Christmas Songs reviewed by Pastor Barry

Your ears will be barraged (a fancy word for "blasted") by Christmas songs for the next few weeks. Make sure you think deeply about what you hear. What is the message of the song? What does the Bible say about these issues? Below are some of my thoughts shared through grouping songs and commenting. Merry Christmas!

BEST CHRISTMAS SONGS ABOUT THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS--CHRIST!

• Angels We Have Heard on High
• Angels from the Realms of Glory
• Away in a Manger
• Gentle Mary Laid Her Child
• Good Christian Men Rejoice
• Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
• The best on the list. Thoroughly biblical, Christian, and true meaning of Christmas.
• It Came upon the Midnight Clear
• Joy to the World! The Lord is Come
• O Come, All Ye Faithful
• O Come, O Come Emmanuel
• The First Nowell
• What Child Is This?

FUN SONGS BUT NOT CHRISTIAN

• Come on, it's lovely weather For a sleigh ride together with you
• Jingle Bells
• Frosty the Snowman
• Grandma Got Run over by a Reindeer
• Carol of the Bells
• It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

FROM A BYGONE ERA OF ASSUMED CHRISTIANITY

• Drummer Boy
• Do you hear what I hear?

VAPID, INSIPID SONGS--NOT WORTH YOUR TIME

• Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time - Paul McCartney
• So this is Christmas and What Have you Done - John Lennon
• Is the best you can think of World Peace? God offers lasting peace with Himself through His son, Jesus, which is the actual meaning of Luke 2:14
• Last Christmas I gave you my heart, the very next day you gave it away...
• Run, run, Rudolph

BEST IF SUNG BY A LOUNGE SINGER / CROONER

• Silver Bells
• Let it Snow 
• (and wins the prize for being the most sultry song on this list!)
• I'll Be Home for Christmas
• Have yourself a Merry little Christmas
• ! "Soon enough, we all will be together / If the Fates allow" Who are the Fates? Greek demigods? Why not give credit to the true God?

WEIRD SONGS THAT CONTINUE THE MYTH OF SANTA

• Here comes Santa Claus - Elvis
• "Santa Claus knows we're all God's children / That makes everything right" So Santa is a Unitarian Universalist?
• Santa Claus is Coming to town
• "He sees you when you're sleeping, He Know when you're awake / He knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goodness sake!" What are we teaching our kids about God and salvation through this song?
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• Because of this song, I know all 8 names (9 with Rudolph) of Santa's reindeer. Wait, what does this have to do with Christmas?
• I Saw Mommy Kissing Santy Claus
• uhh.... creepy.

TRADITIONAL ENGLISH SONGS THAT MAKE NO SENSE TO ME

• Good King Wenceslas
• The Holly & The Ivy
• I Saw 3 Ships Come Sailing In
• Ding Dong Merrily on High
• Here we go a wassailing

DOES ANYONE ELSE REMEMBER THESE?

• Up on the Housetop Reindeer Paws (Ho, ho, ho, Who wouldn't Go?)
• All I want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth
• I'm getting nothing for Christmas (somebody snitched on me!)

 Hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. Read below:

1. Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new-born King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild;
God and sinners reconciled."
Joyful, all ye nations, rise,
Join the triumph of the skies,
With angelic hosts proclaim,
"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new-born King."


2. Christ, by highest heav'n adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord:
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb.
Veiled in flesh the God-head see,
Hail th'incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus our Immanuel.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new-born King."


3. Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris'n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die,
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new-born King."