I've been anxiously waiting for it. Every Christmas season it seems God reveals a marvelous truth from the folds of a story we've all heard many times. I love that each year I marvel in the beauty of an ancient text that is relevant today. How amazing it is to serve a Living God.
We started school on Tuesday morning, just like every morning. I hadn't looked ahead in the plans so I didn't know exactly what was in store for us. As I opened up our text I was so pleased that the day brought a study of the centuries old song, O Come, O Come Emmanuel. This was a perfect Advent study for our day.
The words, which in their earliest form date back to the 12th century, are so beautiful. The song itself, I think, sounds a little mournful, and perhaps it should. The words refer to passages in the Old Testament when people were waiting for our Savior. They were still sacrificing animals, looking for the Christ Child that had been promised. We've all been studying Moses this year in Bible study so I can almost imagine the Israelites singing the first and second verse:
O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times did'st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
The truth that speaks to my heart through this song is that God dwells with us. He came to earth to die so that he could dwell with us forever. I can imagine hearing the Israelites in the dessert singing this song in longing, waiting for Jesus to come and abolish the law and for God to dwell in each of us forever without the need for a High Priest and without the need of the Tabernacle. Jesus died and the curtain in the Tabernacle ripped in half because Jesus IS the ultimate High Priest and made it possible for God to dwell (Tabernacle) with us, in us, forever. If only the Israelites could see the big picture of which they were a part. God so intricately paves the way through the Old Testament for His Son to come and this song references those passages so beautifully. Until this week I hadn't really listened to the words of the song, but each verse brought rich scripture to mind. All week the boys and I have been singing this song. It frequently brings me to tears. God sent a little, tiny baby to live but ultimately to die so His glory and presence could live in us with no divide. Could anything be more beautiful?
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
This version of the song sadly doesn't include all the verses and some of the words differ from the version we learned, but it's still one of my favorites.
We started school on Tuesday morning, just like every morning. I hadn't looked ahead in the plans so I didn't know exactly what was in store for us. As I opened up our text I was so pleased that the day brought a study of the centuries old song, O Come, O Come Emmanuel. This was a perfect Advent study for our day.
The words, which in their earliest form date back to the 12th century, are so beautiful. The song itself, I think, sounds a little mournful, and perhaps it should. The words refer to passages in the Old Testament when people were waiting for our Savior. They were still sacrificing animals, looking for the Christ Child that had been promised. We've all been studying Moses this year in Bible study so I can almost imagine the Israelites singing the first and second verse:
O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times did'st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
The truth that speaks to my heart through this song is that God dwells with us. He came to earth to die so that he could dwell with us forever. I can imagine hearing the Israelites in the dessert singing this song in longing, waiting for Jesus to come and abolish the law and for God to dwell in each of us forever without the need for a High Priest and without the need of the Tabernacle. Jesus died and the curtain in the Tabernacle ripped in half because Jesus IS the ultimate High Priest and made it possible for God to dwell (Tabernacle) with us, in us, forever. If only the Israelites could see the big picture of which they were a part. God so intricately paves the way through the Old Testament for His Son to come and this song references those passages so beautifully. Until this week I hadn't really listened to the words of the song, but each verse brought rich scripture to mind. All week the boys and I have been singing this song. It frequently brings me to tears. God sent a little, tiny baby to live but ultimately to die so His glory and presence could live in us with no divide. Could anything be more beautiful?
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
This version of the song sadly doesn't include all the verses and some of the words differ from the version we learned, but it's still one of my favorites.
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