Handel’s Messiah Pt.5
This article on ‘Messiah’ introduces Part 3 of the oratorio. Part 2 drew attention to the sacrifice of Messiah; how he gave “his life as a ransom for many”. Then, having laid down his life, he took it up again; he rose triumphant over death and the grave
Messiah - the Kinsman Redeemer
There is an important sequel to Christ’s mission on earth which the oratorio brings into sharp focus at the beginning of Part 3 - the general resurrection and the final judgement. The first text which is given prominence in the oratorio is the familiar words of Job 19:25, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.”
These words were spoken by Job in the midst of the unrelenting trials he was
enduring. Though his faith was being severely tested it never floundered. In the
crucible of affliction these majestic words pour forth from his lips: “I know that my Redeemer lives”. Although Job was a good man he knew that he was not a perfect man. Job was a sinner and needed a Redeemer. He needed someone to be his “kinsman redeemer” (Ruth 4:1-10), someone who “...had to be made like his
brothers in every respect (a kinsman) so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people”. (Hebrews 2:17)
By faith Job knew his Redeemer and that he was the one who would redeem him
from all evil. He knew that Jesus was the one who would pay the ransom price to
set him free from sin’s penalty and sin’s power and ultimately sin’s presence. This
gave Job an unsurpassing hope as he was going through the valley of affliction.
Not only did Job know his Redeemer, and that he was alive with the Father and the Holy Spirit in heaven, he also knew that, “at the last he will stand upon the earth”. In the context this is a reference, not to Messiah’s first appearing but to his second coming. Job is thinking of an experience after his own death, “after my skin has thus been destroyed”, when “in my flesh I shall see God”. Clearly Job is referring to his own resurrection which will coincide with the second coming of Jesus Christ.
Charles Jennings, who chose the Scripture verses for ‘Messiah’ (Handel composed the score) immediately went from this reference in Job to 1 Corinthians 15:20: “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
Messiah - the Firstfruits of the Harvest
The ‘firstfruits’ was a term very familiar to Christians who had a Jewish background. The ‘firstfruits’ of the harvest were presented as an offering to God at the Feast of Weeks (Exodus 34:22). With respect to the Resurrection Jesus is the ‘firstfruits’ with the promise of a full and complete harvest to follow. That full harvest consists of the resurrection of all who have fallen asleep in him. This is the resurrection of the body. The Shorter Catechism asks the question (No 37) “What benefits do believers receive from Christ at death?” Answer: “The souls of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness, and do immediately pass into glory; and their bodies, being still united to Christ, do rest in their graves till the resurrection”.
Thankfully many people who have been ill with coronavirus recover quickly, with no lasting damage to their health. Others however, who have been on a ventilator for weeks, may get better only to discover that vital organs have been irreparably
damaged. This only applies to this life, as do all the mental and physical defects
affecting the believer. At the resurrection believers’ bodies will rise from their resting place on earth. They will be reconfigured and given a body “like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21), perfect in every way.
Messiah – the Representative Head of a New Humanity
The oratorio continues with the words of 1 Corinthians 15:21, 22: “For as by a man
came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam
all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”
To fully grasp the meaning of these verses think of two pyramids. Adam is at the
pinnacle of the first pyramid and the entire human race is under him. In the garden of Eden Adam was representing the entire race of humanity, being their federal head. This is what makes his act of disobedience so cataclysmic. It affected not only himself and his wife Eve but the entire human race. “For in Adam all die.” If that was the end of the story then the outlook for every person would be complete and absolute ruin (Hell). The verse, however, does not end there. God in his mercy and grace provided another representative. God provided one who would be the federal head, the representative head, of a new humanity. At the pinnacle of the second pyramid is the Son of God, the Messiah, the one who came to live and die for this new humanity. Jesus came to live in perfect obedience to the royal law of God so that his righteousness would become theirs (imputed righteousness). He is the Saviour who came to take the punishment due his elect people (imputed guilt) which he took and bore on the cross. In this way the Messiah imparts life to all who repent of their sin and trust in him. “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”
Prepositions are crucially important if we are to come to an accurate understanding of the gospel. And that is particularly true with respect to the “in” in 1 Corinthians 15:22. In Adam and all who remain in Adam will die, die eternally, banished from God and everything good, banished to Hell. However, those who by grace are transferred to the second representative head, Jesus Christ, shall come to experience ‘life’ in all its fulness, here on earth and ‘life’ in all its perfection in glory with the Messiah. “...in Christ shall all be made alive.”
Not everyone will experience this life. The “all” who will be made alive refers to
everyone who is in Christ, everyone who is a Christian, not everyone universally.
Prepositions are important. As you read this article ask yourself the question. Am I
in Adam or am I in Christ? In other words, am I saved or am I lost? Am I on the
narrow road that leads to life, or am I on the broad road that leads to destruction? If in Christ, then you have the sure and certain hope of eternal life. On the other hand if the transfer has never been made and you are still in Adam you have something to do as a matter of urgency. As the Lord spoke to Israel in the days of Amos so he says to you, “Seek me and live”. (Amos 5:4) For everyone who seeks the Lord with a sincere heart will find him and experience his love and mercy; his pardon and forgiveness. (Isaiah 55:6, 7).
Messiah – the Appointed Judge of all Men
At the general resurrection what happens to those who never transfer, those who
resolutely refuse to leave Adam’s side and persist in their rejection of Jesus Christ? The Scriptures make it clear there will be a resurrection for them too. After Jesus healed the man who had been sitting by the pool of Bethesda for 38 years he preached to a group of hostile Jews. Among other things he spoke to them about the resurrection of all men. John 5:28, 29 “Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgement”.
The “resurrection of judgement” ought to cause alarm bells to ring in the ears of the unconverted. Many of them subscribe to the idea of annihilation, that physical death is obliteration. However, very inconsistently the same people speak of a loved one who died unconverted (in Adam) ‘looking down on them’!! This demonstrates that man can never get away from the fact that he is an eternal being. It could be said that ‘eternity’ is in his DNA. In Ecclesiastes 3:11 we read: “...he (God) has put eternity into man’s heart”. That being the case man can’t erase it. Every person will therefore meet the Messiah at the Judgement after the general resurrection. Sentence will be passed. The verdict will be given. It will not be complicated. There will be no reserved judgement. From that verdict there will be no appeal. For those who are “in Christ” it will be: “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). For those who are still “in Adam” the sentence will be: “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
Which verdict will you hear? By faith if you profess with Job, “I know that my
Redeemer lives” you can have the assurance that the verdict will be given in your
favour at the judgement and that you will live in glory with your Redeemer forever in the Paradise of God.
