THE HALLELUJAH CHORUS
Then I heard something like the voice of a great crowd and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”
Revelation 19:6
Perhaps the greatest musical piece ever written is George Frideric Handel’s Messiah with its famous Hallelujah Chorus. Handel worked on it from August 22-September 14, 1741 hardly stopping to eat or sleep. At times he would run to his harpsichord singing “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!” When he finished the 260 page oratorio he stated, “I think I did see all heaven open before me and the great God Himself!”
The Hallelujah Chorus emphasizes that Jesus Christ is King of kings and Lord of lords reigning forever.
What will Christ’s millennial reign be like? The earth will return to the conditions of Eden with no unredeemed people(to start with – Matthew 25:31-46); no wars (Isaiah 2:4); no poverty (Isaiah 35:1; Ezekiel 47:8-12; Joel 2:26); no injustice(Isaiah 11:3-4); no fear of wild animals (Isaiah 11:6-9); no physical suffering (Isaiah 35:5-6; 65:20); no sadness (Isaiah 35:10); and no open unbelief (Isaiah 60:11-12). Satan will be bound for those years. One would surmise that living in a perfect environment, not having to deal with Satan’s devilish schemes, and having Jesus Himself on the throne would produce perfect people. Wrong! “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can know it? I, Yahweh, search the heart” (Jeremiah 17:9-10a). At the end of the 1000 years when Satan is released, he is able to deceive millions to rebel against the Lord, His people and His beloved city, Jerusalem. All these rebels experience a fiery end, and Satan is put out of business permanently (Revelation 20:7-10).
Today Jesus seeks to rule and reign on the throne of each of our hearts. Is He your Lord, King and Savior (John 3:16)? If Jesus rules in your heart today, someday you will reign with Him (Revelation 20:4-6). Strike up the Hallelujah Chorus!
Bob Kulp