“Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy
word” (Psalm 119:114) Amen!

Today’s Hymn

Words: Augustus M. Toplady, 1776. An unsubstantiated story says the lyrics were inspired when Toplady took shelter from a storm under a rocky overhang near England’s Cheddar Gorge; he reportedly wrote the words on a playing card. Music: Toplady, Thomas Hastings, 1830.

ROCK OF AGES
Click here for tune.

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure;
Save from wrath and make me pure.

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
[originally When my eye-strings break in death]
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

Thought Provoker

We read in John 1:11-13, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Discuss as a family what it would be like if a king came to his subjects and they did not receive or acknowledge him. What might that king do?

Dad’s Study

King Jesus has arrived and His people, the Jews, seem not to notice. Strangers from a far land arrive telling of following a star; their purpose is to worship Him, verse 2. These magi inquire in Jerusalem, the capital city, as to where they might find this king, yet no one seems to know. Herod has the chief priests and scribes inquire of the Scriptures and they learn that the King of the Jews is to be born in Bethlehem of Judah, and Herod sends the strangers on their journey. These magi go on rejoicing greatly as the star brings them to the presence of the child. It is indeed strange and strong evidence of the truth of the words of John that His own did not receive Him, for none of the court of Herod, none of the priests, scribes or people accompanied these magi. They have been told that their King has been born and yet none attend upon Him. Only Herod takes an interest in receiving a report and that only for the purpose of murder.

Some commentators think that the homage paid to Jesus by the magi was only that recognition given to any human king. There are strong evidences to indicate otherwise. The first is their perseverance in traveling such great distance to worship the one who had been revealed to them. It was God who had directed them thus by the star and they followed and persevered with great joy. Even after coming to Jerusalem and seeing that the King’s own people were not stirred to seek Him, they were undaunted in their task and their joy, continuing on to joyfully seek Him regardless of the deadness of others to Him. Second is their response when they do find Him in a humble estate. Verse 11 tells us they saw Him in the house with His mother and fell down and worshipped Him. There was no royal court, no splendor, no majesty, no richness or grandeur about Him. These are all the trappings of a king they had come to expect, yet none were present. What was their response? They fell down and worshipped Him; what their eyes did not see their faith did. They saw in the simple babe the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth. Thus they presented themselves first and then their gifts in adoration and worship. Much is made of the symbolism of the gifts but most is pure speculation. The gifts offered represent the best the land of the magi had to offer and was God’s provision to Joseph, Mary and the child for the flight ahead. In the magi we see wise men, called by God who persevere in a difficult journey without discouragement to worship a truly divine King. They are not swayed or discouraged that no one else worshipped with them. They came to the King, bowed before Him presenting themselves in worship and brought to Him the best of their gifts.

Click here for Matthew Henry’s Commentary.

Truth in Practice

Charles Spurgeon said, “Those who look for Jesus will see him: those who truly see him will worship him: those who worship him will consecrate their substance to him.” And so it should be for every Christian. Seek Jesus while He still may be found. Once found offer up to Him not only the best of what we have and who we are, but all of what we have and who we are in the service of the King of kings. (Rom. 12:1) “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

Catechism

Question 36

Q. What benefits do believers receive from Christ at their death?

A. The souls of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness (Hebrews 12:23), and do immediately pass into glory (Philippians 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Luke 23:43), and their bodies, being still united to Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:14), do rest in their graves (Isaiah 57:2) till the resurrection (Job 19:26).

“O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart” (Psalm 36:10).

Today’s Hymn

Words: Julia B. Cory, 1902. Cory wrote these words at the request of J. Archer Gibson, who wanted new lyrics for the tune “Kremser.” Gibson was organist at the Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City, which Cory’s family attended. The first public performance of the hymn was the next Thanksgiving Day. It appeared in Hymns of the Living Church in 1910.

Music: Kremser, Dutch melody in The Collection, Adrianus Valerius, 1625. Arranged by Eduard Kremser, 1877.

WE PRAISE THEE, O GOD, OUR REDEEMER, CREATOR
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We praise Thee, O God, our Redeemer, Creator,
In grateful devotion our tribute we bring;
We lay it before Thee, we kneel and adore Thee,
We bless Thy holy Name, glad praises we sing.

We worship Thee, God of our fathers, we bless Thee;
Through life’s storm and tempest our guide have Thou been;
When perils overtake us, escape Thou will make us,
And with Thy help, O Lord, our battles we win.

With voices united our praises we offer,
To Thee, great Jehovah, glad anthems we raise.
Thy strong arm will guide us, our God is beside us,
To Thee, our great Redeemer, forever be praise.

Cory later added this stanza for use at Christmas:

Thy love Thou didst show us, Thine only Son sending,
Who came as a Babe and Whose bed was a stall,
His blest life He gave us and then died to save us;
We praise Thee, O Lord, for Thy gift to us all

Thought Provoker

I know a man who is very embarrassed by the fact that his parents divorced when he was a child. This bit of family history brings a great deal of shame to him. At times he speaks of it as if this somehow makes him a lesser person than those whose parents have not divorced. Any family can look back over its generations and find that there are ‘skeletons in the closet.’ Since each family is populated with sinners we should not expect to find perfection in the family tree. This truth regarding human ancestry is at once humbling and full of hope for the Christian.

Dad’s Study

Matthew 1 is the human lineage of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords so this is no ordinary ancestry; Jesus is the highest of royalty the world will ever know. Here, Jesus is presented as the heir to the throne of Israel as the son of David. Just by the presence of a lineage we have the humility and condescension of Christ proclaimed. He who was in the beginning with God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, and emptied Himself taking on the form of a bond-servant. That the Creator of heaven and earth would come to save sinners in such a lowly and humble means as taking on the form of a man, being born of a woman and for Him who knew no sin to be part of a family of sinners speaks volumes to us of His humble nature.

In this lineage we need to take special note of 4 persons, the only 4 women mentioned: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. Represented in these 4 women and their part in the line of Christ we have the weakness and sinfulness of all of mankind. Tamar, a gentile, is in the line because of an incestuous relationship with her father-in-law Judah. Rahab and Ruth, both gentiles, one a prostitute and the other a noble woman. Last of all is Bathsheba; she is not even mentioned by name most probably because the use of her name in connection with King David would bring forth the memory of their adultery. In the life of each of these women there are ‘disqualifiers’ that would render them unfit as Jewish royalty. Three of the four were gentiles, considered unclean and as cattle in the eyes of the Jews. Three of them were stained by the sexual sins of incest, fornication and adultery. Yet in this we as sinners find hope. First, that our Lord has a part in us. He knows that we are but dust; He is akin to the fallen and lowly and can sympathize with our nature, having coming in the flesh. Second, He has broken down the barrier between Jew and Gentile. Even the Gentile has a place in Christ and His Kingdom. Third, we see the operations of grace in the lives of these sinners. Tamar who is declared to be more righteous than he by Judah, Rahab who turns to the living God and is saved, Ruth who fulfills the 5th commandment of God and is blessed, and Bathsheba, forgiven of her sin, married to David and blessed with the birth of Solomon. Each of them teaches us of the forbearance of God, the mercy of God in forgiving sinners, and the grace of God in saving sinners.

Click here for Matthew Henry’s Commentary.

Truth in Practice

“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:15-16). Jesus as our High Priest knows our infirmities, He knows our need of mercy and grace and He has opened the way of salvation for us. Take hope; flee to Him for forgiveness of sin. Go to Him seeking mercy and grace in your time of need to be saved from the judgment to come.

Catechism

Question 35

Q. What are the benefits which in this life do either accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification?

A. The benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification (Romans 5:1, 2, 5), are assurance of God’s love, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17), increase of grace, perseverance in it to the end (Proverbs 4:18; 1 John 5:13; 1 Peter 1:5).