Monday, July 14, 2008

Majesty.


Majesty (Here I Am)

Here I am humbled by your Majesty
Covered by your grace so free
Here I am, knowing I'm a sinful man
Covered by the blood of the Lamb

Now I've found the greatest love of all is mine;
Since you laid down your life;
The greatest sacrifice.

Majesty, Majesty
Your grace has found me just as I am
Empty handed, but alive in your hands
Majesty, Majesty
Forever I am changed by your love
In the presence of your Majesty

Here I am humbled by the love that you give
Forgiven so that I can forgive
Here I stand, knowing that I'm your desire
Sanctified by glory and fire

Now I've found the greatest love of all is mine
Since you laid down your life
The greatest sacrifice.

Majesty:
Etymology:
Middle English maieste, from Anglo-French majesté, from Latin majestat-, majestas; akin to Latin major greater
Define: 1: sovereign power, authority, or dignity2—used in addressing or referring to reigning sovereigns and their consorts 3 a: royal bearing or aspect : grandeur b: greatness or splendor of quality or character

We sang this song on Sunday and it has been stuck in my head and I was thinking about the word "majesty." It's not a word we use much - occasionally when watching a movie that takes place in a castle or a modern day spin on royalty (ie Princess Diaries) but in general it's not a common word. So I looked it up because I usually hear it used as a title and I was curious plus I'm a word nerd and love to know where things come from. Thankful for my background in Latin, I see it is an adjective and actually is feminine - but that's besides the point. So we are fairly likely to sing this song in agreement with the fact that God is Majestic - we have other songs declaring that and many Psalms as well. He is A majesty as well as deserving of the title which gives him power, authority, and dignity. As they did back when they addressed kings and queens, calling someone Your Majesty would be form of admitting service or submission to their will and wisdom - whoa whoa, all I did was sing a song?! But yes, we should declare God as our Majesty and praise him for being Majestic and recognize his Majestic work around us. But there's a part of that definition that I noticed and wonder how it ought to affect us. Granted it's from the dictionary, written by fallen humans and not from God's word, but I think it still works.
The line is italicized and it is "And their consorts." So I checked on that word to make sure I had this idea right - consort would be anyone in partnership with the person who is considered majestic - anyone trailing behind the king would still be addressed by "your majesties" - I think? So if we claim partnership, following Christ then we would also be included in the 'consort' of God's majesty. Whoa that's a bold statement. I'm not sovreign or divine for sure but royal bearing? My mom calls me a princess - but in reality, I am a daughter of the King so that works. But greatness or splendor of character? Not so much....

Our message on Sunday was about humility and being Christ-like (see Philippians 2) and the difference between being a doormate and being humble. So the balance between a character of greatness and splendor and an attitude like that of Christ as a servant is super fine and I don't have it all figured out, I'm just musing I suppose.
But it is food for thought - and Majesty is a really cool word...and the song is my current favorite.

Check out this Wordle Cloud I made of the song!


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