Silent Night is such a familiar song. I have sung Silent Night in church or elsewhere maybe 200 times or more and followed along with the words probably over 1,000 times. We even sing it in German sometimes during our Christmas Eve candle-light services. The third verse of Silent Night makes a reference to "the dawn of redeeming grace". For some reason, this year, that short phrase of five words has stuck in my consciousness through the Christmas season and, now, well into the new year.
The Dawn of Redeeming Grace... In the song I suppose it is a reference to the birth of Jesus, the Christ child, who is our one true path to salvation. The Gospel of John, in chapter 1- verse 9, describes the coming of Jesus as "The true light that enlightens everyone was coming into the world". A new light was coming. A dawn of a new day was coming that would change everything. There was another dawn -- Easter morning - when the diciples went to the tomb and saw that Christ, sacrificed on the cross, had defeated death and the massive burden of our sins and had risen in glory.
But that phrase represents an actual happening - the word "dawn" can be a verb as when something 'dawns' on us. The dictionary says that there are three aspects of the word "dawn" when used as a verb: 1. to become clear or enter one's consciousness or emotions; 2. to appear or develop; and 3. to become light.
We experience the Dawn of Redeeming Grace on a personal level many times during our lives. At baptism we are brought forth into the light of salvation, even though we may not realize it until much later. At our confirmation we again experience this special dawning as we comprehend what God redeeming grace actually is and means to us on a personal level. We also experience this through the bond of communion when we personally accept Jesus' body and blood in the form of the bread and wine. This is our one physical interaction with Jesus taken on the most private and personal level but also in a public way with the "body of Christ", the other members of the congregation. Through this dawning we experience a new light of God's love and forgiveness of sins.
There are many other times in our life when we have this dawning experience - maybe in the face of a newborn child or an act of kindness or personal sacrifice. We may recognize it in the face of someone we love or during a brief encounter or conversation. It may come as we appreciate the wonder of nature or recognize a special blessing. At the end of our life, we again will experience the Dawn of Redeeming Grace but this time as the first light of a new glorious and everlasting day. That day was made possible by the very first Dawn in Bethlehem and the suffering and death of Jesus followed by the glorious Dawn of Easter morning.
There are many other times in our life when we have this dawning experience - maybe in the face of a newborn child or an act of kindness or personal sacrifice. We may recognize it in the face of someone we love or during a brief encounter or conversation. It may come as we appreciate the wonder of nature or recognize a special blessing. At the end of our life, we again will experience the Dawn of Redeeming Grace but this time as the first light of a new glorious and everlasting day. That day was made possible by the very first Dawn in Bethlehem and the suffering and death of Jesus followed by the glorious Dawn of Easter morning.
