O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
(Arranged and Performed by Dave Torres)
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
(Arranged and Performed by Dave Torres)
Waiting and Watching
LYRICS (Click to minimize)
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 Dayspring, from on high
And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh
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 heav’nly 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, Adonai, Lord of might
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud and majesty and awe
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel
Shall come to thee, O Israel
Source: Classicfm
Songwriter: John Mason Neale | Thomas Alexander Lacey
© Public Domain
CCLI Song #2678690 | CCLI License #632898
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Isaiah 9:6-7 (ESV)
This tune is one that we hear incessantly over the Christmas season, but I hope that its meaning has not been lost to our ears and hearts. In fact, it’s not quite a Christmas song, as we realize that the prayer for Immanuel – the Christ, to come, means that He is not here yet! This hymn is a prayer for Christ to appear. What does that mean to us?
As we have reflected last week, Advent is a good time for us to remind ourselves both of the sufferings of those who waited for the first Advent of Christ and for us to anticipate the second Advent. Christ will come again soon!
One look at the world around us should be enough for us to know how much we need the salvation of Christ. Christ’s salvation is physical, as He delivers us from the sickness and pains of our earthly lives, while redeeming our bodies. Christ’s salvation is emotional, as God promised to wipe away all tears from our eyes. Christ’s salvation is spiritual, for He was and is forever our one Mediator between God and man. This is our Gospel: that Christ, perfect man and perfect God, came to reconcile us to our Father!
Just as the Israelites longed for the Messiah to come save them, we long for Christ to return. And He will be faithful to His promise! He will right every wrong and bring us home someday soon. He will bring peace to a world of war. He will bring love to a world of hate. He will bring judgment to a world of sin. He will bring truth to a world of lies. He will bring justice to a world of injustice. He will bring order to a world of chaos.
Await with me the salvation of the Lord!