Robert Morris. Seven Words of Christmas. Faith Words, 2020.

Seven Words of Christmas is a short book written in seven parts of three chapters each. Each of the twenty-one brief chapters could be read as a daily meditation leading up to Christmas.

Each part is really quite educational. Morris looks at seven brief passages from the story of Jesus’ birth that all have to do with things that would come to pass within the year. Each of the seven parts focuses on a different message that relate to Jesus’ ministry. For example the first part is based on Luke 1:67-69 spoken by the father of John the Baptist:

Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying: “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David.

The theme of the first part is salvation. Much of it involves a thoughtful and relevant word study. Yes, he does mention the Greek word for salvation, but he wants us to think deeply of the significance of the word: deliverance, preservation, restoration, and safety are all included in the meaning.

Sometimes the word study is obvious, but only after he explains it. Part six, for example, is about redemption. What does the word redeem mean? Think of what deem means—to value. To add the prefix re, then means, “to re-value something, particularly by re-purchasing. If you buy something, lose it, then buy it back, you’ve redeemed it.” (117) That has been God’s plan for humankind. What a redemption!

Such thoughts as these can really help get us into the Christmas spirit. Joy to the world, the Lord is come!