“O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvelous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen. He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. Sing unto the Lord with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm. With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together. before the Lord, for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.”.” (Psalm 98 KJV)
It’s Sunday! What percent of the Christian churches in the United States will sing “Joy To The World,” written by Isaac Watts in 1719, based on the Psalm above and a traditional favorite or go-to song on the Sunday before Christmas? I have no hard evidence, but I would suspect the percentage to be extremely high. But often, like the artificial Christmas trees, the ornaments, the fake poinsettias, and the outdoor decorations, along with the checked red and black clothing attire, including pajamas, seasonal stuff that will be stored away until next Christmas, so will the song, “Jot To the World.” Yes, it will be stored in the unused pages in the church hymnals, retired for nearly twelve months, the next Christmas season.
I stand on my premise, the prediction that a high percentage of churches will sing “Joy to The World” today. See if I am not right about it. And if you look closely, if perchance the congregation you belong to goes beyond the first verse, the remaining verses will not be verses we have memorized like the first verse. That’s too bad, for there are deep messages dug in those remaining verses, message that we should open our ears and listen to with open hearts.
Look at the last two verses below and you will see some words that should be highlighted and hidden in our hearts, held dearly, and not hid within the hymnal until next year. I have taken the liberty to underline some of the words that are important and thought stimulating. You can find more, but what I have done demonstrates my presumption. Take a look at the other verses of “Joy To The World! Rejoice as you recognize what I mean. Then, make sure you make it to church, thankful for the coming of Christ and His continued reign over His people, and that includes you, and all His kingdom. Love you! Be blessed!
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy
No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found
Far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love
And wonders of His love
And wonders, wonders, of His love
Committed to the climb,
Mark L. King