O Come O Come Emmanuel
(Various)
1. Emmanuel
2. Dayspring
3. Wisdom
4. Desire of Nations
I remember failing at my fatherly leadership during the Christmas season a few years ago. We went through the Christmas season. And, we found time to decorate our home. We found time to purchase some gifts for our children. We went to a few Christmas celebrations. On Christmas morning, before gifts were distributed, we spent some time in the Scriptures, talking about Jesus' coming.
Yet, shortly after the gifts were distributed and opened, our oldest daughter was upset. She was upset that Christmas had come and gone and, as a family, we made little effort to anticipate the holiday. As I reflected back, it was true. In the hustle and bustle of life that December, we did little reading of the Scripture as a family. We did little talking about the incarnation. We simply, "celebrated Christmas," thinking that a brief Scripture reading and conversation on Christmas morning was enough.
Well, it wasn't enough for my daughter. She had rightly discerned that over the course of the Christmas season, there was little direction and anticipation. We simply went through the motions. We didn't work to set our hearts upon the meaning and implications of the coming of our Lord.
I have learned my lesson well. I have sought to work hard at leading my family in a celebration of Christmas. That simply requires some intentional leadership, to help our children think about the realities of what we are celebrating: God come to earth to save us from our sins. It requires some Scripture reading about Christmas, some singing songs of the incarnation, some praying, all steadily before Christmas.
The signs of the Christmas season are all around us. Shortly after Halloween, Christmas decorations began to pop up in many stores. On Thanksgiving Day, many stores opened their door for "Black Friday" sales, designed to kick off the Christmas shopping season. And sales will continue right on through Christmas Eve, seeking to allure shoppers into their stores. Christmas trees are for sale. The holiday decorations are on display. Lights are appearing on houses and businesses. Christmas music fills our stores.
And without some conscious effort, you may easily get sucked into the materialism of Christmas. You may easily walk through this Christmas season without much thought of the wonder of God coming to us, which is the core of Christmas!
Well, during the four Sundays of Advent (the four Sundays before Christmas), I want to help you direct your hearts to the reality of Christmas. I want to help you in your celebration of our Lord's coming to earth. So, as most all of you know, this morning, we are beginning a series entitled, "The Hymns of Christmas." Over the next four weeks (and on Christmas Eve), we are going to be looking at five of most often-sung hymns during Christmas. Here's our schedule:
Sunday, November 30, 2014, we will look at, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel."
Sunday, December 7, 2014, we will look at, "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing."
Sunday, December 14, 2014 will be, "Joy to the World!"
Sunday, December 21, 2014 will be, "O Come, All Ye Faithful."
And Wednesday, December 24, 2014, Christmas Eve, we will reflect upon, "What Child is This?"
I tried to pick some of the more popular hymns that are played in our stores. But, popularity wasn't my only criteria. I also wanted to pick some hymns that are theologically rich and accurate. And these hymns are rich in content. So, if you listen carefully, you might just hear these hymns playing as you travel into stores over this next month.
Like yesterday, I went to visit Ryan, who was manning an evangelistic kiosk at the Cherryvale Mall. Chuck told me to enter into the mall at the Barnes and Noble entrance and walk through it and I would run into them. And so, I drove to the mall, and walked into the Barnes and Noble entrance. And I began to pass through the store on my way to where Ryan was. And what do you think was playing on the overhead speaker, throughout the entire store? You guessed it, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." This is the hymn that we will study this morning. I felt like it was God's hand of confirmation upon our little Christmas series here.
And the amazing thing was this: the arrangement being played wasn't merely instrumental. Lyrics were being sung! The lyrics were praying for God to come among us.
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Which is actually amazing, really. It is amazing because we live in a society that is rejecting God at every turn, taking references to Him away in our schools, taking down religious monuments, changing the names of our Christmas and Easter breaks to "Winter Break" and "Spring Break" and trying to do everything that we can to remove God from our society. But, here's the interesting thing. Vestiges still remain! And we ought to rejoice in these cultural vestiges. That a song, talking of Emmanuel coming to ransom His people, could be played in a public setting.
So, let's dig into our first hymn this morning. It's "O come, O come, Emmanuel." In our hymnal, this is #245. Here's our plan: to have our hymnal in one hand, and our Bible in the other. I want for us to spend some time in the hymnal, understanding the hymn, and seeing the Biblical themes in the lyrics. Then, we'll pick up our Bibles and see how these themes trace themselves throughout the Bible.
You can see at the bottom of Hymn #245, that this hymn was originally a "Latin Hymn." It was probably written sometime in the Middle Ages. I have seen dates anywhere from the 900's to the 1300's. But it was only compiled for the first time in the 1700's. This is a true Christmas hymn. It was sung in the Roman Catholic Church each day during Christmas Vespers (from December 17-23), evening prayer services.
We don't know who wrote the hymn, but we know that John Neale (born 1818) translated it into English, along with several other familiar hymns, "All Glory, Laud and Honor" and "Of the Father's Love Begotten." If you are at all familiar with these hymns, you will recognize their ancient sound. That's because John Neale was especially interested in the rich heritage of the old Greek and Latin hymns. In fact, he was so interested in these sorts of hymns, that he detested the more modern hymns of Isaac Watts, who took the Psalms and freely translated them into Christo-centric songs, such as "Joy to the World." But, alas, the worship wars of the 19th century have faded into oblivion, as the hymns of Watts and Neale sit side by side together in our hymnals. [1]
You can see the name of the tune down in the lower right hand corner. It's in all caps. It's "VENI EMMANUEL." If you know your Latin, you know what this means. If you know some Spanish, you can make a good guess. It means, "O come, Emmanuel." This probably means that the tune traces itself back to the time when the these words were sung in the Latin. Which means that tune has been with these words for hundreds of years. So, as we sing it in our day, we join the many saints who have sung this song for centuries. (So don't mess with the melody).
If you know the tune, I would encourage you to sing the first stanza it out loud (or hum it to yourself or listen to it any of the links in the footnote below). [2]
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.
This song is a prayer, a prayer that God, Himself, would come to Israel and rescue her from her distress. How appropriate that this song is sung in the minor key. It's not a song of celebration. It's a song of hope, when living in dark times. It does lead to rejoicing. Look at the refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
But, the joy comes in the hope of deliverance, not in the actual experience of deliverance. And their hope was that God would come and redeem them.
"Emmanuel" means, "God with us." The first part, "Em" (or, better, "Im") means "with." The second part, "anu" means "us." The third part, "El" means, "God." Literally, Emmanuel means, "With-us-God." Or, in better English, "God with us." These words come from the perspective of ancient Israel, who was in trouble, in exile in Babylon, and they needed help.
And where did they turn? They turned to the LORD and invited Him to come! They knew that they had no resource in and of themselves. And so, they called upon the Lord for His help. In fact, this is the theme of every one of the stanzas that we have in our hymnals. Look again at your hymnal. Stanza 1 begins with these words: "O come." Stanza 2 begins with, "O come." Stanza 3 begins with, "O come." And stanza 4 begins with, "O come."
Now, although we have only four stanzas in this tune, there are more than these in the ancient versions. The original Latin had five stanzas (only two of which are translated in our version). By the 1870's two more were added to make seven stanzas. [3] I have even seen an eighth stanza added to the mix. [4] But, in every single stanza, the first line is always the same: "O come." What a great word for us this morning. This is the gospel, is it not?
We are in trouble. We need help. Our sin has brought us to despair. We can't make it on our own. We need forgiveness. We need the Lord to come and grant us grace. And the promise of the Bible is simple: "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" (Romans 10:13). This hymn is a calling upon the name of the Lord.
Those who sing this hymn are longing for something more. They are longing for the Lord to come and deliver them. In fact, if you would read each stanza, you see trouble described. You see the pleading to the Lord to come and help.
Stanza #1:
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Ancient Israel was in exile. They needed help. So, they pleaded that the Lord would come.
Stanza #2:
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.
The picture here is of darkness and gloom. So, the plea is for the Dayspring to come and remove the dark, remove the night, remove the shadows, and bring in the light.
Stanza #3:
O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
And order all things, far and nigh;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And cause us in her ways to go.
The picture here is of a world in confusion and ignorance and disorder. So, the plea is for Wisdom to come and rule the day. Come, Wisdom, that the world would live in order, in the ways of God.
Stanza #4:
O come, Desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind.
Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease;
Fill the whole world with heaven's peace.
The picture here is of conflict and friction and fighting. So, the plea is for the "Desire of nations" to come and to bring in heaven's peace.
Did you notice how in each stanza, we see a different name of the Lord invoked. Stanza 1 is Emmanuel, "O come, o come, Emmanuel." Stanza 2 is Dayspring, "O come, Thou Dayspring." Stanza 3 is Wisdom, "O come, Thou Wisdom from on high." Stanza 4 is Desire of Nations, "O come, Desire of nations."
The same is true for all of the other stanzas of other versions of this hymn. We see, "Rod of Jesse," "Key of David," and "Adonai." And with every name comes a solution to the particular problems we face. Emmanuel must come to ransom us from our sins. Dayspring must come to give light to our dark path. Wisdom must come to bring order to our confused humanity. The Desire of nations must come to bring peace to this warring world.
As I prepared to preach through this hymn, I strongly considered taking this theme of crying for God's presence to help in trouble and tracing it through the Scriptures. It is all over the place. In fact, you can even argue that this is the theme of the entire Bible. God created us perfectly, but our world has crumbled due to our sin. We can't fix it on our own. We need the LORD to come and restore everything, which is exactly what He did in sending His Son!
But, I'm taking a different route this morning. Notice how every stanza of this hymn is calling on a particular name of the Lord. All of these names have their origin in the Scripture. And so, this morning, as we turn to the Scripture, I want for us to simply take these four names in our four stanzas, and show you how they point us to Christmas.
1. Emmanuel
2. Dayspring
3. Wisdom
4. Desire of Nations
Emmanuel is found in Isaiah 7:14 and Matthew 1:23, talking of the day when Jesus came to save us from our sins. Dayspring is found in Luke 1:78, celebrating the day when the tender mercy of God visits us from on high Wisdom is found in 1 Corinthians 1:30, "Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God." Desire of nations is found in Haggai 2:7, "7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts" (KJV).
So, let's look at ...
1. Emmanuel
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
The great place to see this in the Bible comes in Matthew, chapter 1. Here we read of the birth of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 1:18-25
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which translated means, "God with us." And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.
The coming of Jesus was a fulfillment of an Old Testament prophecy, given long ago through the hand of Isaiah. In those days, Judah was in trouble. A few nations had conspired together to attack her.
But, the LORD sent Isaiah to Ahaz, the king of Judah, to comfort him. He said, "Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be fainthearted" (Isaiah 7:4). He said, "[Their plans to defeat you] shall not stand nor shall [they] come to pass" (Isaiah 7:7). In order to give further comfort, the LORD gave Ahaz an incredible opportunity; one that He hasn't given to us. He said, "Ask for a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven" (Isaiah 7:10). And whatever sort of sign Ahaz would ask for, the LORDwould provide, in proof that His word would come to pass.
When Ahaz refused this request, God gave him a sign that was "as high as heaven." He said (in Isaiah 7:14), "Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." This exact prophesy was fulfilled through the womb of Mary. She was a virgin. She had not known a man. And yet, she conceived and gave birth to a Son. And this Son was nothing less than God, Himself. Jesus Christ, God in the flesh.
And Jesus came with a purpose. Look back to verse 21, "She will bear a Son and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." When God came to earth in the form of a man, He came with a mission. He came with a mission of salvation: to save His people from their sins.
He did something that we could never do for ourselves. He saved us, not on the basis of deeds done in righteousness. But, He saved us by His mercy, dying upon the cross for our sins. He died in our place. He took our sins upon Himself at the cross. He gave us His righteousness.
He simply calls us to believe. He calls us to believe this sign of a virgin birth. He calls us to believe that God walked the earth. He calls us to believe that He died for our sins.
That was the hope of ancient Israel. That is the hope of Christmas: that this child in the manger would come and ransom us.
Let's move on to our second name. This one might be a bit less familiar to you.
2. Dayspring
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.
The Biblical reference to this word is found in Luke, chapter 1. So, let's turn there. The reference is found in verse 78. The New American Standard translates this word, "Sunrise," along with the ESV. The NIV is along the same lines, translating it, "the rising sun." But, in the King James versions, it's translated, "Dayspring." All of these translations means the same thing. It's a reference to the time when the "day" "springs." It's the time of the sunrise.
And in Luke 1:78, the "Dayspring" comes when Jesus visits us. This coming is what we celebrate at Christmas time. Let's read this verse in context. It comes in the prophecy of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist. Let's pick it up in verse 68. I simply want to lightly comment through this prophecy.
Luke 1:68
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,
Zacharias knew that the Lord had visited Israel. Remember, he was the high priest in Israel that year. And as he entered the holy of holies to offer up his sacrifice on Yom Kippur, the angel of the Lord appeared to him. And Zacharias was told that his son would prepare the way for the coming Messiah (Luke 1:17). Zacharias continued, ...
Luke 1:69-75
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of David His servant—
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old—
Salvation from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us;
To show mercy toward our fathers,
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
Zacharias knew that the coming of the Messiah was in accordance with the many promises that God had given to His people. A covenant of mercy. A promise of deliverance. And in verse 76, Zacharias prophesies over his son, ...
Luke 1:76-79
"And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;
To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace."
John will prepare the way for the Sunrise to come. And when Jesus came, He would bring light.
This was a common theme of Jesus. He said, "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). He continued, "He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life" (John 8:12). Indeed, this is the message of Christmas. That Christ has come to shine in our hearts, to bring us from darkness to light.
Matthew commented upon the ministry of Jesus, "The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great light. And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light has dawned" (Isaiah 9:2). This is the reality of Christmas, that the Dayspring has come.
How appropriate is it for us to hang lights during this Christmas season as a demonstration of the Sunrise that has come. And so, as you see the lights of Christmas, which really are everywhere, I encourage you to think of the "Dayspring," the "Sunrise," the coming of Jesus to enlighten our hearts, giving us the "Light of life."
The Bible often uses the darkness and light imagery with moral implications. One example of this is Ephesians 4:17-18, "So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart." So, we much walk in the light, being pure vessels of God in this world.
Well, let's move on. We have seen, Emmanuel and Dayspring. And now, let's look at ...
3. Wisdom
O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
And order all things, far and nigh;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And cause us in her ways to go.
A great place to see this concept in the Bible comes in 1 Corinthians, chapter 1. In the second half of this chapter, Paul is telling us of our salvation. Though the coming of Christ is filled with the wisdom of God, to the world, it appears as foolishness. Let's pick it up in 1 Corinthians 1:18.
1 Corinthians 1:18-21
For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the cleverness of the clever I will set aside." Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
The contrast in these verses is simple: the wisdom of God and the foolishness of men. The wise of this world are fools in the eyes of God, as they have failed to see His reality. Psalm 14:1, "The fool says in his heart, 'there is no God.'" Such are the ways of the world. But, the ways of God are different. This is why we need the wisdom of God.
1 Corinthians 1:22-25
For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Do you see it there in verse 24? Jesus is called, "the wisdom of God." Let's face it, ... this world is a mess. With all of our learning and efforts and achievements, what has it got for us? Strife and conflict and quarrels and confusion. It has not brought us to God. And yet, Jesus Christ, who is our wisdom has brought us to God. And this is what we celebrate at Christmas time -- that Jesus Christ has come to be our wisdom. He has come to bring us to God and make us wise.
And God has so decreed it, that it isn't the wise of this world that will understand. Rather, it's the simple and weak.
1 Corinthians 1:26-31
For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, "Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord."
So, let us boast in the Lord this Christmas season in our Lord, "who became to us wisdom from God."
Finally, let's turn to our final name given to Jesus, ...
4. Desire of Nations
O come, Desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind.
Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease;
Fill the whole world with heaven's peace.
We see the phrase, "Desire of nations" come up in another hymn we sang this morning. One page before, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," we see "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus." It is hymn #244 in our hymnal. The first stanza says, ...
Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
This phrase, "Desire of nations," comes from an obscure prophet in the Old Testament, named Haggai. So, let's turn back there. If you are having trouble finding this book, turn to Matthew, and start paging back. It's three books from the end of the Old Testament.
Haggai is a book of encouragement. The people of Judah had been in exile in the land of Babylon for 70 years. A small remnant had returned and faced the difficult task of rebuilding Jerusalem, which the Babylonians had destroyed 70 years ago. The focal point of their rebuilding was the temple. Many were discouraged in this work, particularly the old men, who remembered the glory days of Jerusalem and the glory of Solomon's temple (Ezra 3:12). But, what they were building seemed insignificant. In fact, look at chapter 2, verse 3, ...
Haggai 2:3
'Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison?
Though things looked bleak, Haggai knew that the LORD would use the temple that they were building for His own glory. He continues, ...
Haggai 2:4-7
But now take courage, Zerubbabel,' declares the Lord, 'take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,' declares the Lord, 'and work; for I am with you,' declares the Lord of hosts.
'As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!'
For thus says the Lord of hosts, 'Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land.
I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory,' says the Lord of hosts.
Verse 7 is where the "desire of nations" comes from. There is difficulty in translating this verse. In fact, one commentator called this, "the most difficult [verse] in the book." [5] The old King James translates it this way:
Haggai 2:7 (KJV)
And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.
The New King James has it like this:
Haggai 2:7 (NKJV)
and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,' says the Lord of hosts.
The big question is this: is the "desire of nations," the riches that the nations will bring? Or is the "desire of nations," the Christ who will come and fill the temple? The King James translators said the latter, which is consistent with the next two verses, ...
Haggai 2:8-9
'The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,' declares the Lord of hosts. 'The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,' says the Lord of hosts, 'and in this place I will give peace,' declares the Lord of hosts."
And the latter glory will be greater, not because of the building itself. But, because of the one who will enter into that building: Jesus Christ. He is the desire of nations. He is the one who people long for, but they don't even know it.
Our world, in its selfishness is filled with envy, strife, and quarrels. And most are seeking peace. It only comes through Jesus Christ. And it will come. It will come when Jesus returns to take up His rule among the nations.
One last turn in our Bibles. Let's go to the very end. Let's go to the book of Revelation.
Revelation 21:1-4
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."
These words are describing the everlasting peace that will come when Jesus, the desire of nations, returns to this earth. Indeed, He will, "Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease." Indeed, He will, "Fill the whole world with heaven's peace." He will, as He dwells among His people.
Now, although this is a Christmas hymn, it reaches beyond Christmas. It reaches to that final day when God will dwell among us and all of the world's problems are at an end. Such hope gives us reason to rejoice.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Are you rejoicing this day, not in our deliverance, but in our promised deliverance? Are you longing for the coming of Christ? Such is the heart of every believer. This is how the Bible ends -- with a longing for the coming of Christ.
Revelation 22:20
"Come, Lord Jesus."
That's what we celebrate this Christmas season. The coming of our Emmanuel; our Dayspring; our Wisdom; and the Desire of Nations.
This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on
November 30, 2014 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rvbc.cc.
[1] See "Then Sings My Soul (Book 2)," by Robert J. Morgan, p. 81.
[2] Below are some links to the song, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." They all do a good job of catching the flavor of the song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCDpYXISuyM - Selah
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HnIqgmFSkM - Donna Cori Gibson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPHh3nMMu-I - Enya
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xtpJ4Q_Q-4 - (Traditional Choir)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR-oUzimkLI - (Sung in Latin)
.[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_come,_O_come,_Emmanuel
[4] http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/c/ocomocom.htm
[5] Robert L. Alden, "The Expositor's Bible Commentary," (Volume 7), p. 586.