A Tale of Two Songs
Scripture: I Corinthians 1:27-28 (NASB) - …the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen… so that no man may boast before God.
“Go Tell It On the Mountain” and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen:” Their emergence as classic beloved Christmas songs (from last month) could never have been anticipated by those who sang them a couple of centuries ago! The words of “Go Tell It..” proclaim with bold humility its creator’s single-minded pursuit of the Savior, whose arrival was greatly understood to be newsworthy of spreading far and wide, “…over the hills and everywhere!” This servant knew the Lord as his Helper and his Guide. His words suggest a wholehearted embrace of his role as “a watchman upon a city wall” heralding the arrival of the Sin-Bearer, Christ Jesus! The broad dissemination of “Go Tell It…” was accomplished initially by oral tradition and later, around the 1870s, by an African-American church choir director and scholar named John Wesley Work (and members of his family). Without his intense zeal in publishing this and other Negro spirituals, that unique body of Christian music may very well have been lost.
The popularity of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” first sung by English peasants in the sixteenth century, grew out of widespread apathy and dislike among the “commoners” toward the Christian music of that day, which was largely sung in Latin! The tones were dark and melancholy, devoid of inspiration and joy! These poor folks, however, lacked the influence to change the church music “status quo.” Interestingly, the first line of the song, popular among non-aristocratic audiences for hundreds of years before its 19th century publication, originally meant ‘God make you mighty, gentlemen...’
Yet, in the wake of a “quiet rebellion,” in which they began writing their own religious folk songs, many early Christmas carols were created. The joyously inspiring words of “God Rest Ye...” convey the writer’s excellent understanding of the Savior’s birth and its significance to fallen man from every economic stratum.
Prayer: Dear Father, even in Your choice of what the world regards as foolish, weak, base, and/or despised, You reveal the beauty and perfection of Your will and Your way. You demonstrate this principle even in the songs we’ve come to sing in celebration of Your majesty and excellencies. We praise You, in Jesus’ name, Amen!
(by Denise Diggs)
“Go Tell It On the Mountain” and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen:” Their emergence as classic beloved Christmas songs (from last month) could never have been anticipated by those who sang them a couple of centuries ago! The words of “Go Tell It..” proclaim with bold humility its creator’s single-minded pursuit of the Savior, whose arrival was greatly understood to be newsworthy of spreading far and wide, “…over the hills and everywhere!” This servant knew the Lord as his Helper and his Guide. His words suggest a wholehearted embrace of his role as “a watchman upon a city wall” heralding the arrival of the Sin-Bearer, Christ Jesus! The broad dissemination of “Go Tell It…” was accomplished initially by oral tradition and later, around the 1870s, by an African-American church choir director and scholar named John Wesley Work (and members of his family). Without his intense zeal in publishing this and other Negro spirituals, that unique body of Christian music may very well have been lost.
The popularity of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” first sung by English peasants in the sixteenth century, grew out of widespread apathy and dislike among the “commoners” toward the Christian music of that day, which was largely sung in Latin! The tones were dark and melancholy, devoid of inspiration and joy! These poor folks, however, lacked the influence to change the church music “status quo.” Interestingly, the first line of the song, popular among non-aristocratic audiences for hundreds of years before its 19th century publication, originally meant ‘God make you mighty, gentlemen...’
Yet, in the wake of a “quiet rebellion,” in which they began writing their own religious folk songs, many early Christmas carols were created. The joyously inspiring words of “God Rest Ye...” convey the writer’s excellent understanding of the Savior’s birth and its significance to fallen man from every economic stratum.
Prayer: Dear Father, even in Your choice of what the world regards as foolish, weak, base, and/or despised, You reveal the beauty and perfection of Your will and Your way. You demonstrate this principle even in the songs we’ve come to sing in celebration of Your majesty and excellencies. We praise You, in Jesus’ name, Amen!
(by Denise Diggs)
Archive
2022
January
Dissing Double MindednessCome-to-Jesus MomentNew Year, Same God!Is God Real?O Me of Little FaithNot Another Password!Lamb of GodA Tale of Two SongsGod WinksJesus Working Through MeA Real Friend with BenefitsGod is Trying to Tell Us SomethingEven the Lord, RestedGod’s Word to the RescueLiberty and ConscienceHaving a Made-Up MindMarch Like a SoldierThe Reality of UnityLostMiracle on the Roman RoadA Reference Point, Not a ResidencePromised TranquilityListening/Obeying ChristOf ValueHeart FlowThe Implications of “Won’t He Do It”
February
March
STANDING IN VICTORYSelf WillWho are you?Wait a MinuteNOT IF, BUT WHEN (Part 1)NOT IF, BUT WHEN (Part 2)NOT IF, BUT WHEN (Part 3)God Given IdentityHe Knows Our Heart!Witnessing FalselyBut God; the Believer’s SemicolonGod’s Fingerprint – The Living WordHeart OwnershipDeception Among BelieversAn Extraordinary ManEven IfHe Saw the Best in MeNot Quite, Almost, Nearly \"NOPE!\"Jesus’ Teaching About WorshipTHE RIGHT ATTITUDE FOR PRAYER (Part I)THE RIGHT ATTITUDE FOR PRAYER (Part II)Fruits of the SpiritDifferent Time but Same AgendaI Am the GreatestTrusting the FatherListen, God is Speaking to You
April
What’s in A Name?I’m DelightedWhat a Friend We Have in JesusGod Promises a Life of New BeginningsChrist Formed in YouSlow to SpeakThe Eternal God is Our RefugeHis Marvelous Grace and Omniscience!Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna!WHEN FAITHFULNESS BARES IT\'S THROAT!Things Change in His PresenceESCAPE THE WOE!Declare the Lord’s Immutability!WAS THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS, A DONE DEAL?Jesus Needing a Drink"Yisemah Adams" And The Day Of Many 'Likes'"Yisemah Adams" And The Day Of Many 'Likes' - Part 2THE Greatest TRUE Story (Part 1)THE Greatest TRUE Story (Part 2)He Dropped the ChargesWho’s the Big Deal!Don’t Just Marvel: BELIEVE!Treasures Found in Your Dark SeasonsOpen the Eyes of My HeartDAYS AS HANDBREADTHS?
May
Awaiting A Divine SequelWorship - Being in the Lord’s PresenceOpen the Eyes of My HeartJESUS SAVIOR, PILOT MEDoubt Your DoubtsGod Directs Our PathsLifeLiving as Children of GodHe Foreknew MeThe Act of LoveBEFORE 'YONDER'BEING USED OF GODOur Lord, the Master Engineer of Every ThingWhen Faithfulness Bares Its Throat (Part 1)When Faithfulness Bares Its Throat (Part 2)The Act of LoveYour Close Friendship CircleI Got Everything I NeedI Won’t ComplainONE MIGHTY SOUNDLESS SOUNDYOU ARE WITH MEEmpowered by Worship