What's in a Christmas carol?

   Of all the Christmas carols I've heard throughout the course of my life, I believe that "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" is one of my favorites. I've never known why, other than I've always thought it was a beautiful song.

    As I looked at the song more carefully, what I found were the words of a man who was calling upon his God to draw near, while at the same time, encouraging his people that they have not been forgotten by that same God. It not only looks back to the very birth of Jesus Christ, but also looks forward to His eventual return. For those of you who aren't aware, the name "Emmanuel" is translated "God with us."

"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."

   Is there a depth of emotion and meaning behind these words which is far deeper than you had imagined?

   Looking at the remainder of the lyrics, it is a soulful cry of a man who's looking out at the world around him, and sees a very deep need for God to move within it - first bringing salvation to the individual, and second to free the world from the evil we find within it.

   When we look at the world around us, do we not see the very same thing? We're being told that we're becoming so much more "enlightened," and yet - at the same time - the vast majority of us would agree that world as a whole seems to be spinning completely out of control. Evil - however you care to describe it - seems to be increasing - not decreasing as one might expect to find with the world becoming more and more enlightened.

   As Christians, we believe that the only way this world will be set right again and find real, genuine, lasting peace, will be when Jesus Christ Himself returns to set it right. We believe this will occur, and we don't apologize for that belief. We look forward to it. We yearn for it.

   I fully understand how someone who doesn't share those beliefs would have the impression that any group of people who are sitting around waiting for some mysterious God to appear and make things right again must be delusional at best.

   I would ask those who have that opinion one question: When you look out at all of the chaos, mayhem, and evil going on in the world right now - When you look at all of the hunger, starvation, sickness, and disease - When you see all of the war, bloodshed, and injustice that surrounds us, wouldn't you love to believe that there really was a God who's plan was to return someday and make all things right again?

   So, if we do believe that Jesus will return at some point in order to set things right, what should we do in the meantime? Are we to sit on our hands, shaking our heads and pouting over how bad things appear to be? No.

   As Christians, we are to do what we were called to do from the very beginning. We are to be the light of the world. We are to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, house the homeless. We are to love those around us. We are to forgive. We are to offer hope to the hopeless. We are - in short - to be the reflection of the very image of Christ in the midst of a very dark, dangerous world.

   When Jesus walked the earth, the crowds flocked to him. They came from miles away to hear him speak, to be taught by him, to be healed, and to be freed from whatever might have been oppressing them.

   What if we - while waiting for His return - became that very same thing to the people around us? What if we - like the writer of this song did - called upon our God to make His presence known in the lives of others, while at the same time reassuring them that they have not been forgotten?

   What if we - in the midst of all of the madness - were able to bring comfort to those around us by simply reminding them of the words spoken to them by Jesus Himself?

  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

O come, O come Emmanuel.