Charles Wesley wrote thousands of hymns and poems. The range of topics are surprisingly broad. A lot of people are interested in quotes and hymns regarding Christmas.
What did Charles write about Christmas? Charles wrote at least twenty-one different hymns and poems on Christmas. In 1739 Charles published the widely known hymn, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” In 1745 Charles published eighteen hymns on the nativity. Charles also wrote two unpublished hymns specifically about Christmas Day.
Charles clearly had an interest in faithfully recalling the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
The Unpublished Hymns
Charles had a manuscript collection of hymns on festivals and holy days. This collection included a hymn titled, “On Christmas Day.”
A second hymn, however, was included surprisingly in a manuscript for preachers. This may suggest that the first was for broader use and the second was intended to be more theologically dense.
Both hymns were published in The Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley, volume 3. These short hymns are filled with rich theology and imagery about the incarnation and its implications.
Both of these lesser known hymns are included in full below with some thoughts on each.
On Christmas Day
On Christmas Day
Favour & Peace on Earth & Praise in Heaven!
To us a Son is born, a Child is given!
To day Jehovah lays aside his Crown,
To day the Saviour of the World comes down,
God over all supream, who all things made,
Cloath’d with our Flesh & in a Manger laid,
Is on this happy Morn to Mortals given:
Favour & Peace on Earth, & Praise in Heaven!
-Charles Wesley, MS Festivals No. 8.
Charles covers a lot of ground in this short hymn. He spans both heaven and earth. In heaven, Charles remarks that there is praise. This praise is for the favor and peace bestowed on earth.
All of these – the praise, favor, and peace – are the result of the gift of God. But what is the gift? It is the person Jesus of Nazareth.
This child is none other than Jehovah Himself. Leaving the glory of heaven. Laying aside His crown to be clothed in mortal flesh. To leave glory and be laid in a manger.
This child who was born is the King of heaven come to earth. Supreme over all of creation. The creator of all come to be the Savior of all who believe.
Charles ends this beautiful hymn where it began. With favor and peace on earth. And, with praise in heaven.
Christmas Day
Christmas Day
1. Stupendous mystery!
GOD in our flesh is seen
(While angels ask, how can it be?)
And dwells with sinful men!
Out nature He assumes,
That we may his retrieve;
He comes, to our dead world He comes,
That all thro’ Him may live.
2. The true, eternal Word
To us a Child is given,
The sovereign God, th’ Almighty L[or]d,
Who fills both earth & heaven;
Our God on earth appears
To take our sins away,
And guide us thro’ the vale of tears
To realms of endless day.
-Charles Wesley, MS Preachers (MS CW I[q]), p. 3, emphasis in original.
This hymn doesn’t appear in the collection on festivals. It was written for preachers. This hymn represents Charles’s poetic side in addition to his preacher side.
This hymn is not content to simply state the normal information. Baby. Manger. Etc.
It also steers clear of what is most often raised as the most miraculous and mysterious aspect of Christmas: the virgin birth.
While the virgin birth is typically associated with Christmas – and rightfully so – it is extremely interesting to me that Charles starts this hymn with an exclamation about the stupendous mystery of Christmas, yet ignores the virgin birth throughout the entire hymn.
I think Charles’s emphasis is correct. In light of the stupendous mystery Charles emphasizes, the virgin birth is dwarfed in significance.
It’s not that the virgin birth is unimportant. It’s just not as stupendous as God becoming a human.
The incarnation of Christ is not astonishing because a virgin was found with child. The incarnation is astounding because the immaterial, infinite, eternal creator became a material part of His creation in time.
That would be astonishing even if the mechanism was a natural birth achieved through the normal means. Considering the immensity of the event, it is only natural that God would choose an impossible mechanism to accompany it. What else would be appropriate for this great event?
Angels rightfully inquire how can it be?
How can the invisible God be seen in the flesh?
How can the holy God dwell amongst sinful man?
And how can this all be done so that humans could be the beneficiary of the divine nature?
God’s amazing love is on full display. He comes to a dead world so that they can live through Him. Praise be to God!
Charles captures his own joy in knowing that Christ came to save sinners and guide them beyond this broken world into His everlasting joy and peace.
Charles loved to preach on the love of God in Christ. He loved to preach about the universal reach of redemption available in Christ. He loved to dwell on the amazing truth that Christ came into the world to save sinners.
All of these wonderful themes are beautifully captured in sixteen short lines.
It’s not clear why Charles did not publish this hymn for wider use. I am thankful that it was preserved in his manuscript collection for preachers.
Other Related Hymns
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a widely known hymn composed by Charles Wesley. The interested reader is encouraged to read the helpful and informative Wikipedia page dedicated to it.
Charles Wesley’s collection of 18 hymns published on the nativity in 1745 is available, in full, here. This linked to document has some other helpful historical and critical information. It’s a good read.
Related Questions
Why do Christians celebrate Christmas? Christmas is a celebration and remembrance of the birth of Jesus. The theological terminology for this event is advent. Christmas celebrates the first advent of Christ. A second advent is prophesied in the future when the Christ will return in glory.
Was Jesus born on December 25th? The Bible nowhere records the date of Jesus’s birth, only the fact of his birth. The celebration of Jesus’s birthday is also not commanded or recorded in Scripture. The tradition of celebrating Christmas on December 25th is not a product of Scripture. It was a developed practice and can be traced to the 4th century AD.
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