| Rubens - "Adoration of the Magi" |
Carol: “What Child Is This?” – William C. Dix (1827-1898)
Tune: GREENSLEEVES
This hymnline from a familiar carol does three things:
1. It calls everyone from every social strata to believe that “this, this is Christ the King.”
2. It tells us that THIS King comes bearing salvation from the throne of his Father.
3. It inspires all people whose hearts are capable of loving to make a place in their hearts for the King to sit enthroned – in control.
I’d like to do that as we celebrate the Epiphany season (the arrival of the Magi). I would call everybody everywhere to forget about their ‘place’ in this world’s societal hierarchy to come to Jesus… to take ownership of their place in the Kingdom. I’d like to remind them that this salvation is brought to them as a free gift from the hand of Almighty God through the pierced hands of his Redeeming Son. Then I would encourage them to invite Christ into their heart as controller of their thoughts and actions; I might even go off-season here with another hymn text: “If you are tired of the load of your sin, let Jesus come into your heart.”
I’ve never cared for canned evangelistic presentations: those ‘plan of salvation’ gimmicks. But in this case, these three sentences from a Christmas carol give us an outline for leading people into the Kingdom… moving them from darkness to light, from death to life.
Hear violin solo on this tune by Lindsey Stirling
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