“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
These words, found in the ninth chapter of the Old Testament book by the prophet Isaiah are perhaps one of the most recognized prophesies concerning the Messiah. Since the first century, this prophecy has inspired believers who have acknowledged the coming of Israel’s deliverer in the child born on a manger.
One of the most acclaimed pieces written to celebrate the converging of the prophecies concerning the Christ is, undoubtedly, George Frideric Handel’s oratorio: “Messiah.” This musical score was composed in 1741 with scriptural context starting with prophecies by Isaiah and others, then moving to the annunciation to the shepherds, which is the only “scene” in the oratorio taken from the gospels.
In the second part of the aria, Handel concentrates on the Passion of the Christ, ending it with the notorious “hallelujah” chorus. In Part III, the composer closes his masterpiece with the climactic resurrection of the dead and Christ’s glorification in heaven. Early-music scholar Richard Luckett described Handel’s ‘Messiah’ as a commentary on [Jesus Christ’s] Nativity, Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension.”
Handel’s “Messiah” is indeed a poignant work of art, celebrated through the ages by both believers and music-loving skeptics alike. But to Christians, the divine nature of the story behind the song cannot be missed. Handel composed “Messiah” in a short period of 24 days. Upon completion, he wrote the letters “SDG” — Soli Deo Gloria, “To God Alone the Glory” at the end of the manuscript — an inscription that encouraged belief in the story that the composer wrote the music in a divinely inspired trance. Tradition tells that Handel had visions of heaven and the glory of the resurrected Christ while writing the hallelujah chorus.
It is the truth behind Handel’s glorious vision that fills my heart with joy and wonder each Christmas. Not the manger. Not the cross. But the fact that the divine baby born on that quiet night in Bethlehem of Judea is indeed the promised savior of Jews and gentiles alike. A concept which, I know, is not shared without controversy.
Not coincidently, I have been studying the book of Isaiah for the past several months. One of my favorite books in Scriptures, Isaiah offers a comprehensive view of the history of the Jews before and after the Assyrian and Babylonian captivity years. Likewise, the prophet delivers numerous prophecies concerning that time – some of which were fulfilled 70 to 200 years after the prophet died. Isaiah also foresees the coming of the Messiah and the future of Israel, compiling a vast collection of prophecies known to be fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth.
But Isaiah is only one book containing predictions that Jesus fulfilled through his birth, life, death and resurrection. Bible scholars tell us that Jesus fulfilled nearly 300 references to 61 specific prophecies of the Old Testament concerning the Messiah. In his bestselling book “The Case for Faith,” New York bestselling author Lee Strobel quotes a mathematician’s estimate of those impossible odds to be “one chance in a trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion.”
More than scholarly references from those of us who studied the validity of Jesus’ Messianic claim, these truths are crucial to each believer who has accepted the gift of forgiveness offered by the baby born 2,000 years ago. Because the truth is — if Jesus is not Messiah, then Christmas loses its only real meaning: that God came down to dwell with men … to set them free. Free from the law. Free from sin. Free from spiritual death.
I believe that is what inspired Handel to write the divine music that floods sanctuaries and auditoriums around the world each Christmas – a raptured vision of the lowly baby in the manger who became the victorious, resurrected Christ.
Now, to this writer, that is the true reason Christmas is indeed the most wonderful time of the year.
Patricia Holbrook is a columnist, author, blogger and international speaker. Visit her website www.soaringwithHim.com. For speaking engagements and comments, email pholbrook@soaringwithHim.com
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