The Violinist

“He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him,
and no beauty that we should desire Him.
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.”

—Isaiah 53:2b-3

At 7:51 am on Friday, January 12, 2007, a 39-year-old man entered into the L’Enfant Plaza of the Metro train station in Washington, D.C., stopped along a wall, opened up his violin case and began to play. He was wearing jeans and a baseball cap. For many it was a normal street musician playing for the morning rush hour crowd. He played six classical pieces as people came and went through the plaza, in a hurry to reach their morning destination. A total of 1,097 people passed by and only 7 people stopped to listen. But only one woman who stopped to listen recognized him. The woman knew what everyone else didn’t. She knew that this man was Joshua Bell, one of the best classical violinists in the world. This man had just three nights before filled the house at Boston’s Symphony Hall, where good tickets cost $100. Two weeks after his metro station concert, he filled the Music Center in North Bethesda, Maryland with a standing-room-only audience. But on this morning, there were no standing-room-only audiences, nor was there a sell-out crowd. He was playing for everyone to hear, but no one except her noticed. And even more amazing was the instrument he played. It is called the Gibson ex Hauberman, one of the most expensive and valued violins in the world, a Stradivarius violin made in 1713 by Antonio Stradivari and valued at four million dollars. A world-renowned virtuoso was in plain sight, playing one of the most valued and rare of instruments, and no one paid attention.

As I think about Joshua Bell’s skills as a musician and failure to be noticed by numerous passersby, I think about our Lord Jesus Christ. The Scripture for today reminds us that like Joshua Bell, our Lord came in such a way that He “had no form or majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him” (v. 2). Jesus came to live amongst us, identify with us, and take our sins upon Himself. By His presence, He played the violin of truth for us, but just like the 1,097 that passed by Joshua Bell, many end up missing something great. Indeed, He is the greatest person the universe has ever known or will ever know. He is the God-man, the Savior of the world.

Jesus is greater than any earthly virtuoso as He plays the song of His love upon the instrument of the cross. Jesus’ love song of redemption echoes throughout the halls of time, ready to be heard by any who will stop and listen. Alas, most do not. Busied by the circumstances of life, men and women turn a deaf ear to the master of truth and miss the opportunity of salvation. May we hear the Master, recognizing Him for who He is in all of His brilliance and artistry, receiving the gift of salvation made available by the instrument of His cross. Amen.