C, The Epiphany of our Lord - Matthew 2:1-12 "Worship God in a Trough?"

Matthew 2:1–12 (ESV) 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,  saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;  and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:  “ ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ”  Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”  After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.  And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.  And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

Watching kids play when they are little, they so easily roll around on the ground, get up, run around, and in an instant drop back down on the ground with little to no effect. 

As one gets older, the prospect of getting down on the ground is somewhat more troubling.  Getting down is usually okay, but it takes more effort to rise up again, and stand on one’s own feet.  Grandparents trying to keep up with toddler grandchildren, know all too well, it takes them more time to regain vertical stability than it does for their energetic grandchildren.

There is also the very real danger of falling when one gets older.  Both the fall and the inability to get up, can cause physical injury as well as mental trauma if there is no one around to help.  As one gets older, one tries not to overdo things, too much, to lessen the chance of a fall.

However, falling down is exactly the language of paying homage or worshipping.  A number of different words are used to describe what we in English would say is “to worship”.  Here at the start of Matthew’s Gospel, to worship, is a word of submission.  Literally, it paints a picture, of making oneself lower than the person you are worshipping.

Another good picture is that of a dog being submissive to its owner, or the leader of the pack.  In fact, the word for worship here uses the Greek word for dog, kuon (pronounced Koo -ohn).  One who has the picture in their mind of a dog crouching and licking the hand of the person it is trying to please has a good picture of what it is to worship.

Another good picture of worship is that of one who falls down and kisses the feet of those to whom they submit.  When the wise men came to worship the new king to which the star had led them, on seeing Jesus with Mary with the Christ child they fell down and worshipped him.

Herod, on the other hand, said he wished to worship Jesus in the same way.  But proved otherwise, when he sought to kill Jesus, by murdering the baby boys of Bethlehem.  He slaughtered them and cast them down in the dirt, so he would remain top dog, so to speak!

Incidentally, the slaughter of the male infants of Bethlehem is commemorated on December 28 as Holy Innocents Day on the church calendar.  Although it is not a pleasant story, it ties death to the birth of Jesus Christ.  It shows the fallenness and corruption into which the innocent child Jesus was born and struggled.  We are reminded of the innocence by which he was led to the slaughter on the cross because our fallenness, corruption, and experience of sin put him there.

Today we focus on the celebration of the Epiphany.  Epiphany rounds out the twelve days of Christmas and is traditionally celebrated on January 6.  It’s a continuation of the Christmas season but holds at its centre, Jesus being revealed as the Son of God, the King of Kings.  The wise men, traditionally kings and astrologers from the east, seek to fall down before this child as the king of the Jews.

Now that Jesus has been revealed as the baby boy born in Bethlehem, the first and last Sunday after Epiphany are revelations of Jesus being the Son of God.  Literally Epiphany means “to reveal”. And the first Sunday after the Epiphany is Jesus’ baptism where God declares that Jesus is his Son with whom he is well please (Luke 3:22).  

And similarly on the last Sunday of Epiphany, just before Ash Wednesday and Lent, is Transfiguration Sunday, where on the mountain of transfiguration the curtain of invisibility is drawn back.  The three disciples see Jesus in all his heavenly radiant glory, together with Moses and Elijah.  God again says, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!” (Luke 9:35)

In between these two revelations of the Epiphany season, Jesus’ divinity is revealed through the accounts of his miracles, his proclamation as the fulfilment of Old Testament Scripture, the Law, and his rejection by the people of Nazareth.

Incidentally, Matthew uses the same worship language, of bowing down and licking the earth like a dog, when the devil tries to tempt Jesus to worship him, on the false promise of receiving the kingdoms of the earth and all their glory.  To which Jesus says to him, “Be gone, Satan!  For it is written,  ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ” (Matthew 4:10 ESV)

As you age and lose the ability to fall on the floor and instantly jump back up as children do.  As the fear of falling down grows, not being able to get up, with the very real possibility of being left for dead.  You are called to ponder the mystery of this child laying in the manger as the one revealed to be the King of Creation, weak and unable to get up.  Who needs to be fed, and have his toileting attended to, as you did in infancy and might again need to have done in all humility as you age!

You are called to ponder the calculating ruthlessness of Herod and his unwillingness to fall down before anyone, remembering how we too sin with calculating ruthlessness.  Especially, as you age and God challenges your pride, seeking to remove all the idols from your life.

Ponder the Son of God lying in a food stall, and your embarrassment if you were the wise ones coming to worship this King of the Jews.  Would you fall down in manure of the cattle and sheep yards to submit to a God in a trough?    

You have all had victories in this life!  Regardless of what they were, even having the smallest triumph taken away by the loss of physical ability or reason, reveals not the starry height of our abilities and successes, but the truth of our inability.  This truth and reality is death!  We have no power to stop it!  It’s the highest hurdle and the greatest cross to bear in this life!

But in our aging and decline, and the growing knowledge and reality of lying down and licking the hand of death.  Ponder Jesus!  

Jesus was born for the single purpose to die!  Who despite being the Son of God, willingly set his face towards Jerusalem, knowing full well he would be laid down in death after being lifted up on the cross, and crowned the King of Kings! 

Why does he do this?  Because he came to right the wrong of humanity’s calculating ruthlessness!

He came and submitted to us in death to save us from death! 

He came to be the King of the Jews and the Gentiles, at his coronation on the cross, lifted up on the throne, as an embarrassment to the Jews, and us Gentiles. 

He came to lie down in death, so that when you fall down in death, he, having also licked the dirt like a dog in death, will pick you up in life forevermore. 

Therefore, worship God in the sweetest submission! 

Submit to him in hope, peace, joy, and love! 

Know God wins in death because he won in Jesus’ death and resurrection!

See Jesus’ submission to God the Father, and to you!  He came down and was born as a baby, he lay down in the manger, he lay down in submission to death for your sin, he descended into hell, so you and I have the right to be the children of God. 

You can worship and praise God with all the energy as that of God’s little child, knowing that you now live in the mystery of eternal life without the consequences of sin and knowing Jesus will lift you up from your manger of death.  Amen.