Lately I've been kind of challenging myself to really listen to songs... every now and then, I will sing a song in church or even just hear it on the radio, and halfway through my autopilot rendition of it, realize the incredible depth of the words that I so often sing mechanically, without a thought to them. A lot of Christmas songs, written so many years ago, are actually stunning in their depth of theology and blatantly messianic themes, yet I hear them and think nothing more than "Christmas song", just the same as Frosty the Snowman or Jingle Bells. These are two that caught my attention recently - I'll highlight some of the parts that really impacted me once I took a second look:
Joy to the World
Joy to the World , the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His blessings flow Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
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, 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.
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.
Did you ever notice how much this last one had to do with bringing back Israel to its Maker? This is not Isaiah or Hosea, friends, but present day "Christmas Carol"!
