# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1896_S43 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) The Lutheran Pione @ A MISSIONARY MONTHUY. PusBLisuep By THE EVANGELICAL LutaerRAN SynopicaL ConFERENCE OF Nort AMERICA. R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor. Entered at the Post Office at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter. Vol. XVIII. St. Louis, Mo., December, 1896. No. 12. Good Tidings. heaven might pass through to announce ‘the glory, and the peace, and the good will?” “Beh ing y idinge of great joy, which s F ; old, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall | phe angel said, ‘‘Behold, I bring you good be to all people.” “Good tidings!’? Wake, O men, and hear What blessing to the world draws near. The message of love, Sent from their home above, A glimpse of heaven’s glory bring, While to their golden harps they sing — “Good tidings!” “Great joy!’ The sorrowing sons of earth, Who sat in darkness from their birth, Shall sec this radiant light Pierce through their gloomy night, And shall rejoice that angels bore The heavenly message to carth’s shore — “Great joy!” “To all!”? To all of every land This message brings the angel band. Not the loved Jew alone, But all—yes, every one Shall hear this news, shall share this Joy, Shall have this gift without alloy — “ANLT AlL!? “A Saviour!? Yea, from all their sin His people shall He save, and win Peace for His servants true — His peace, forever new. Give us Thy peace, O Christ, our King, That we for aye with angels sing — “Our Saviour!” Selected. —_—_—> + ooo The Tidings of the Holy Christmas Night. That was a wonderful night. Such as never had been, or ever could be again. All heaven was thrilling. All the blessed angels were filled with happy amazement. One of them came down to this sleeping, darkened earth, Startling the shepherds who were watching their flocks by night. ‘To those lowly ones he Came and made known the glorious event which made that night such a wonderful night and filled the hearts of those in heaven with joy and.amazement. And when he had spoken, there suddenly was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and say- ing, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on arth peace, good will toward men.’’ What were the wonderful tidings, so im- Portant that heaven opened her gates, that the angelic Messengers from the court of tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”’ Wonderful tidings of the holy Christmas night! How wonderful that ‘Christ the Lord,” the Lord of heaven and earth became man! How wonderful that God’s own Son, ‘‘God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, by whom all things were made,’’ came into this dark, sinful world of ours.as a child of poverty and of sorrows! Such a birth there never had been before, and such a birth can never again occur. Well may the angels be filled with amazement and sing their song of glory to God in the highest. Joyful tidings of the holy Christmas night! “I bring you good tidings of great joy,”’ said the angel. And which were these good tid- ings? ‘Unto you is born a Saviour.” Better tidings, more joyful tidings could not be brought to sinners. We need a Saviour. We are sinners and have deserved God’s wrath and everlasting punishment; for ‘‘the wages of sin is death.’? “No creature in heaven or on earth could rescue us from our awful doom. But behold, God came to the rescue. His own Son became man and took our place, to do all that the law requires from us and to bear the punishment of all our transgressions. The birth of this Saviour is made known in the joyful tidings of the holy Christmas night. Good tidings of great joy! It is our Saviour that was born; it is to us that salvation now has come. These tidings are for us and for all people. They are for you, whoever you may be. ‘To the chief of sinners the joyful tidings of the holy Christmas night bring the Saviour who ‘‘came into the world to save sinners’? —even the chief of sinners. To the poor as well as to the rich the joyful tidings of the holy Christmas night bring the richest of all gifts—the Saviour, who for our sakes became poor that we through His poverty might be rich. To the sorrowing as well as to the happy the joyful tidings of the holy Christ- mas night bring true joy —joy in the Saviour, who alone gives true happiness and who is the Comfort of all the sorrowing and the Consola- tion of all the weeping. May we all welcome with glad and believing hearts the holy Christmas with its wonderful and joyful tidings of our Saviour’s birth. > o-oo God’s Love.. At the manger of Bethlehem you may be- hold God’s love. ‘‘God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that who- soever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life,’’ John 3, 16. Who is it that loved? The great God. What was it He did? He loved. Whom did He love? The world of sinners, the world that hated Him. How did He show His love? He gave His only begotten Son. What did He give? His only begotten Son, the best, the most precious gift. What moved Him to give His only be- gotten Son? He so loved the world. For what did He give Him? That whosoever be- lieveth in Him. Is there any limit to whoso- ever? It includes the vilest sinner on earth. What is such a sinner to do? Only to believe in Him. If he does believe, can he die for- ever? He shall not perish. What will he get through believing? Everlasting life. Is it life for a day, for a year, for a few years? It is everlasting life, a life’in bliss and glory, which shall endure while eternity endures. May every one, whilst standing at the manger of Bethlehem, ponder these great words and argue thus: God loved me also in the dark, sinful world. He so loved me that He gave His only begotten Son to bear my sins; I be- lieve His words to be true; I accept His Son as my Saviour and my Lord; and I shall not perish, but have even now, and shall have while Jehovah exists, everlasting life. The sinner who thus by faith accepts the Saviour brought to him in the Christmas gospel, and who thus relies upon the sure Word of God, may be as confident of salvation as he must be that He who sits’ upon the throne can not lie when He says: ‘‘God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that who- soeyer believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”’