PASTOR'S CORNER

Jan. 6, 2020. Today. All eyes are on Washington D. C. Electoral votes are counted. The official winner of the presidential election is formally announced. A day historians will note. Yet, what a foil, what a contrast, it is to a greater and more significant day!

Jan. 6 marks a greater event much ignored as we focus on steps in the mere transfer of political power. Jan. 6 is the of our Lord!

On this day we recall the coming of the Magi in Matthew 2. We recall a question and its basis, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” People debate whether the recent Great Convergence of Jupiter and Saturn is the star. What we do not debate is the recorded worship of the Magi. They “presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

Magi come to worship, a glimmer of the truth that all nations and peoples will one day bow down to our Lord in His Second Coming. A reminder that in Jesus’ coming a new era has begun; the era in which we live. The Kingdom of God breaks into this world in the person of Jesus.

The Kingdom of God is come! The Kingdom of God is now! Yet, the Kingdom of God, the reign of God, is not yet. Today in His Kingdom Christ reigns invisibly. When Jesus comes again the invisible Kingdom is replaced with the visible reign of Jesus Christ Himself.

Today, we as a nation mark the transitions of a fallible transient political order. Yet, on January 6 we also mark the identification of a child who is the enduring King of the universe. We mark how Gentiles came to worship the King of the Jews. We see in Matthew’s prose an allusion to how the King of the Jews will be worshipped by even Gentiles. Indeed, Jesus is to be worshipped by all - for He is born to die and rise for our salvation. We await His return.

(Editor’s Note: This column is written by a different Littlefield pastor for the Leader-News each week. The columns are published on this page on Wednesdays.)