Sunday, December 24, 2017

The Fascinating Story of a Little-Known Christmas Song


The year was 1623; a cold snowstorm from the Northeast was blowing into a small German town. Among those caught out in this storm was a Lutheran priest named Weissel. He, among others, sought shelter in a nearby church. The church sexton, a man who looked after the church and churchyard, opened the door, bowed deeply and welcomed the shivering crowd into the church, saying, “Welcome to the House of God! Here everyone is equally welcome, whether aristocrat or laborer. Shall we not go out into the streets and to the gates and receive all who want to come in? The door of the King of Kings is open to everyone.” 

After giving the sexton a pat on the shoulder, Weissel remarked, “He just delivered an outstanding sermon!” As Weissel then waited for the worst of the storm to pass and pondered the sexton’s words, he formed these phrases in his mind, “Lift high the door, Open wide the gates”, based on Psalm 24. Once home, he composed a song of five verses, using those phrases as the opening lines. A straight translation from the German to the English of the first verse would render it like this:

Lift high the door, Open wide the gates;
The Lord of glory is coming.
A King of all kingdoms, a Savior for the whole world,
Who brings Healing and Life with Him.
So rejoice, sing with joy;
Praise be to God, my Creator, rich in counsel.

Yet the story does not end here. Living in this town was also a businessman by the name of Sturgis. A field bordered his house on which was an important pathway used by those living in a nearby home for the poor and feeble. For those people, this path was the direct route into the city and, more importantly, the church. Much to the dismay of these people, Sturgis fenced in that field and locked the gate, so that the path was no longer accessible. Now those living in the poorhouse would have to walk the much greater distance around Sturgis’ property, making the trip more difficult and, for some, impossible. 

The city leaders and numerous citizens begged Sturgis to open the gate and let the people use his path to the church, but he cold-heartedly and repeatedly refused. On the fourth Advent Sunday of this same year, Pastor Weissel, the administrator of the poorhouse, and the poor and feeble stood outside Sturgis’ home as Christmas carolers. First, Weissel delivered a brief message. He spoke earnestly of the many people in the world who, full of pride, close the door of their hearts to the King of Kings. Then he said, “And today, dear Mr. Sturgis, the King of Kings is standing in front of your locked gate. I beg you, open not only this gate that can be seen, but open also the gate of your heart and humbly welcome Him in.” At this moment, the choir started singing Weissel’s song “Lift high the door, Open wide the gates.” Sturgis stood completely still until the very end of the song, when he reached into his pocket, lifted out a key, and unlocked the gate. After that pivotal moment, so the story goes, the gate was never locked again.

This song is one of the most sung Christmas carols in Germany still today. Although it has been translated into the English language under the title “Lift up your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates”, it is not well known here in the States. However, may we remember the message this Christmas season.  Is the door of my heart open for the King of Kings to enter in? Is yours? And are we inviting others who are battling the storms in this life to “come in” out of the cold and into the warmth of a life-giving relationship with Christ? Are we encouraging the proud to humble themselves and open the door of their hearts to the Savior of the world? May we be faithful to this task.



-- Amy O’Rear

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