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O Come....


O Come All Ye Faithful
Joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him,
Born the King of Angels;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

O Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing all that hear in heaven God's holy word.
Give to our Father glory in the Highest;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

All Hail! Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning,
O Jesus! for evermore be Thy name adored.
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.
          What do you think about the original Star Wars’ Throne Room Suite? The fanfare, the swelling of the full orchestra. I feel the same way about Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture and today’s Christmas carol. How can you not get swept away by a song of triumph? Granted, this song was written with 20/20 hindsight. At the time depicted, the birth of Jesus, only the angels sang. Truth told, Scripture doesn’t even say that they sang. It says they said.
           Of course, the other problem in the story is that Jesus wasn’t born “this happy morning.” Putting aside the issues of what time of year Jesus was born, the song was written centuries after the fact and I’m not sure how happy everyone was at the time He was born.. But the phrase brings to mind Jesus’ eternality. Could He hear all the celebration of “this happy morning” from the manger? I think it’s to early in the day for a good quantum physics discussion, and the answer doesn’t really matter, but it is fodder for some interesting speculation. 
          The real heart of this song is the chorus. One line is repeated nine times, a trinity of a trinity of times. O come let us adore Him (the Father), O come let us adore Him (the Son), O come let us adore Him (The Spirit)? No, because the next line is “Christ, the Lord” but yes because Christ the Lord is the reason for adoring each member of the Trinity “this happy morning.” 
          Another thought about the triple, triple call. I was at a Mason’s ceremony years ago (I’m not commenting on the Masons) and the “commander” called out a command, which a sub-commander echoed, and a third person repeated after the sub-commander. It was strange in our world of ear-buds, but once-upon-a-time, orders were passed along by shouting to the next folks, who shouted to the next. 
          The most important thing about the triple, triple call is the content. First, the call is for us to come and adore, to worship, to love, and to venerate. In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, even in the hustle and bustle  of life, it’s easy to lose track of time, to get too involved, and to forget to come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord.

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