O Little Town of Bethlehem

Phillips Brooks lived from 1835-1893 in New England.  He graduated from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 1859, but was best known for two things; his size, for he was six feet four inches tall and for writing the manuscript of "O Little Town of Bethlehem".

Brooks had made a name for himself as a preacher and a patriot.  His great physical size was matched by his moral stature.  "My only ambition", Brooks once wrote; "is to be a parish priest and, though not much of one, would as a college president be still less".


As large and respected of a man as he was, Brooks only measured himself against his Master, Jesus Christ.  In a sermon on Humility, he wrote that people will never be able to achieve humility by comparing themselves against each other.  We must measure ourselves against the one true standard, The Lord Jesus!

"The true way to be humble," said Brooks "is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your real height against someone higher who will show you what the real smallness of your greatness is."

Every year we talk about the commercialism of Christmas, why not do something about it.  Start with yourself: 2 Corinthians 13:5 NLT
Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.

Make "humility" part of your life this Christmas!  Jesus, The King of Glory, humbled himself to be born a man, suffer for your sins and be crucified, raised back to life on the third day and for all of us it started in the Little Town of Bethlehem...