Epiphany 2019

02/06/2018

Hoisted up the heavens height

What smell of infant glory

The ox and donkey know

From East to Bethlehem

The wise men pass the fool

Those tender feet beholding

Enthralled with infant glow

In flight at night to Egypt

Joseph leads the way

With mother feet enfolded

In danger sleeping mild

On Egypts fertile ground

Where Moses trod and freed

His toddler feet unsteady

Would one day be reviled

And while Jerusalem departing

At “my fathers house” is found

Where priests and lawyers marvel

Stand young feet inquiring and fierce

By the Sea at Cana working

In sawdust cracked and caked

Through Jordan water treading

Once finished shall be pierced

Feast of the Epiphany Sunday

02/06/2018

A God with Baby's Feet

14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. 15 (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ”) 16 From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known. (1989). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” And this Eternal Word took on human flesh in the Womb of Mary and began His life like one of us, as a baby.

2 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” And this Eternal Word took on human flesh in the Womb of Mary and began His life like one of us, as a baby.

(). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

A week or two ago after our services Alice stood holding Penelope. Babies are such a blessing to the church. They are a sign of life and vitality. We are made richer by their presence and we should earnestly desire and pray that God sends to us young families and little children.

2 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

And there, in the back of the church, as they came to greet me, I was captured, as all adults are, by those little baby feet dangling beneath her proud mother’s arms. I could not help myself. I had to reach out and touch those cherubic feet. And we talked about how precious and kissable baby’s feet are.

If God were to take the form of a human being and not grace us with His baby feet and his cherubic innocence the heavens and the earth would have protested. God would never have truly visited us. His standing among us as a man whose feet stood wet in the Jordan, that marched into the wilderness, that walked with the crowds along the way, and whose feet ultimately were pierced with the nail, would have been a cruel charade. If Jesus did not have baby feet, he was never truly one of us.

(). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

But babies are easy to overlook. And little ones need not be taken too seriously, unless they make a fuss. Jesus might have been crawling by the time the Magi come, having traveled from so very far away. Grandparents will travel across the country to welcome a new grandchild. Strangers do not. But something greater marks the birth of this child, something more than familial bonds.

The child Jesus is not only born, he is revealed. He is announced by angels, declared by the heavens in a star, and greeted by luminaries from afar bearing gifts of gold and frankincense, and myrrh.

A week or two ago after our services Alice stood holding Penelope. Babies are such a blessing to the church. They are a sign of life and vitality. We are made richer by their presence and we should earnestly desire and pray that God sends to us young families and little children.

This is what Epiphany is, it is a revealing of the significance of something, a making plain of something that is hidden.

And there, in the back of the church, as they came to greet me, I was captured, as all adults are, by those little baby feet dangling beneath her proud mother’s arms. I could not help myself. I had to reach out and touch those cherubic feet. And we talked about how precious and kissable baby’s feet are.

The star appears, and the magi are compelled to follow it. It is a traversing star. It traverses the sky and the Magi follow. The star leads them to a humble dwelling in Bethlehem, to the place of Mary and Joseph.

If God were to take the form of a human being and not grace us with His baby feet and his cherubic innocence the heavens and the earth would have protested. God would never have truly visited us. His standing among us as a man whose feet stood in the Jordan, that marched into the wilderness, that walked with the crowds along the way, and whose feet ultimately were pierced with the nail, would have been a cruel charade. If Jesus did not have baby feet, he was never truly one of us.

Jesus is a little child. There is no Kings palace. There are no majestic courts. There are no servants we can see. There is no earthly sign of noble birth or significance. There is only a little boy child. Yet the magi pronounce with the Apostle John, “We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of God, full of grace and truth!” And they fall to their knees and bow in obeisance – worship.

But babies are easy to overlook. And toddlers need not be taken too seriously, unless they make a fuss. Jesus was certainly a toddler by the time the Magi come, having traveled from so very far away. Grandparents will travel across the country to welcome a new grandchild. Strangers do not. But something greater marks the birth of this child, something more than familial bonds. The child Jesus is not only born, he is revealed. He is announced by angels, declared by the heavens in a star, and greeted by luminaries from afar bearing gifts of gold and frankincense, and myrrh.

Worship is an important word for us here. It is a contraction of the English “woerthship”. It is a declaration that something is worthy of great acclamation or glory or reverence. The magi, in kneeling, reveal what the star signifies, this child is worthy of all worth-ship. Prized and loved above all things. It is easy to love a child unconditionally. It is difficult to love an adult unconditionally. It is even harder to ascribe to them inestimable worth. You can bow to a King and still resent him. You can pay respect to a president and still loathe him. You can respect your boss and still think badly of them.

But in the sky overhead where the star took up its station God lays disguised, having chubby toddler feet and kissable cheeks and baby arms wrapped in marshmallow joy. And the magi beheld his glory!

This is what Epiphany is, it is a revealing of the significance of something, a making plain of something that is hidden.

God is disguised in human being! Not just flesh, but a life, from womb to tomb, God wears the entire human experience. Jesus, of one substance with the Father. God of god, light of light, very God of very God. Begotten, not made.

Not made. God the son did not have his beginning here in the womb of Mary or in the stable with the sheep. When he breathed his first breathe of Judean air it was not His beginning. Now we are deep in the mystery. The mystery of the incarnation.

There in his very cradle they venerated him with offerings of gifts, though Jesus was merely a whimpering infant. They perceived one thing with the eyes of their bodies but another with the eyes of the mind. The lowliness of the body he assumed was discerned, but the glory of his divinity is now made manifest. A boy he is, but it is God who is adored. How inexpressible is the mystery of his divine honor! The invisible and eternal nature did not hesitate to take on the weaknesses of the flesh on our behalf. The Son of God, who is God of the universe, is born a human being in the flesh. He permits himself to be placed in a manger, and the heavens are within the manger. He is kept in a cradle, a cradle that the world cannot hold.

The star appears and the magi are compelled to follow it. It is a traversing star. It traverses the sky and the Magi follow. The star is different and it is a sign and they interpret it. It is revealed to them that the star appearing marks the birth of a King.

Chromatius (fl. 400). Bishop of Aquileia

Jesus is a little child. There is no Kings palace. There are no majestic courts. There are no servants we can see. There is no earthly sign of noble birth or significance. But oh, are there heavenly signs!

He permits himself to be placed in a manger, and the heavens are within the manger. He is kept in a cradle, a cradle that the world cannot hold!

We who believe this, like the wise men, can do nothing but fall down and surrender ourselves to him and render to Him all that we have. This Christ who we worship is the one who lay in a cradle the world cannot hold. And by faith he is laid within our hearts as in a cradle, and the heavens are within our hearts, and our hearts cannot hold Him. This is the mystery of the incarnation, in the feet of a child.

And this, only God can reveal, if we are wise.

Baby feet the virgin kisses

Hoisted up the heavens height

What smell of infant glory

The ox and donkey know

From East to Bethlehem

The wise men pass the fool

Those tender feet beholding

Enthralled with infant glow

In flight at night to Egypt

Joseph leads the way

With mother feet enfolded

In danger sleeping mild

On Egypts fertile ground

Where Moses trod and freed

His toddler feet unsteady

Would one day be reviled

And while Jerusalem departing

At “my fathers house” is found

Where priests and lawyers marvel

Stand young feet inquiring and fierce

By the Sea at Cana working

In sawdust cracked and caked

Through Jordan water treading

Once finished shall be pierced

Feast of the Epiphany Sunday