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.

Politicians of every stripe present themselves with great fanfare as the answer to all our problems and as the key to our nation’s prosperity. They project an image of strength, competence, and charisma in an effort to win our vote. But God’s ways are not our ways.

The prophet sets forth the promise of God to provide the supreme leader we all need—the heir to the throne of David, who will make all things right. He will rule in righteousness as a Wonderful Counselor who speaks the words of life; He will reveal the divine character as the Mighty God; He will lead and protect his people as an Everlasting Father; and He will bring a reign of peace—peace in the world and with our God—as a victorious Prince.

But how is the great conquering Champion set before us? As a mere child. God gives us a son—His own Son—in the form of a baby born not to a princess living in a palace of a great city, but to a young girl in the obscurity of a tiny Palestinian village. That child was born in a cattle stall and was laid in a feeding trough.

Isn’t this the pattern we see throughout the Scriptures? The Lord turns our expectations upside down. The first shall be last and the last shall be first. Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, and the meek. The greatest shall be the servant of all. As Mary herself expressed it: “He brings down rulers from their thrones but lifts up the humble” (Luke 1:52).

God exalted that humble child to the highest place and gave Him the name above every name. Worship that Son today, as you follow in His path of humility.