The
Collect.
O
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LORD, we beseech thee mercifully to
receive the prayers of thy people who call upon thee; and grant that they may
both perceive and know what things they ought to do, and also may have grace
and power faithfully to fulfil the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Epiphany, or the Manifestation of Christ
to the Gentiles.
[January 6.]
The Collect.
O
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GOD, who by the leading of a star
didst manifest thy only-begotten Son to the Gentiles; Mercifully grant that we,
who know thee now by faith, may after this life have the fruition of thy
glorious Godhead; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ This Collect is to be said daily throughout the Octave
A
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t the same time came the disciples unto Jesus,
saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 2 And Jesus called a little child unto Him,
and set him in the midst of them, 3 And said, Verily
I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall
not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whosoever
therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in
the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoso shall receive one such little
child in My name receiveth Me. 6 But whoso
shall offend one of these little ones which believe in Me, it were better for
him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in
the depth of the sea. 7 Woe unto the world because of offences for
it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence
cometh! 8 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them
off, and cast them from thee; it is better for thee to enter into life halt or
maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be east into everlasting
fire. 9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it
from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than
having two eyes to be cast into hell fire. 10 Take heed that
ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven
their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in heaven. 11 For the Son of
Man is come to save that which was lost. 12 How think ye!
if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not
leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which
is gone astray! 13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say
unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which
went not astray. 14 Even so it is not the will of your Father
which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.
(Matthew
18:1-14)
Who, indeed, is the greatest in the Kingdom of
Heaven? What motivates the question? Is it a covetous and proud spirit?
Man wants to always have the prominent
position. Little children could care less about position – they simply
desire the company of someone who loves them and whom they love. Three points:
One
Jesus shows the conditions for entrance of the
Kingdom by example:
Jesus here sets an excellent example for us: He does
not use the old approach of parents – "Because I said so!" He sets an
example of a little child. Let a little child teach them…..Isaiah 11:6
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the
leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the
fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. Jesus called a little
child unto Him, and set him in the midst of them,
Notice that the little child does not recoil from the
arms of Jesus. The child, though not having known Christ for more than a short
few minutes, trust this heart of His implicitly.
Children are generally excellent judges of character.
This is the manner and state of the Kingdom of Heaven
– it is like the innocent heart of a little child and, yet, there are those in
it who wish to be first in the Kingdom.
Those who wish to be first will always persecute
those of less stature. They will forbid, as much as possible, others from
coming near to Christ. This is demonstrated also in Mark:
10:13
And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them:
and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. 10:14 But when Jesus saw it, he was much
displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little
children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of
God. 10:15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever
shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter
therein. 10:16
And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed
them.
He shows the conditions of entrance into and eminence
in His kingdom by a living example.
There were always children at hand round Him, when He
wanted them.
Their quick instinct for pure and loving souls drew
them to Him; and this little one was not afraid to be taken by the hand, and to
be afterwards caught up in His arms, and pressed to His heart.
The discussion of the disciples made a certain
presumption which was not entirely correct. They presumed that each present
would be in the Kingdom of Heaven. We know this was not true for at least one
among them – namely, Judas Iscariot.
Greatest in the kingdom? Make sure that you go in at
all, first; which you will never do, so long as you keep your present ambitious
minds.'
What a child is naturally, and without effort or
merit, by reason of age and position, we must become, if we are to pass the
narrow portal which admits into the Kingdom of Heaven. "For broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction,
and many there be they go in thereat.”
Before becoming the star of the team, be certain that
you first make the team!
The child is, by its very position, lowly and modest,
and makes no claims, and lives by instinctive confidence, and does not care
about honours, and has these qualities which in us are virtues, and is not
puffed up by possessing them.
That is the ideal which is realized more generally in
the child than analogous ideals are in mature manhood. Such simplicity,
modesty, humility, must be ours.
We must be made small ere we can enter that door.
And as is the requirement for entrance, so is it for
eminence. The child does not humble himself, but is humble by nature; but we
must humble ourselves if we would be great.
Two
After answering the question of preeminence in
the Kingdom, Christ goes on to express our duties and responsibilities for
little ones in vv 5 & 6.
5 And whoso shall receive one such
little child in My name receiveth Me. 6
But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which
believe in Me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his
neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
The subject, then, of these verses is the blessedness
of recognizing and welcoming Christ-like lowly believers, and the fatal
effect of the opposite conduct.
To 'receive one such little child in My name' is just
to have a sympathetic appreciation of, and to be ready to welcome to heart and
home, those who are lowly in their own and in the world's estimate, but princes
of Christ's court and kingdom.
"In my Name"
'In My name' is equivalent to 'for the sake of My
revealed character,' and refers both to the receiver and to the received.
The blessedness of such reception, so far as the receiver is concerned, is not
merely that he thereby comes into happy relations with Christ's foremost
servants, but that he gets Christ Himself into his heart
When a person is an agent for a company, he acts in
the name of the company and in the best interests and purposes of the company.
When we act in the Name of Christ, we act in every way as much as if it were
our Lord Himself giving the directions.
Three
Christ summarizes the honor and dignity of His
'little ones.'
14
Even so it is not the will of your Father
which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.'
If God wills a thing, it will surely come to pass.
Even the smallest and weakest among us, devoted to Christ, will not perish, but
have ever-lasting life.
