Next Episodes: 11/2/17-- Ravin' Girls Episode 3, covering chaps. 9-11 of TRB 11/16/17 -- Ravin’ Girls Episode 4, covering chaps. 12-14 of TRB Follow Us: Twitter: https://twitter.com/ravingirls Tumblr: https://ravingirls.tumblr.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/ravingirls WordPress: https://ravingirls.wordpress.com - - - - - Links to Articles, Websites, and Other Discussions: Publishing Reviews: Excerpt on Mashable: http://mashable.com/2017/05/19/maggie-stiefvater-all-the-crooked-saints/#um_TFNi8.qqk Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/maggie-stiefvater/all-the-crooked-saints/ Tor Review (SPOILERS): https://www.tor.com/2017/10/12/book-reviews-all-the-crooked-saints-by-maggie-stiefvater/ Genre: Magical Realism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_realism Tall Tales: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tall_tale Fabulism: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fabulism Research: Holy Infant Painting: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Infant_of_Atocha Strange happenings in San Luis Valley, CO: https://www.ourstrangeplanet.com/the-san-luis-valley-monitoring-a-hot-spot/ Lechuza, or the women who turn into owls: http://www.texasescapes.com/MikeCoxTexasTales/156Lechuza.htm Controversy: Original EW article: http://ew.com/books/2017/03/21/maggie-stiefvater-all-the-crooked-saints-cover-reveal/amp/ Responses: https://www.twitter.com/bookwormwanders/status/844276996490346496 https://onlybylaura.com/2017/03/23/staying-in-your-lane-and-other-publishing-woes/ Review by Francisco X. Storm, one of the sensitivity readers and author of Marcelo In The Real World: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2158613746 Diversity in YA: http://www.diversityinya.com (written by the amazing Anna-Marie McLemore. I highly recommend her book When The Moon Was Ours as an example of contemporary Magical Realism. I can’t believe I forgot about it during the episode. -N) Recommendations for Contemporary Magical Realism: https://www.twitter.com/Bookwormwanders/status/844280445122625536 Latinx Reviews (limited to folks who have read the book): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show?id=1949787674 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1894031167 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1909378479 http://abookandacupofcoffee.blogspot.rs/2017/09/arc-review-all-crooked-saints-by-maggie.html?m=1 Maggie talks about her husband: http://maggiestiefvater.blogspot.com/2010/04/on-young-love-all-that-jazz.html?m=1 - - - - - Acknowledgements: All The Crooked Saints and all affiliated properties are copyright Maggie Stiefvater and Scholastic, Inc. The Ravin’ Girls reference these properties for the purpose of literary analysis. Intro and Outro music by Damiano Baldoni, used under CC Attribution License: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Damiano_Baldoni/Lost_Dinasty/ The original tracks have been edited for the podcast. - - - - - Tags: special episode, ravin’ girls, raven cycle podcast, ya lit, literary analysis, trc, the raven cycle, maggie stiefvater, all the crooked saints, atcs
Who is the Babe in the manger?
Silent Night was a poem that was written in 1816 by an Austrian priest called Joseph Mohr. On Christmas Eve in 1818 in the small alpine village called Oberndorf it is reputed that the organ at St. Nicholas Church had broken. Joseph Mohr gave the poem of Silent Night (Stille Nacht) to his friend Franz Xavier Gruber and the melody for Silent Night was composed with this in mind. The music to Silent Night was therefore intended for a guitar and the simple score was finished in time for Midnight Mass. Silent Night is the most famous Christmas carol of all time!Check out our Christmas Carols, Hymns and Songs Free at the iTunes Store for you to enjoy during the Christmas Season from Shiloh Worship Music as we remember that "Jesus Is The Reason For The Season". https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/silent-night-longer-version/id478047965?i=108255371&mt=2Many different styles of Music from Traditional to Contemporary. May you have a Blessed Christmas Season as you contemplate and celebrate the birth of our Savior the Lord Jesus! Although our music is copyrighted ©2000-2012 Shiloh Worship Music, to prevent misuse, feel free to pass this music around for any and all non-commercial use. Jesus said, "freely you have received, freely give!"Silent Night!Silent night, holy nightAll is calm, all is brightRound yon Virgin Mother and ChildHoly Infant so tender and mildSleep in heavenly peaceSleep in heavenly peaceSilent night, holy night!Shepherds quake at the sightGlories stream from heaven afarHeavenly hosts sing Alleluia!Christ, the Saviour is bornChrist, the Saviour is bornSilent night, holy nightSon of God, love's pure lightRadiant beams from Thy holy faceWith the dawn of redeeming graceJesus, Lord, at Thy birthJesus, Lord, at Thy birth "COPY FREELY ©2012 Shiloh Worship Music-This Music is copyrighted to prevent misuse, however,permission is granted for non-commercial copying only. www.shilohworshipmusic.com
sermon transcript Introduction The Incarnation: Heavenly Invasion into a Five-Sense World This morning, I'm wanting to see the Christmas story from a heavenly perspective, as I just prayed a moment ago. I would like the eyes of all of our hearts to be open to see into an invisible spiritual realm, that which we cannot see unless God grants us faith. I believe that the true story of heaven is that of a heavenly invasion, from Heaven to Earth. That God sent a powerful weapon in the midst of warfare that would win the battle in the end, and so I want us, by faith, to see that heavenly warfare - warfare that proceeds even to this very moment - to understand Satan's activity in that warfare, and to see the final victory, not only of Christ, but of Christ's people, of the saints of God, who overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of his testimony. So those two aspects, that's what I want you to see today, spiritual warfare in the heavenly realms, Christ coming from Heaven to Earth as an invasion, a military strike against Satan's dark kingdom, and the victory in the end that all of us will enjoy by faith in Jesus, that's what I want to see. And so we go back to that familiar story. Luke chapter 2 I think records it for us so beautifully; the glory of a single angel and his glorious heavenly light ripping aside the darkness of that night, and ushering in a new age and the world has never been the same since that moment, the moment that that light shone in the darkness. Shepherds were there guarding their flocks at night, guarding them from predators, perhaps wild animals that would come and drag away their precious sheep and tear them limb from limb, or perhaps human predators, thieves that would come in and steal their sheep. And so they were guarding them, but they were actually, themselves, the sheep, and they were actually themselves being harassed by spiritual forces in the heavenly realms that would seek to tear them limb from limb. We have a glimpse of this in another text, in Matthew 9 verse 36, it speaks of our Lord. When He looked on the crowds, it says that He had compassion on them because they were "…harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd." And so it was that all of us were in that condition, the shepherds that night, as human beings were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. The word harassed means literally flayed or skinned, like skinned alive. They were being played, they were being harassed, they were being beaten and bruised day after day by spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms, that they could not see, but they were harassed, and they were helpless. They could do nothing to change it, they could not win a victory in the spiritual realm against the predators that sought their very souls. They were helpless. They needed a savior, they needed a savior, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And so we see, we'll see in this text in Revelation 12, the vicious, the cold-hearted, two-prong satanic attack against our souls, that of temptation, allurements to sin, day after day, minute after minute, the temptations of the evil one. He is the one who leads the whole world astray by his temptations, and then he turns around and accuses us day and night before the throne of God, uses the law of God to accuse us of those very sins that he had just allured us toward and tempted us to do. And in that way, all of us were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd, and suddenly in the middle of that night, as the shepherds were out there watching their sheep, guarding them from physical predators, but themselves harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd, suddenly, a single angel comes. In Luke 2: 9-12, it says, "An Angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone all around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today, in the town of David, a savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign to you, you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, lying in a manger.'" I wonder what that glorious heavenly light looked like, how shocking, how stunning it was. It shows us that glory can be visible, heavenly light can be seen with the eye, and so it will be the new Jerusalem, radiant with the glory of God through Jesus Christ. And we ourselves will shine like the sun forever and ever, but that one angel came, and he was shining, and the shepherds were terrified, and he brought them good news of a great joy of the birth of Jesus the savior, born for them. Immediately after that, an entire army of heavenly beings, an army of angels came to join with that single angel. Luke 2:13 and 14, "Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel praising God and saying Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace to men on whom His favor rest." It's an awesome statement. An awesome occurrence. There is a sense of an in-breaking, like I said, an invasion. Suddenly it says, and with that single angel comes this mighty army of angels, and that's literally what it means. An army - a great company of the heavenly host - the word translated host in Luke 2 is really. These were soldiers, these were heavenly soldiers armed for battle. It was a great company, an innumerable invasion, maybe the greatest number of angels that had ever been seen with the human eye on Earth that night. A heavenly invasion, not to fight at that moment, but to worship, to praise God for His good news, the birth of the savior, of Jesus Christ, in the city of David, in fulfillment of prophecy. Jesus born a savior for them and for us. Now, if we had been there that night before the angel came, it would have been just another night, an ordinary night. We would not have been aware of the spiritual realities around us, we wouldn't have been able to see it because we're so used to operating in the five-sense realm, the physical realm with our eyes, and our ears, and our noses, our mouths. This is what we're used to, this is how we get information. And I say that now, as much as ever, we need to see Christ and his birth with heavenly eyes. A Glimpse Into the Heavenly Realities of Christmas Christmas just saturates our senses, doesn't it? That's not a bad thing, it's a good thing; it's God that gave us the five senses, but there are so many sights of Christmas, aren't there? I mean, it's just a beautiful time. A season of lights, the decorations in this room are just absolutely beautiful, and they do just do a great job year after year. I love looking at the lights. I like driving around, I drive in a neighborhood sometimes I don't usually drive in to see what the houses look like. I love the lights and the colors, and I know many do as well. It's a season of sights. And for many, of the greatest sights of all. Lots of presents under the Christmas tree. Can't wait to see what it's going to be, what's going to be in those packages. Isn't there... You know they're colorful, they're in gold foil or a different colored wrapping paper. It's just a sensory input, a sensory feast. So also the sounds. We love the music. It's so beautiful, and we, we're so blessed at this church by the music ministry. Eric, we're so blessed by what you do week after week, and all of your co-laborers, we're just blessed. Other churches have simpler musical gifts and they're blessed too, but we are just richly blessed by the spiritual gifts that are operating here, and at this time of year, there are just so many rich traditional Christmas songs, and we love to listen to them. I like the Christmas songs more than the seasonal songs. Amen. I'd rather hear someone singing openly about Christ, than about Chestnut's roasting on an open fire. There's nothing wrong with Chestnut's roasting, but I want Christ. Amen. But it's a seasonal time of rich saturation of the senses, and we can be just swept away by that, and we can forget that the reality, the real issues here are spiritual. We are surrounded by people who are dead in their transgressions and sins, and if we are believers in Christ at one time, that was us. We have been resurrected from the dead spiritually. We are alive now because Jesus has come. We must see this season spiritually with spiritual eyes, and the only way we can do that, I think, is by a saturation of the mind and the word of God. We would not know of the invisible spiritual realms around us, except that God's Word told us, that God's Word told us that there is this spiritual world around us, and that by faith, we can perceive it. Revelation 12, gives us, I think, a very unusual glimpse into the reality of Christmas, what we call Christmas, the birth of Jesus into the world. So we'll see an unusual glimpse into the heavenly realms, connected with the warfare birth of Jesus, how he's born into a war, and how the devil was ready, at that moment, to kill him. And we're going to see also back in time - I believe, that Revelation 12:7-9 goes back to the beginning, even before Eden - to show how Satan lost his place in heaven and was hurled to the Earth. We're going to talk about his defeat, and we're going to look finally, thirdly, to the future, how because of the birth of Jesus, how His blood shed on the cross enables sinners like you and me to overcome the devil, to conquer him and to avoid His condemnation, being thrown into the lake of fire with the devil and his angels, how because of the blood of this boy baby that was born, we can be delivered, and we will spend eternity praising God. That's the three-part outline of Revelation 12. A Heavenly Sign: The Wartime Birth of Our Savior (vs. 1-6) A Glorious and Pregnant Woman So let's look at the first part, a heavenly sign, the war time birth of our Savior, verses 1 through 6. Verse 1 and 2 says this, "A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of 12 stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out in pain as she was about to give birth." Now we have just been helicoptered and dropped by your pastor right into the middle of the Book of Revelation. There's no context for this at all. We're just dropped right into the apocalypse, and so with that, you're dropped into apocalyptic language, symbolic language, which is sometimes very, very difficult to interpret. The apocalypse, literally, that is just the transliteration of the Greek word, which means the unveiling, it's the unveiling of things hidden, the things that needed to be revealed. Ultimately, Revelation is an unveiling of Jesus Christ. So through the Book of Revelation, we can see Jesus Christ. The veil is pulled back, and we can see Christ in a way we couldn't see any other way, but there are other hidden things that the Book of Revelation unveils, the spiritual realms, the circles of thrones around the central throne of God. We can see all kinds of things through this marvelous book, but in order to do it, we have to read through symbolic, what we call apocalyptic language, symbolic language, and so things aren't always exactly what they appear to be. So we see immediately a great and wondrous sign, and that's what it is. It's a marvelous and miraculous sign appearing in heaven, and it is a woman - a pregnant woman - and she is pregnant, she's crying out, about to give birth, and she's glorious. She's an amazing woman, she's "clothed with the sun," it says, "with the moon under her feet and a crown of 12 stars on her head." Since we know, and we'll get to this in a moment, that the baby that she gives birth to must be Jesus, it's very easy immediately to see this woman as Mary. And I think clearly Mary is in view here, but I don't think it's enough to just see Mary in this woman. I actually think the woman represents the people of God in all eras of redemptive history. Israel in the Old Testament, the church in the new, all of the people of God are represented here. It's because later in Revelation 12, this woman is persecuted, and she's fleeing, and she's still on the Earth, and she's harassed by the devil, and she needs protection from God, and she's there for 1260 days. We'll talk about all that briefly, but this is, I think, representing the people of God, and Mary then is one of the people of God, and she is the one that literally, physically gives birth to Jesus. That's the way that I interpret it. It's the glorified vision of the church or the people of God, all of God's elect, radiant with glory. Not so much Mary. I think sometimes Catholic artists might take images here from Revelation 12 and picture Mary as the queen of Heaven, and that's a mistake. Mary was an ordinary woman in this regard, she was a sinner saved by grace, just like you and me. Godly woman, chosen for a special role as many other men and women are in the Bible, but she's no Queen of Heaven, and so it'd be wrong to take the images of Revelation 12 and describe them just a Mary. I want to expand them to, ascribe them to all of the people of God. And that's amazing too when you think about it, how do the people of God in that sense give birth to Jesus? Well, we know that from, according to Romans 9, "From the Jews, is traced the human ancestry of Jesus, who is God over all, forever praised." And so from the Jewish nation, with Mary as the culmination, a Jewish girl, Jewish young woman, Jesus got His body, He was incarnate, He took on a human body. And so in that sense, the people of God ultimately give birth to Jesus, but isn't it amazing and deep and rich to contemplate that the one to whom she gives birth physically is the same one who gives her birth spiritually? For it is Jesus who said to Nicodemus, "You must be born again," and if we are not born again, we cannot see heaven, but we will be condemned with the devil and his angels. And so this physical birth comes, and we give birth to Jesus physically because we needed a savior, it's because of our sins. To some degree, it's our own shame that we had to have this kind of savior, this kind of salvation. We needed Jesus to come and take on a mortal body, and so we gave him a mortal body so that he could die. He then gives us a resurrection body so that we can live. And how sweet and marvelous is that, and so this woman is crying out in pain, she's laboring, she's in agony, she's glorified ultimately, waiting for the birth of Jesus. A Terrifying, Vicious Enemy The second sign comes in verses three and four, a terrifying vicious enemy, "Then another sign appeared in heaven, an enormous red dragon with seven heads and 10 horns, and seven crowns on his heads, his tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth so that he might devour her child the moment it was born." So here's this terrifying spiritual enemy, another sign, which appears in heaven, this is in the heavenly realms. This is not something you can see except by faith, and this terrifying enemy is described as enormous; he's immense, he is a red dragon. Dragon, a figure that's come down to us in mythology, come down to us in the history of many nations, probably a literal creature at one point was named this name dragon, but this is clearly a spiritualized vision of a terrifying beast, a horrifying beast, ready to assault the woman and her male child. It speaks also of his great power, seven heads, 10 horns and seven crowns on those seven heads, this all accumulates to the great power of Satan. And since the image is very similar to Daniel's images in Daniel 7 and 8, which inevitably there in that book refer to political kingdoms, empires, I think behind this, to some degree, and you see this more in Revelation 13, is Satan's use of human kingdoms and kings, tyrants, wicked governments to assault the people of God. So he's got seven heads and a crown on each head, and there's just all of this power, this might and this vicious-ness. Now, John leaves us no doubt as to who this is. Later in Verse 9, it says, "The great dragon was hurled down, that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray." That is a comprehensive identification, isn't it, in verse 9? We'll talk more about it. We know who this dragon is, This is the devil, and notice that it says that "His tail swept," in Verse 4, "a third of the stars from the heavens and flung them to the Earth." I believe that this is referring to fallen angels, what we commonly know in the New Testament as demons. And so a third of the angels joined Satan in his rebellion against Almighty God, and they were flung to the earth, as we'll see later in this text, they lost their place in heaven, and they are on the Earth, tormenting those on the earth. The devil is not alone, and he has a very organized malicious empire, a kingdom, designed to destroy our souls. And so a third of the star is thrown down to the Earth, and he is standing there in a posture that's very threatening and very intimidating, terrifying even. He is waiting over this pregnant woman as she's in labor, waiting to grab her child the moment he's born and kill him, there's no doubt about it, to devour that child the moment that he is born. Now, I think this implies very plainly that Satan knew who Jesus was, he knew that Mary had never been with a man - he knows all of our histories - that she had never been sexually with a man, she was a virgin, and yet here she was pregnant. She also knows what the angel Gabriel had said to her, and what the angel had revealed to Joseph, what the two of them had discussed together, how the whole thing was unfolding, and we know that the demons said to Jesus when he began his ministry, "We know who you are, the holy one of God." So the devil is very well aware of the significance of this birth and who this baby is. We also know, as Jesus said from John 8:44, "The devil was a murderer from the beginning," he intended murder toward this little baby that was being born. But thanks be to God, the angelic army was there to stop him. Amen. I think they weren't just there to praise God, but they were there ready for a fight, and the sovereign power of God was there to protect this little baby Jesus as well, but to what a terrifying vision. And it's an amazing thing when we think about it. The scenes that we have, and I've gotten some beautiful - we've gotten - some beautiful Christmas cards, and you get this idyllic scene of the little town of Bethlehem, don't you. And it's a beautiful night, and all the hymns talk about: “O little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, the silent stars go by.” No mention there of the stars that were flung to the earth by the dragon's tail. No, these are the physical stars, and it's a peaceful night, or this one: “O holy night, the stars are brightly shining. It is the night of our dear Saviors birth.” Or, this one most of all: “Silent night, holy night, All is calm, all is bright Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.” Well, that's fine, but there was more there than met the eye that night, that's all I'm saying. There is a terrifying dragon wanting to kill that baby, and there's an army from heaven wanting to protect that baby, and none of it perceptible by the naked eye. And therefore, dear friend, you must see with spiritual eyes this Christmas season. You can't see it only with the physical eye. You have to see what's really going on. And what's really going on is that Jesus's birth is a warfare birth, it's a weapon that came from Heaven to Earth, the ultimate weapon. The Genesis 3 Prediction Now, behind all of this, of course, is the Genesis 3 prediction. You remember how Satan hijacks a snake in some mysterious way and spoke to Eve through the serpent and communicated with her. We're never told in Genesis 3 that the serpent is the devil, we just always kind of knew it, didn't we? Thanks be to God for Revelation 12 verse 9, that tells us that the ancient serpent is the devil. So we know who that ancient serpent was, but he spoke as he does, masquerading, always masquerading, standing behind, not quite sure who you're dealing with. But God saw through all of that and through the guise, the disguise, through the serpent, he spoke to Satan, didn't he? In Genesis 3:15, he said, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and hers, he will crush your head and you will strike his heel." Well, from the moment that prophecy came, there has been a history of satanic assaults on the woman. And by that, again, I mean within Revelation 12, the people of God, as in every generation, there was a threat that the serpent slayer would be born. A History of Satanic Assault on the “Seed of the Woman” And so at key moments in redemptive history, you can see the demonic or the satanic attack on the seed of the woman. You definitely see it, I think in Exodus chapter 1, when Pharaoh gave the order that all the boy babies of the Jews be slaughtered, thrown into the river. I think that is a satanic assault on the seed of woman. His desire was to stop the serpent slayer before the serpent slayer could come and crush him. Or, again in 2 Kings 11 in the flow of the history of Judah and Israel, the people of God, they had one king after another. David, the House of David, had already been set aside, and from his lineage, would be born the Messiah. The serpent slayer would be a son of David. And at one point, a wicked woman, Athaliah, sought to sever that line, to kill all of the sons of David, to destroy the lineage of David. And it came down to one godly woman, Jehosheba, who put little baby Joash, the only remaining descendant of David alive at that time, to hide him, so that he would not be murdered with all of his brothers. And it's just an amazing thing for me to meditate, thinking about it this morning, how slender the Davidic line hung by a thread, but that thread was unbreakable, it could not be broken. And so the devil would have sought to snuff out the line of David, but God said, no, and by the sovereign power of God, that baby was indestructible until, at last, he gave birth to the next in the lineage. And then how much more in the account, and Eric already referred to it, after Jesus was born, how Herod the Great, that jealous and petty and wicked ruler who sought to maintain his own pathetic clinging to power. He yearned for it so much, he killed his own two sons, prompting Caesar Augustus say, “I would rather be Herod's pig than his son.” He won't kill his pigs, but he'll kill his sons. What an evil and wicked, grasping man. When he gave one of the most vicious edicts in the Bible, when the Magi came to Jerusalem and told him of the birth of the boy baby, birth of Jesus, "he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity, who were two years old and under, in accordance with the word he had gotten from the Magi." Do you see that the viciousness, the vicinity, and anybody two and under, he doesn't care who gets killed, just as long as Jesus is among them. But you have to see behind what Herod was doing to the devil's attack on the seed of woman. It was the devil, the dragon, standing there with claws and fiery breath, ready at that moment to kill that baby. And again, God said, "No." By the sovereign hand of God. The Birth of a Son that Will Rule the Nations And so in verse 4, "The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth so that he might devour her child the moment it was born," but in verse 5, "she gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter." And so Satan completely failed in his attempt; he could not crush him. Satan was thwarted, the baby was born, and he will reign forever and ever. This is the one who it says, will rule all the nations. All authority in Heaven and Earth has been given to him. He rules over everything, and he'll rule them, it says, "with an iron scepter." This is a direct fulfillment of Psalm 2, 8 and 9, in which God the Father speaks to God the Son, and he says, "Ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance. I will give you the ends of the Earth as your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter. You will dash them to pieces like pottery." And so this is the little baby, the little boy baby that's born. He is the one who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. Now, this iron scepter, in my opinion, represents Christ's unbreakable rule. His reign cannot be thwarted, he cannot be stopped. And it specifically, I think, talks about his power to crush all opposition. He will destroy all of his enemies with a fiery wrath. And so this iron scepter comes back in in Revelation 19 at the second coming of Christ, when Jesus returns, when the heavens are open and the invasion happens for the final time, and Jesus comes back, leading an army from heaven. This is what Revelation 19, 15 and 16 says of Jesus, "Out of His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. 'He will rule them with an iron scepter.' He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. And on his robe and on his thigh, he has this name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords." That's the second coming of Christ, that's when the rod of iron smashes the enemies of Christ on the Earth. Now, we might think that this image of a rod of iron is a picture of absolute tyranny, an iron boot or an iron yoke or an iron rod, something like that. And we get the picture of wickedness, really, of tyranny. But nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is actually another Psalm quoted in Hebrews 1 also speaks of Christ scepter. In Hebrews 1, God the Father, again, speaking to the Son, says this, "Your throne, oh God, will last forever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness." That rod of iron is a rod of righteousness. He will smash no one unjustly. He will smash no one unrighteously, but it is a rod of justice and righteousness. I think the real question for us is, how can wicked sinners like us be seen to be righteous by the one who wields that iron rod – amen - that we might actually be accounted righteous by Jesus. And there is a way, that's the whole point of all of this, because Jesus came into the world because He took our place on the cross because He shed his blood. We may see, be seen to be righteous on that great final day, and He will not smash us. He will welcome us, He will embrace us as righteous sons and daughters, righteous not in and of ourselves, but righteous as a gift, a free gift of grace by faith. But this is the rod of iron, it's a rod of righteousness and of power and unbreakable reign. What child is this who laid to rest on Mary's lap is sleeping? This is the King of Kings. This is the Lord of Lords, this is the one who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And so Satan sought to devour this little boy baby, but he couldn't do it. The Ascent of the Son And we're told that "…her child was snatched up to God and to His throne." Satan wanted to snatch him, but Jesus caught him up to heaven, and we know that this is referring to after Jesus's sinless life, and after his atoning death, and after his mighty resurrection, bodily resurrection on the third day. He ascended to Heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father, Almighty, and from that place, He will come to judge the living and the dead. As Psalm 1:10 says, God the Father speaking to God the son, "Sit at my right hand until I make all your enemies a footstool for your feet. The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion; you'll rule in the midst of your enemies." So there's the scepter again. God's going to extend Christ's scepter, and he is to sit at God's right hand, and God the Father is making Christ enemies a footstool for his feet. Just as it said in Hebrews 10:12-14, "But when this priest had offered for all time, one sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time, he waits for his enemies to be made His footstool, because by one sacrifice, he has made perfect forever, those who are being made holy." That's the Gospel. Jesus now is at the right hand of God. And if you're a child of God, and if you've been made holy by simple faith in the blood of Jesus, he is at the right hand of God and is interceding for you right now. You know why? Because you're in trouble, and so am I. We'll get to that in a moment, but we are down here on the Earth and there's been a woe pronounced over us. "Woe to the Earth…" and the people who are still on it. The Protection of the Woman We are in trouble here, but Satan won't win. Amen, he will not win. We are going to have the final victory in the end, that's the joy of this. The woman is protected, she's still on the Earth, and she needs to be protected. Look at verse 6, "The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God where she might be taken care of for 1260 days." And so again, this is why I do not think this is only talking about Mary, but this is the people of God, even after the birth of Christ, she needs to be protected. She is Christ bride; now we've changed the image of it, and she must be protected from the assaults of the evil one. And she flees to the desert. So she is fleeing because the one pursuing her is more powerful than she is, but she goes to the desert, which is that ancient place of protection by God and provisioned by God, where the Jews wandered through the desert, and only God can feed His people in the desert by manna and by hidden springs of water. And so we are in a desert land, and we are being provided for by God, and we're being chased by the devil and assaulted by the devil, but we will be cared for 1260 days. Lots to say about that. What can we say about the 1260 days? A time times and half a time. 42 months, 1260 days, three different ways that that time is identified, and we'll say nothing more about it, what do you say? I believe it may be the very last stretch of time of human history, the final phase of the persecution of the devil against God's people. But also here, at least, it represents a finite amount of time where the devil gets to beat us up, and then it will be done, because this text tells us the devil knows his time is short. And our time of suffering and our time of persecution is finite. It's fixed, the days have been weighed out and will not go a single day beyond what the elect can bear. And so she is protected, that's the first phase. A Heavenly Warfare: The First Defeat of Satan (vs. 7-9) Back in Time: How Satan Fell Before History Began Second phase, heavenly warfare, the first defeat of Satan, in verses 7-9, "There was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down, that ancient serpent called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world astray, he was hurled down to the Earth and his angels with him." Not every interpreter agrees with me on this, but I think that this is referring to even further back in time, back before the Garden of Eden, back before Adam and Eve fell. This is referring to the fall, the original fall of Satan, other texts in the Old Testament, Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 refer to the fall of Satan, I believe, in prophetic guise. God created everything good. All of the angels, including Satan, were created good and beautiful and upright and righteous. But at some point, the devil got into his mind to try to take over Heaven, and so he led a rebellion against Almighty God, he tried to ascend to the throne of God and topple God from His throne, but he could not do it. And so we're going back in time, and the archangel Michael initiates the attack here. Satan has been limited in what he could do, he could only recruit one-third of the angels to join with him in rebellion. And Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back, but the dragon was not strong enough and they lost their place. Not just the dragon, but everyone that followed him, they were hurled down to the earth, they lost their place in heaven. So there's no doubt about who this is. Verse 9, five identifiers: he is a dragon, he is the ancient serpent, he is the devil, he is Satan, he is the one who leads the whole world astray. 2 Corinthians 4:4, calls him "The god of this age who has blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." He is the one running the show in the world so that people can't see Jesus, they can't understand His glory. He's blinding their eyes, he is the god of this age. And he's leading the whole world astray. Simply put, he's leading the whole world through sin, through temptation and sin, leading them away from God and away from Christ. That's what he's doing. Leading the whole world astray. He is the reason why we needed a savior, he's the reason why we needed a redeemer. He's a liar and a killer. The Lessons of the Defeat And what lessons can we take from verse 7-9, first, Satan is awesomely powerful, but he still couldn't win. He may be the most - I can't make this assertion definite from the Scripture - but he may be the most powerful single created being, but he still wasn't strong enough. He is vastly more powerful than you and I, vastly more powerful. I think it's also fascinating how the Almighty God, the one who rules all things, who controls all things, all power is His, let Michael and Satan and the angels more or less fight it out on more or less equal terms. Isn't that interesting? God is the billion-pound weight that when he weighs on one scale or the other, it's over that side wins. It's that simple. If he had stepped in and snuffed Satan out, it would have been over. But it was not God's will to do that, and so he let them fight it out and Michael won, and his angels won. And you may puzzle over that, say, "God, show up with your omnipotence," God is showing up every moment with His omnipotence. He actually allows David's line to go down to a slender thread and then just says, "You can't break it." He allows Michael and his angels to fight it out, and Michael wins by the sovereign hand of God. Satan was cast down to the Earth to begin his earthly reign. He became the strong man with armor and weapons, who then someone more powerful came and overtook him and stripped him of his weapons and plundered his house. And friends, the plundering of Satan's house has been going on for 2000 years. Amen. And you're part of the booty, you're part of the plunder. You've been rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought over into the kingdom of the beloved Son. Satan took over the world and he boasted to Jesus, the world has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. Well, who is it that gave him the world? I don't think it was God the Father, I think it was Adam. He just handed it to him, and Jesus came to get it back, because the Earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. And Satan is a liar, and everything he tries to give is a temporary gift, because that's all he can offer, his time is short. How can he give Christ the kingdoms of the world and their splendor forever and ever; he doesn't control them. His time is short, and so Jesus rightly said, "Away from me, Satan. For it is written, 'Worship the Lord, your God and serve Him only.'" So I want you to estimate Satan and his demons rightly. They are powerful. They are here now, right now. They are assaulting you with temptations right now. And though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God has willed his truth to triumph through us. The Prince of Darkness, grim, we tremble not for him. His rage, we can endure for lo his doom is sure, one little word shall fell him. That word is Jesus. The Terrible Consequences for the Earth And so we have terrible consequences for the Earth. Satan both leads people astray and then he accuses them before the Father night and day. He has crafted a wise, darkly wise, wicked world system that comes at us in clever devious, tricky ways. We have our own flesh, which he is well acquainted with, he knows our weaknesses and our tendencies, and he then marries together the allurements of the world specifically to your weaknesses in a scheme system, which is very effective. I've often wondered what it would be like to fight the world and the flesh without the devil there. We would be vastly more successful. And so Revelation 12:12 says, "Woe to the Earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you. He is filled with rage because he knows that his time is short." Isn't that a marvelous thing? The devil knows his time is short. How does he know that? Because he believes God's word. Isn't that something? James 4 talks about demonic faith, and so Satan actually believes that his time is short, he's seen evidence of it, he could not stop Jesus, and he has been defeated now for 2000 years. And you know the whole thing just makes him angry, he's just enraged. And God sits on His throne serenely smiling, perfectly at peace. Our God is in heaven, He does whatever makes him happy, and he is a happy being, so I would suggest you go with the happy God rather than the enraged god. Amen. The happy God will live forever and ever and ever, and nothing can get him off his throne. The god of this world has a temporary reign, and he's filled with rage, he's not happy with anything that he has. And so don't you see how the world-lings go after the things of this world, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, the boastful pride of life, but they don't make them happy, they're angry too, they're imitating their father, the devil. Let's not be like them. The devil is filled with rage because he knows his time is short. A Heavenly Victory: The Conquering Joy of the Saints (vs. 10-12) The Victor’s Cry! Thirdly, a heavenly victory, the conquering joy of the saints. "Then I heard a loud voice in Heaven say, now have come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ, for the accuser of our Brothers, who accuses them before our God, day and night has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. They did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. And therefore, rejoice you heavens, and you who dwell in them, but woe to the Earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you. He is filled with fury because he knows his time is short." Friends, this is the victor's cry, rejoice. Now, at last, the Kingdom of God has come. A loud voice in heaven proclaims this victory of Christ over Satan, because Jesus has been born, because he lived a sinless life, because He taught all those perfect doctrines, because He did those mighty miracles, because He went to the cross for you and me as our substitute, because He died and shed his blood, because He was raised from the dead on the third day, because He ascends to Heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father, Almighty. Because of all of that, the salvation of our God has come. The Spoils of the Victory: Salvation, Power, Kingdom, Authority Look at the spoils of victory: the salvation of our God, the power of our God, the kingdom of His Christ, the authority of Christ. All of these things rushing in one after the other, because of the victory of Jesus. If you know Handel's Messiah, you know this is the hallelujah chorus. The second part, where would the hallelujah chorus be without the Book of Revelation? Amen. Got to have the words that we're singing and celebrating about. The kingdom of this world has become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever. That is the celebration, the spoils. All of these Flow from One Source: The Death of Jesus Christ on the Cross And all of this comes from one source, the death of Jesus on the cross. So we have kind of a two-part existence right now. We've got an existence here on Earth, our feet firmly rooted to the ground and a woe has been pronounced over us in one sense. We are still in trouble, we are in danger, the devil is working on us every moment, crafting temptations, assaulting us, accusing us, telling us how wicked and how sinful we are, underestimating the blood of Jesus, and so we are in trouble and we're having difficulty. The Victory of the Saints in Heaven: Overcoming the Accusations by Faith in the Blood of Jesus But then we've got this heavenly vision of the saints who have made it through, they're done, they have fought the good fight, they have finished the race, they've kept the faith, they are up in Heaven, and they're finished with all the strife and conflict, and they're just - therefore, rejoice you heavens. A time of strife is over. And how did they get there? Look at Verse 11, "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony." Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Revelation 5 and Verse 6, "Then I saw a lamb looking as if it had been slain standing in the center of the throne." Revelation 5:9-10, "And they sang a new song to Jesus, You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood, you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priest to serve our God, and they will reign on the Earth." So we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. Courageous Living Makes Up their Testimony We overcome. Do you have a testimony? Are you able to say, by your word, Jesus is Lord, and I know in my heart that God raised Him from the dead, and I have called in the name of the Lord for my salvation, and I have trusted in Him. And I know that all of my sins are forgiven, and I know that all of his assaults on me are temporary. And though some of his accusations are true, yet they are every one of them covered by the blood of Jesus, and I am able to have a clean conscience and a pure standing with God because of the blood of the lamb. Do you have such a testimony? I don't assume that you do, just because you're here in church on Sunday. It could be that God brought you here because you don't have a testimony yet, and you need one. You need to trust in Jesus. You need to say, I believe that what the pastor was talking about today is true for me, Jesus is my Savior, and He alone can deliver me from the devil and the world and the flesh, and note what it says of them, "They did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death." That must characterize you if you're going to go to heaven. I do not say to you that you will most certainly be persecuted by the government of this country, or be arrested, or beaten for your faith, and press through to martyrdom. I don't necessarily think that may happen, but you must not love your life in this world so much that you don't obey Jesus. You have to be willing to turn your back on your Earthly life, to deny yourself every day and take up your cross and follow Jesus. That is the life that leads to heaven. The End Result: Temporary Pain on Earth, Eternal Joy in Heaven Verse 11 says, "They didn't love their lives in this world so much as to shrink from death." So you may be called on to be a martyr. I don't know what the future of America holds. I don't know if the American government will persecute Christians to death in my lifetime. I don't know, maybe, maybe not. Stranger things have happened in redemptive history than that - a government assaulting Christians and killing them. It goes on all the time, even now. It may not happen in our country or it may. But this verse goes beyond mere blood martyrdom. I think we are called on every single day to die to ourselves and serve Jesus. When the moment of temptation comes, when that flaming arrow comes from the evil one, you must die to yourself by putting it to death. That's just what it is, feels like dying, feels like dying. "But unless a kernel of wheat falls in the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it brings forth much fruit." You're called on to die, to die to sin, to die to the world, to die to ambitions and live only for Jesus. Applications Come to Christ So what applications? Well, come to Christ. Come to Christ now, come to Christ every moment. See through Christmas to Jesus. Amen. See through it all. Enjoy Christmas, have a good time, eat the eats and smell the smells, and open the gifts. Do all of that. That's wonderful. They're all gifts from God. But can I just ask, see through all of it, to Jesus on the other side, come to Christ. Celebrate God’s Total Victory Over Satan Secondly, celebrate God's total victory over Satan. Do you know that Revelation 12 portrays Satan as a five-time loser? It's fun. I stopped at Verse 12, but if you keep going, he loses five times. He just keep losing, and losing, and losing, losing. God delights to make Satan loose for a long time, thousands of years of losing. And so five times in this text, we'll start historically with verse 7, Satan fought against the Archangel Michael in heaven, but he lost and He's cast down to earth. Start there. He loses. And then he's the dragon who attempts to devour the male child and put him to death, but he loses. And then he pursues the woman, but God protects her in the desert for 1260 days, then he tries to swallow the woman up in a river, but the earth swallows the river instead. And then he tries to wage war on the woman's children, those who keep on obeying God's commands and holding on to Jesus testimony, but he's thwarted there too. Five time loser, amen. Five times, Christ is the victor. Christ is the triumphant King. Understand Christ’s Rod of Iron Thirdly, understand Christ rod of iron. Christ rod of iron, understand it. It crushes his enemies. It trains his children. So when you have an adverse providence, as Sarah Edwards said, when she found out that Jonathan, her husband, had died, she said to her daughter, let us kiss the rod, kiss the rod. And what it means is trust in the strokes of your father. When he is training you, when he is disciplining you, submit to it gladly. You know what it means? It means you're a child of God. We'll read about it when we get to it in Hebrews 12, that God disciplines His children. And then concerning the enemies of the church, just know this, if they are truly genuine enemies and are assaulting, assaulting, assaulting, they cannot win. They will be crushed, Christ will crush them. Rejoice that, If you are a Christian, Your Time is Not Short And then fourth, rejoice that if you're a Christian, your time is not short, amen. You have forever ahead of you, your best days are yet to come. All of them. The devil's time is short, he's heading for the lake of fire. But if you're a child of God, you have eternal life ahead of you. Do Not Love Your Lives So Much as to Shrink from Death And then finally embrace every moment, the principle that you should not love your life so much as it's shrink from death. It's hard, isn't it? How do you really enjoy Christmas but don't love it too much? How do you enjoy the blessings of this world, but still not love your life so much as to shrink from death? It's hard. And it is the challenge of the American Evangelical church. How do we get surrounded by all of this prosperity and ease and comfort and still not love our lives so much as to shrink from death? But I urge that you take that text and bring it back to God and say, God teach me to die, teach me to die as you want me to die, teach me to die to myself today, to worldly ease and comfort. Close with me in prayer. Father, we thank you for this text, for all that it teaches us of Jesus. Thank you for everything that he has done for us, and coming to Earth from Heaven, dying on the cross. Father, I pray that you would reach out now to any who is lost and save them from their sins. And Father, reach out now also to the rest of us who are already your children. Reassure us, comfort us and strengthen us for the fight, because we're still in a battle now, but help us to look forward to the day when we can rejoice with the Saints who went ahead of us, who overcame Satan by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony. In Jesus name. Amen.
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