I was listening to the The Hallelujah Chorus, from Handel’s Messiah today. I think that that it is one of the most stirring pieces of music ever written.
I love that everyone stands up during that section. This tradition began on March 23, 1743 when King George II stood up abruptly when the Chorus began. The reason why is a mystery but many people have hypothesized that he wanted to stretch his legs, or thought it was the national anthem, or even that he knew that the Chorus was written for a King that was higher then himself so he stood in honor. No one will ever know. I would like to think that it was the last one.
I love that at the name of Jesus everyone will bow. Kings, Prime Ministers, Presidents, bakers, and cooks, and barista, school teachers, policemen and businessmen. I love that when the Glory filled the Temple everyone hit the deck. Glory will be given to whom Glory is due.
There is something in us that wants to give glory to another. I think of the times when they have cheesy segments on the news to honor heros. I hate to watch them but they always make me cry. Some kid who collected pennies, and gathered his whole school to do the same, to give to the kid who has cancer. All the stories are the same and they almost always end well. We want to honor greatness, we were created to respond to greatness.
This can easily be perverted into humanism and giving ourselves, meaning humanity, the glory. Of course this is only a counterfeit of the real Glory. We were made to give glory to God. We were made to shine, for Him. We were made to love, for Him. We were made to create, for Him. We were made to bear His Glory, so that We could give Him the Glory.
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, for with His own blood He purchased men for God, from every tribe and tongue and nation.
