The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1894, Page 46

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

Make Known the Glad Tidings.

In our Christmas picture we see the shep-
herds returning from Bethlehem, when they
had seen the new-born Saviour. They re-
ceived this Saviour as their Saviour and their
hearts were filled with great joy. They did
not keep the glad tidings of the Saviour’s birth
to themselves. No! They knew that the Babe
of Bethlehem was not only their Saviour, but
the Saviour of all people. They wanted others
to share the great joy that filled their hearts.
Therefore they on their way home told others
of the wonderful and joyful tidings that were
brought to them by the angel of the Lord and
pointed them to the Saviour born at Bethle-
hem. ‘‘*They made known abroad the saying
which was told them con-
cerning this child.”’
AllChristians may learn
a lesson from these shep-
herds. That which the
Lord made known to
them He has made known
tous also. We know that
at Bethlehem the Saviour
of all sinners was born.
In the manger of the
Gospel we have seen Him
with the eye of faith and
haye rejoiced. In Him
we have found forgive-
ness of all sins and life
-eyverlasting. He is our
consolation, and ourhelp,
and our hope, and our
heaven, and our all in all.
In the blessed Christ-
mas time our hearts are
filled with joy at the glad
tidings of this Saviour’s
birth: Should we not
make known abroad what
‘we know concerning this
‘Saviour, that others also
may find salvation in Him? Let us like the
-shepherds be missionaries and tell others of
the salvation that is in Christ Jesus. We may
thus bring joy to many a sad heart.

and he cried out: ‘‘Now I enjoy Christmas,
the blessed Christmas !”’
We may not have the opportunity of thus
comforting some sad heart, but we all may
help along our mission work, by which the
comfort and salvation of the new-born Saviour
are brought to those that still sit in the dark-
ness of sin and in the shadow of death. The
Saviour is_born, and there are millions that
know Him not. Oh, ye Christians, assist our
missionaries in their work of bringing the glad
tidings of the Saviour’s birth to poor, perish-
ing sinners! Make known abroad what you

know concerning this Child Jesus!

Tell to others around

What a dear Saviour you have found!
The Christmas gift of God’s great love
Is the only way to heaven above!

Good News.

It happened on the morning of the day be-
fore Christmas 1535, that Dr. Martin Luther

One Christmas day, many years ago, a young] was sitting at his desk in his study, in deep

_ German merchant sat, with several guests, at
a Christmas table in New York. The young
‘man looked sad and down-hearted, as he
thought of his distant home. The guests spoke

of the many Christmas gifts they had received,
and of their plans and prospects in life. But
not a word was said of the glad Christmas
tidings of God’s love to man.

; The old colored uncle, who waited on the

' table, saw the sad looks of the young German
nd thought he nceded some words of cheer

‘and consolation. So, when he handed him one

of the dishes, he whispered to him: ‘‘Massa,

-day the Saviour was born!’’ These words
@ colored uncle sounded to the young
the words of an angel. Tears came

‘into his eyes, but his heart was filled with joy,

thoughts about his sermon for the next day.
He never liked to be disturbed while studying
his sermons, but although his good wife knew
this, she could not help knocking at his door,
putting in her head, and saying to him, ‘‘Dear
Doctor, do me the favor to take your Bible
and to go into the nursery and to sit down
at the cradle and to rock our baby to sleep.
I have so much to do to-day and can not make
headway with the baby in my arm.’? The
great Doctor did not say a word, —he was al-
ways very gentle to his wife— but did accord-
ing to his Kate’s bidding. While he was sit-
ting at his baby’s cradle, his big Bible on his
lap (this Bible is now one of the chief treasures
of a royal library and is valued at $20,000!),
and meditating, his eyes became fixed on the

infant. His thoughts carried him upwards to
the throne of God and downwards again to
the world of lost men, and he began to sing
in his big heart of the love of the Father,
whose only beloved Son became a little child
—as weak and helpless as his own —in order
to save us and‘to bless us and make us the
children of God. After a short while he went
out on tip-toe, fetched his lute (a kind of gui-
tar) from his study, then he sat down again
at his baby’s cradle, struck the chords softly
and hummed atune. He got up again, fetched
paper and ink from his room, sat down and
began to write in German. (He wrote many
books and hundreds of letters in Latin.) When
he had finished, he noticed that the baby was
fast asleep. So he went back to his study,
k but on the way he stepped
into the kitchen, where
his wife had her hands in
the cake-dough, and he
said: “I thank you, dear
Kate, for having sent me
to the nursery. You will
hear this evening what I
did there.”’

When Holy Eve set in,
Dr. Luther went with his
wife and children and his
faithful secretary, an el-
derly student, into their
best room, to celebrate
Holy Night beneath the
fragrant lighted branches
in the true hearty way of
a German Christian. He
had prepared a surprise
for his Kate. While they
were sitting together, he
reached for his lute,
struck the chords, and
then sang with his clear
tenor voice the Christmas-
cradle-song he had written
and composed that-day :

“Good news from heaven the angels bring,

Glad tidings to the earth they sing;
To us this day a child is given,
To crown us with the joy of heaven.’’

He sang on to the fifteenth verse, the last
one of a Christmas hymn which since 1535 has
been one of the best known and best liked of
all the thousands and tens of thousands of
sacred songs. Its beautiful tune is also a crea-
tion of Luther’s heart and mind. The hymn
is sung in all countries. The good tidings and
the great joy were, and are, and shall be to
all people.

“Praise God upon His heayenly throne,
Who gave to us His only Son:
For this His hosts, on joyful wing,
A blest New Year of mercy sing.’’
Church Messenger.
——s~+ 0 > oe

Christmas.

‘What season is better of all the whole year,
Thy needy, poor neighbor to comfort and cheer ?”?