Music courtesy of The Falls Church Anglican Choir, Falls Church, Virginia, under the musical direction of Simon Dixon. Audio mastering by Andrew Schooley. From Messiah by George Frideric Handel (1742)

Listen to the full playlist for Handel’s Messiah.

After viewing Messiah, the Earl of Kinnoull complimented Handel and told him that it was wonderful entertainment. Handel is reported to have responded, “I should be sorry if I only entertained them, I wish to make them better.” Handel was making an important distinction.

Much of what passes for entertainment today merely depletes our precious time as we sadly seek to anesthetize ourselves from the mundane of our ordinary lives. Handel saw his mission differently. His Messiah is more than entertainment. It was written to instruct and edify. Its lyrics, or “libretto,” are sourced directly from the Scriptures. Scripture is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword. When we read them, pray them, meditate on them, or in this case, sing them, they have the power to shape and transform us, and the world around us.

These words from Isaiah point to that transformation – “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain.”

Isaiah is telling the exiles in Babylonian captivity that the Messiah is coming, and to get ready, changes will have to be made, both within themselves and society at large.

Exile isn’t just a status for the Israelites. This side of eternity, exile is the human condition for each of us. As a result of sin we are all separated from God and in desperate need of forgiveness and redemption. This is only possible through the Messiah. The remedy involves much more than, in Handel’s words, being made “better.” Through Christ we can be counted right with God and begin a lifelong process of sanctification. The regular intake of Scripture plays a vital part in this. Sanctification doesn’t happen by being entertained. We are formed by the Holy Spirit through the power of the Holy Spirit in accordance with the text of Scripture. In this way, the crooked in our lives can be made straight, and the rough places can be smoothed out.