Above: The Nativity, by John Singleton Copley
Image in the Public Domain
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For Christmas Day, First Service, Year 2, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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Glory be to thee, O God in the highest, who by the birth of thy beloved Son
has made him to be for us both Word and Sacrament:
grant that we may hear thy Word, receive thy grace,
and be made one with him born for our salvation;
even Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 118
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Isaiah 9:2-7
Hebrews 1:1-12
Matthew 1:18-25
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Christmas devotions occupy the same category as graduation speeches if one is not careful to avoid thoughtless repetition. I endeavor to avoid vain repetition and traditional platitudes. I may even some fundamentalists. So be it.
Isaiah 9 opens with a text, with an uncertain timeframe, about the ideal Davidic king. Is the setting of the text the past or the future–the “prophetic past,” from our perspective? Historical identification seems to settle on Hezekiah, King of Judah (reigned 727/715-698-687 B.C.E.), son of King Ahaz. Matthew 1:23 quotes Isaiah 7:14 in Greek, not Hebrew, probably originally about Hezekiah yet subsequently interpreted to apply to Jesus. ONe may read about Hezekiah in 1 Kings 18-20 and 2 Chronicles 29-32. These texts make plain that Hezekiah, although great, was flawed.
Hebrews 1:1-12, with its high Christology, makes clear the superiority of Jesus to Hezekiah.
The birth of Jesus was much more important than that of Hezekiah.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 9, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE DAY OF PENTECOST, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF SAINT COLUMBA OF IONA, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARY AND ABBOT
THE FEAST OF SAINT GIOVANNI MARIA BOCCARDO, FOUNDER OF THE POOR SISTERS OF SAINT CAJETAN/GAETANO; AND HIS BROTHER, SAINT LUIGI BOCCARDO, APOSTLE OF MERCIFUL LOFE
THE FEAST OF JOSE DE ANCHIETA, APOSTLE OF BRAZIL AND FATHER OF BRAZILIAN NATIONAL LITERATURE
THE FEAST OF THOMAS JOSEPH POTTER, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
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Yes, by lightyears!