Denver Seminary

26 DECEMBER EVEN SO COME O come, O come, Immanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel. Revelation 22:21 I wish that I could remember the details of the first time I heard this hymn. I was, perhaps, 21 and experiencing a renewal in my relationship with the Lord. Two things I do remember are: I found it a bit eerie (like "empty-gothic-cathedral eerie") and I wept (or–one thing I do remember is that I wept). I wept at the plea, "O come, O come." I heard it as a plea of desperation. The God who is with us, Immanuel, is the only one who can help. I heard it as a plea of compassion. Israel, God's chosen people—captive, exiled, and mourning—needed His help. I wept at the cr y, "Rejoice! Rejoice!" I heard it as a cr y of hope. Hope for the people of God that He would indeed redeem them. I heard it as a cr y of praise. Praise to the Lord for answering a plea of desperation and compassion. As we enter the Christmas season, it is common to rejoice as we reflect upon the bir th of our Savior-Redeemer. "But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship" (Galatians 4:4-5). We have experienced redemption and enjoy the presence of the indwelling Spirit of God. What is less common is the continued plea, "O come, O come." O come, O come, for there are still many who have not yet heard the gospel. O come, O come, for there are still many mourning, people in this world who are separated from God and in need of redemption from sin. O come, O come, and redeem Your children from this sinful world. O come, O come, for we long for Your appearing (2 Timothy 4:8, NIV). The Son of God has appeared and will appear again, so we plead, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:21). Shawn Trueman, Director of Educational Technology and Student, PhD CES O Come, O Come Immanuel John Mason Neale (1861)

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