2006 Songs of Christmas Series –
“Away in a Manger”
Luke 2:1-7
Sermon preached at Curwensville Presbyterian Church – December 3, 2006
Prayer Introduction: I grew up in a very formal, stoic, frozen-chosen, Presbyterian Church – where we sang with great somberness, “Joyful, joyful we adore Thee…Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; Drive the dark of doubt away; Giver of immortal gladness, Fill us with the light of day.”
I have listened to Presbyterians complain about sermons being too negative in the emphasis on mankind’s sinful condition; but then proclaim their love for singing, “Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.”
For the most part we sing songs without really knowing what we are singing. People who don’t “like to sing” are mostly concerned with offending the ears of the person in the pew in front of them – so they certainly aren’t meditating on the words they are singing.
O the words that we are singing. O what you are missing when you never learn the words. And so, this Christmas, we are focusing on the Songs of Christmas – which offer amazing exposition of the biblical account of Jesus’ birth. My hope is that in exploring these songs, we might learn to love a song not for its melody, but for its message.
I have been singing today’s Christmas Carol – “Away in a Manger” – for over 30 years; and I now realize that I never knew what it was really about. For 30 years I have missed the amazing truth of God’s Word expressed in this hymn. So I encourage you to turn to Hymn #25 in your hymnal, and to Luke 2:1-7 in your Bible.
For many years it was thought that Martin Luther, himself, wrote this hymn. In fact, it is commonly known as “Luther’s Cradle Hymn.” However, its earliest appearance is in an 1885 songbook published by German Lutherans in Pennsylvania. How about that? It is quite possible that this well-loved Christmas Carol originated right here in Pennsylvania.
Let’s pray…We pray now for the preacher in the pulpit. He is not worthy, but by your grace he is able. And so it is through Jesus Christ that we pray – Amen!
READ Luke 2:1-7
I. Looking Down into the Manger – The Reality of the Incarnation
When I began looking at this hymn, I immediately realized how little I understood it; beginning with the very first word: “Away.” Away in a Manger – what does that mean? “Away in a manger, no crib for His bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.” What do you mean “away”? Away from where?
I called another pastor, a bit embarrassed at asking, “Do you have any idea what ‘Away in a Manger’ is about. And I expected laughter at my ignorance at the other end; but what I heard was, “You know, that’s a good question – I have no idea.”
So I asked another pastor, who – after a long pause – said, “Is it maybe about Joseph & Mary having to go away from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem?” I thought about that, but this hymn isn’t about Joseph and Mary. It’s about Jesus.
And that’s when it hit me. This isn’t about Mary & Joseph going away from their home; it is about Jesus leaving His home in heaven in order to come away to us. Jesus went away from the glory of heaven, in order to take on flesh – to be God incarnate – for us.
Jesus went away – far away – to Bethlehem of all places. Bethlehem was really out in the middle of nowhere. It was kind of like my experience of moving to Curwensville. Friends and family said, “You’re moving where? What’s it near?” And I told them, “It isn’t near anything.”
The God of the universe, left the throne room of heaven to be born a baby – in Curwensville-like Bethlehem – in a barn – lying in the feeding trough.
George Buttrick, an old Presbyterian preacher, said that God came down the back stairs at Bethlehem, lest He blind us by excessive light.
Theologically this is referred to as the “humiliation” of Jesus Christ. The Westminster Shorter Catechism explains, “Wherein did Christ’s humiliation consist? Christ’s humiliation consisted in his being born, and that in a low condition (that’s an understatement), made under the law, undergoing the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross; in being buried, and continuing under the power of death for a time” (WSC #27).
The first verse of this hymn takes us right into the humiliation of Jesus the Christ. How would you feel if you and your wife were expecting and you were forced to leave your hometown in order to complete the government-sanctioned census being taken for taxation and military draft? Only to arrive in the middle of nowhere, have your wife go into labor, and have no one that would you take you in and help you? “My wife is in labor, for God’s sake.” “You can go in the barn.”
Now get this, God chose to bring his son into the world in just this way.
If God is willing to endure this kind of humiliation, do we really have any place to complain about ANYTHING that happens to us in our life!? We may have some bad stuff happen to us – but nothing even comes close to how low a condition Jesus started his life.
Every time you want to complain about your job, your family, the price of fuel, pain or sickness – take a moment to remember the way in which God sent His Son into the world.
Philippians 2:5-8 says, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!”
We sing about the baby Jesus’ sweet head – and that’s what I always thought this hymn was about – but then we see something far more grand: the stars looking down where he lay. This is the central point of history. The entire cosmic world comes to a stop in order to focus on the child lying in this manger.
II. Looking Down from the Sky – 2nd Verse/Stanza
If you had seen all of that in this hymn, then you have done better than me; but then I realized there was more, much more. The second verse (or more rightly called, the second “stanza”) of this hymn starts out innocently enough – and perhaps a bit troublesome. I never liked the line, “The cattle are lowing, the poor Baby wakes, but little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes.”
I misunderstood this to be saying that the baby Jesus never cried, which is just ridiculous. Of course Jesus cried – he was human. He was divine, but he was also human. Of course Jesus cried. Jesus wept when Lazarus died. Jesus wept over Jerusalem. God weeps for his people.
Jesus was human – fully human – but also fully divine. He was 100% of each – which is impossible for any other – that’s why people mess up this theology so readily. Some say he was just human; others say he was just divine. Bible-believing Christians say, “He was both. I don’t know how that’s possible, but with God all things are possible.”
Jesus is human. He cries when he is hurt; he bleeds when cut – and oh how he bled.
O – that God would become human in order to bleed for us.
Pastor Derek Thomas helped me understand a better meaning for the first part of the second verse: “I think all that the author is doing is painting a picture, that’s all: painting a picture of a scene in the manger with Jesus lying there, perhaps looking in wonder and astonishment at these cows. You know, if you’re the size of a little infant and you’ve got these big cows looking down at you, and they’re lowing, and they’re making these great big noises...you can imagine, you know, the eyes popping open, and there’s a startle...but think about that! This is Jesus! This is the One who made these cows! This is the One who in eternity said, “Cow!” and “Cow” came into being! And now…He’s lying there astonished by that which He himself has made.” (Derek Thomas).
Now I want you to see what really blew me away in reading this hymn: Notice the change in the point of view that takes place. In verse 1 (and the first part of verse 2) everyone and everything is looking down into the manger.
Now look at the middle of the second line in the second verse: “I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky, and stay by my side until morning is nigh.” Whoa! We are no longer looking down in the manger; suddenly Jesus is exalted in the heavens and He is looking down at us from the sky.
“I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky, and stay by my side until morning is nigh.”
III. Looking Over Me – Verse/Stanza #3
All of this feeds into the 3rd verse/stanza: “Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask Thee to stay close by me forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care, and fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.”
You know the classic children’s prayer: “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” It is very reminiscent of this 3rd verse.
Instead of looking down at Jesus in the manger, we call on Jesus to look over us from heaven in order to fit us for heaven. Do you realize what that means – Lord, fit us for heaven? It means that because of our nature we are unfit for heaven.
This points us to the wonderful truth of the Gospel. God created us to be with him, but we have been separated from him by our rebellious sin. Yet he came to us in the birth of the baby in the manger, and that child lived the perfect life we failed to live in order to reconcile us to God. Jesus came to us, so that we could come to the Father – so that we could be with him, as He created us to be.
This has two direct applications: First, we need to confess that we are, by nature, unfit for heaven; that we are, by nature, enemies of God. Only through the humiliation and exaltation of Jesus – who is the Christ – can we be reconciled with the heavenly Father. Have you confessed this? Have you acknowledged your absolute dependence on Jesus? Have you placed your trust in Him? Has the humiliation of Christ hit your heart – He came, so that you could come to Him.
Secondly, this confession should result in the immediate and ongoing work of the Holy Spirit ruling in your heart. Have you not only placed your trust in Jesus as your Savior, but also surrendered your life to him as Lord? Are you living a life of humility and thankfulness? Are you letting Jesus begin fitting you – preparing you – for eternal life in heaven?
This hymn tells us how we can know if we truly love the Lord; by our desire to have the Lord be near us. Are you, as Wayne West said a few weeks ago, standing in the center of the Garden of Gethsemane in order to be near Jesus? Do you long to have Jesus close to you, sanctifying you, driving out your sinful desires? Or are you pushing him away?
Is the truth – is Jesus – setting you free from sin and Satan’s grasp? Are you living a life of freedom and faithfulness? Do you find yourself longing for more and more of Jesus; and less and less of the world?
Let Jesus set you free? Let Jesus draw near to you? Let Jesus cause you to hate your sin, because you love Him – because He loves you. Make the third verse your prayer: “Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask Thee to stay close by me forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care, and fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.”
MAY THE TRUTH SET YOU FREE – AMEN!