 |
| If you prefer, there is an easy to read and print READER version RIGHT HERE! |
|
A
|
t the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is
the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto
him, and set him in the midst of them, 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. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this
little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall
receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. 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. 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! 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 cast into everlasting fire. 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. 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.
For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. 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? 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. 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)
The Collect
Holy Innocents
|
O
|
ALMIGHTY
God, who out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast ordained strength, and
madest infants to glorify thee by their deaths; Mortify and kill all vices in
us, and so strengthen us by thy grace, that by the innocency of our lives, and
constancy of our faith even unto death, we may glorify thy holy Name; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Christmas Day
(to be said daily throughout the Octave)
|
A
|
LMIGHTY
God, who hast given us thy only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and
as at this time to be born of a pure virgin; Grant that we being regenerate,
and made thy children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy
Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with
thee and the same Spirit ever, one God, world without end. Amen.
I
have often said that I have yet to ask a child of four years age if he believed
in God and receive a response that he did not. Children come with an innate
faith of God and His love. As we grow older, so grows the sin and doubts of our
hearts. We might expect the reading for today to recount the slaughter of the
innocents at Bethlehem by Herod’s soldiers as prophesied by the prophets (Jer 31:15-17),
but instead we are fed with the very Bread of heaven regarding the status and
faith of little children.
The
eighth Psalm is included for the daily psaltery. There is a strong testimony
associated with this Psalm in the scientific discoveries of Matthew Fontaine
Maury, founder of the US Naval Observatory in Washington, DC and progenitor of
the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. He was known, in the days of my youth, as
the Pathfinder of the Seas, but owing to his frequent reference to the Hand of
God in his discoveries, his name and contribution are hidden from the eyes of
youthful scholars. (The mention of God’s name could, presumably, do irreparable
damage to their little minds). In the early to mid-1800’s, Maury discovered the
tropical streams and found ways of saving tremendous amounts of time in
traversing the sea by sailing vessels. His computations are acknowledged today
by Naval Navigation charts whose subtitles state, “As computed by Matthew
Fontaine Maury.”
How
did Maury become the Father of Oceanography and Naval Meteorology. Once
when recovering from a bout of flu, Maury was listening as his son read from
the eighth Psalm (today’s reading). When his son read the line, The fowls
of the air, and the fishes of the sea; * and whatsoever walketh through the
paths of the seas, Maury asked him to repeat those lines. He then
commented, “If God says there are paths in the sea, I am going to find them!”
and he DID! All of his scientific works detail the mystery of God’s leading
Hand in all natural science.
At
the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven? This question presupposed that one of the
apostles, or some great personage, would be identified. But the thoughts of God
are not the thoughts of man.
And Jesus called a little child
unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 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.
The child is likely shy in the company of so many adults, yet the child will
come and stand in the midst with total trust in Christ. Children have an
instinct that informs of a good and loving character. With our
conversion should come a gradual return to that childlike trust and faith we
had as children. Not that we should become childish, but possess the better
part of a childlike nature. We must become like that little child in order to
enter in to the Kingdom of Heaven. If carefully tended and protected as a
prized rose, a child will grow into a good and faithful Christian. If left
among the thorns, the concerns of the world will choke his spirit and he will
die an early spiritual death.
And whoso shall receive one such little child in
my name receiveth me.
Have you ever received a little child in Christ’s name? Have you ever stooped
down to their level and blessed them and told them how much they are loved by
our Lord? Have you given a hand, for the sake and love of Christ, to one of
these bruised little ones? Have you dared wash a tear-stained and dirty face
and given a refreshing drink or a morsel of bread? Would Christ have done? If
we act in His Name we must act as He would act.
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.
It is my understanding that millstones are quite cumbersome and impossible for
the best swimmer, so burdened, to keep afloat in the sea. Such is
the fate of those who would offend or abuse one of these little ones. To offend
one such child is tantamount to causing a child to stumble in the path of life,
ensnaring them by temptations and dissolute living so that they are caught in
the snares and bondage of sin and Satan. Those trafficking rings today who sell
little children into the most filthy circumstances of sex and sin will have
more than a millstone for a collar. They deserve far worse than our minds can
imagine.
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! For those
misguided theologians who argue that Judas was forgiven simply because he had
no choice but to betray Christ will need to consider this verse and the
following: He that dippeth his
hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. The Son of man goeth
as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is
betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.
(Matt 26:23-24)
The unregenerate, which we all were until drawn to Christ, have already earned
their places in Hell, but think of the hotter fires that await such a one as
Judas. It is certain that evil days will always come upon the earth, but those
by whom evil is worked are due greater punishment. Please read Jonathan
Edwards’ “Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God” just as a refreshment to memory.
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 cast into
everlasting fire.
Perhaps we might recall the testimony of Archbishop Cranmer, the leading light
of the English Reformation, who doubtlessly knew this comment of Christ. Thomas
Cranmer, having recanted to save his life, afterward stood valiantly for the
truth and was burned a martyr. While at the burning stake, Archbishop Cranmer
held out his hand into the flames saying, “This hand has offended; this
unworthy hand!” He thereby allowed the offending hand to feel the flames first.
We further see in the words of Christ just mentioned the continuing evidence of
an eternal punishment for sinners by fire.
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. The eye is the window to the
soul. If our vision is not single, we may be led into the most decadent of
lives. It is far better to be deprived of an eye, or an arm, or a leg than to
suffer the eternal pains of fire.
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. Perhaps if we knew that the
angels of children are always in Communion with God the Father so that no act
or treatment escapes His notice, we might be more observant of our
responsibility, not only to avoid offending a child, but to do all in our power
to promote and nurture their faith and happiness.
For the Son of man is come to save that which was
lost. 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? 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. As are all children, the
young lambs are most rambunctious and apt to roam from the flock. Their vision
is quite short-sighted. They see clumps of grass out of the beaten path and go
for it. After a bit of wandering they look about and find no other sheep or
shepherd around them. They wander in the rocks and crevasses of the mountains
in desperate search of their shepherd. Instinctively, they are aware of their
grave danger from wolves and other predators. The Good Shepherd cannot abide
the loss of a single lamb. He will leave the ninety and nine in safe shelter
while He roams the hills and hollows in search of His one lost lamb. Can you
see from this how important a little child is to Jesus? The lamb, alone and
defenseless, begins to bleat in desperation. By and by, the Shepherd hears His
chosen little lamb praying by the rocky cliff and goes immediately to its
rescue. He returns bearing the lamb in His arms (next to His great heart). JF
Miller, in Westminster Teacher, tells the story of a great piece of
marble that was marred and cast aside. He tells us that “even in the ruins of a
soul there are divine elements, and so long as even a fragment remains God
wants to give it still another chance.” In Florence, one of the
treasures of art admired by thousands of visitors is Michael Angelo’s
representation in marble of young David. It is, indeed, a marvelous piece of
sculpture. But the strangely winning thing in the story of that statue is that
it was the stone’s second chance. A sculptor began work on a noble piece of
marble, but, lacking skill, he only hacked and marred the block. It was then
abandoned as worthless and cast aside. For years it lay in a backyard, half
hidden among the rubbish. Then Michaelangelo found it and transformed it into
his beautiful masterpiece. God does the same with us, doesn’t He?
Even so it is not the will of your Father which is
in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish. I have heard, too many
times, that “it was the will of God” that such and such happened to a family or
a child as a result of the sinful heart of some human monster. Is it correct to
presume that any sin occurs by the Will of God? It is NOT! There are terrible
fates that befall countless children (and adults) every day under the
sun. These are not by the Will of God, but the so-called free will
of men. Little children will not suffer pain and hurt at the hands of a
committed Christian because their wills conform to the will of God and are not
free in the sense that they can sin with intent. Do not ever consider that any
child will perish by the will of God. And here is another delightful mystery:
we are all children in the eyes of God. Are you a child of God, or some other?
