Have Christmas carols become so familiar to you that the significance of the words often get missed? That is definitely a struggle for me, but at my son's Christmas choir concert a few weeks ago, I was struck anew by the words and significance of the carol "O Come, O Come Emmanuel."
[Verse 1]
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here,
Until the Son of God appear.
[Refrain]
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
[Verse 2]
O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
[Refrain]
[Verse 3]
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.
[Refrain]
[Verse 4]
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.
[Refrain]
[Verse 5]
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.
[Refrain]
The last few months have been so very hard for our family. We have struggled with feelings of loneliness, abandonment, rejection, sadness, and grief, but we have taken comfort in knowing that Christ Jesus knows and experienced those same feelings. We can relate on a totally new level with the Israelites as they experienced exile, suffering, and hardship. We wrestle with creeping in emotions of anger, bitterness, and resentment while wrestling to see and understand God's goodness and purpose in our dark and difficult journey in which we've been forced to walk alone. It's hard to understand why we have to go through one of the hardest--perhaps the hardest--times of our lives without the peace and comfort of belonging to a body of Christ currently. Perhaps you too are going through a hard time. How can you relate to these words and find comfort? Here's my personal application, and perhaps it will help you make your own application as you look to Emmanuel and Rejoice even in the midst of your own storm of life:
Exile is exactly where we are, but praise God, Emmanuel has ransomed the captive Russell family who mourns in lonely exile here. The Son of God has come to redeem us, and He promises to come again for the final rescue so that we can enter our haven of perfect peace and rest. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to you, O Russell family!
Satan's role and influence in our family's struggle these past few months has been palpable. The fact that he'd use some of God's children as his instruments to inflict further pain has left us dumbfounded. He truly is the deceiver and absolutely seeks to devour! Free the Russell family from Satan's tyranny! Save them from the depths of hell, and give them victory over the grave!
"Dayspring" is an archaic term used in in older versions of the Bible like the King James Version in Luke 1:78 about the Messiah's coming. Other translations use "morning," "morning light," "sunrise," "dawn," etc. How appropriate to use that term in verse 4 to address Emmanuel before asking Him to cheer us by drawing near to us. Morning Light, cheer us, the Russell family, with your presence drawn near, and disperse the gloomy clouds of night that engulf us!
Our sufferings remind us that this is not our home. Our home awaits us in heaven. Emmanuel is the Key to open the doors of heaven and to lead us home. Please don't tarry, Emmanuel, for we long to have you close the path to misery here on Earth!
Because we live in a broken world, none of us go untouched by pain and suffering and sorrow and grief. No matter what hard times you find yourself in the midst of, I pray that the beautiful and rich words of this wonderful Christmas carol would encourage you and lift your heart to Rejoice! Rejoice! because Emmanuel shall come to you!
