“…at sundry times and in divers manners…”

“…at sundry times and in divers manners…”
Christmas 2011
Rev. Stephen E. Stults
St. Barnabus Anglican Church

Hebrews 1:1-2: “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;”

So begins those stirring lines from the beginning of the Epistle to the Hebrews. Originally attributed to St. Paul, it is one of the few epistles for which we have any doubt of authorship. Today, even in conservative and traditional seminaries such as our own Cranmer Theological House, it is still noted that St. Paul’s authorship is not completely acknowledged. While this is interesting, it does not diminish the message of the epistle, nor does it dim the brightness of its significance for us.

Today, we celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We celebrate the penultimate moment in history of which the Old Testament prophets spoke. Just as we know to be true, the panoply of prophets all spoke of Christ, the Messiah. As we mentioned last week, as we examine the Old Testament we see that Isaiah spoke of Christ, Malachi spoke of Christ, Zechariah spoke of Christ, and John, the last prophet of all, spoke of Christ. Christ is the end and fulfillment of all prophecy and now he is here, Immanuel, God with us. Thus, while in the past, the prophets spoke to men, telling them of the coming Messiah, now Christ is here, speaking to us through His Holy word written and through the blessed Holy Spirit. Christ is also with us, spiritually, in the physical means He ordained for our bodily and spiritual sustenance. In short, Christ is here. We celebrate His presence in our midst and in our hearts today.

In the beginning verses of our Epistle selection from Hebrews, the author constructs it almost like a dialogue. The first lines speak of Jesus as “heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.” Christ is also the “brightness of his glory and the express image of his person.” Christ upholds all things by the word of his power, and having purged our sins, took his place at the right hand of God.

What does this sound like to you? To me, it sounds exactly like the extolling of Christ as the Ultimate One, one superior to all others. In fact, that is exactly the purpose of Hebrews, as the author instructed the early Church on the superiority of Christ. One can sense this in the following statements: (Hebrews 1:4-5) “Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. 5 ¶ For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?” Even the mighty angelic beings do not compare with the power and glory of Christ. This is clear when we read of the throne of Christ: Hebrews 1:8 “But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. “ Thus, His throne is “for ever and ever”, and Christ possesses a “sceptre of righteousness.” All of these are statements that pertain to a king. In the language of the Bible, they pertain to a great Suzerain who reigns over many subject kings and nations.

Yet, there is a difference in Christ as the Great Suzerain, as opposed to the earthly wielders of temporal power. Whereas men are genuinely obsessed with power for the purposes of their own aggrandizement, Christ is concerned about something else. In Hebrews 1:9, we read: “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” In other words, Christ is not concerned with power, for He is all Power. Instead, he loves righteousness and hates evil. He loves Good for Good’s own sake. Thus, God the Father has anointed Him with a spirit greater than any other being. This is especially clear when God the Father, in verse 8, addresses His own Son as God. This serves two purposes: first, it clearly shows us the unity of the Trinity, as God speaks to Himself. It also shows us the diversity of the Trinity, as One Person, God the Father, speaks to another Person, God the Son
Perhaps this, more than any other statement, shows us the superiority of Christ. No other being is spoken to in this way. No other being possesses the pre-eminence like Christ.
No other being is unchangeable, and as the epistle selection tells us, in Hebrews 1:11-12: “They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.”

This brings us back to our purpose for today. Today we worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, come to us in the flesh, yet possessing all power in His divinity. Inferior to the Father as regarding his manhood, yet equal to the Father as regarding his Godhood, we celebrate His first advent on the earth. We celebrate the change in history from darkness to light, in an ultimate sense. Yet we know that sin runs rampant on the earth and the witness of Christianity has been at many times less than stellar. This may cause a problem for some of those looking at Christianity from the outside, and perhaps seeking a chink in its armor.

It does not cause a problem for us, because we know that the sinfulness of man is not Christ’s fault or the fault of Christianity. He or it cannot be blamed for the failings of men and their all-too-prevalent use of Christianity as a mask for their own sinful and selfish deeds. It is rather the opposite. Men’s misuse of Christianity is simply more evidence of their need for Christ and for the need of His coming into the world. Our sinfulness and our selfishness--are they the same?—simply show us our need for Christ’s redemptive power in our lives. The wonderful Christmas hymn “In Dulci Juibilo” (Good Christian Men, rejoice) says it all in its last lines: “Christ was born to save! Christ was born to save!”

Again, that is what we celebrate today. Today marks one of more joyous seasons of the year, only to be outdone in blessedness by Easter. Today we cherish the newness of Christmas once again. Today we cherish the first advent of Christ to the world, where we hold up the central moment of all time. Despite the perennial attempt to commercialize and euphemize Christmas out of existence, it remains. This is the central moment of history. This is the most wondrous co-joining of Divinity with Humanity in a way that is recognizable but not comprehensible by us.

Christians, how do you feel? If you are like most people in this country, at this time of year, you probably feel some excitement, or some general exhilaration. Our unchurched friends might chalk it up to the festive environment and the anticipation of gifts. We have to ask: what, exactly are they celebrating -- some nebulous idea of the “Holidays”? Do they hold some vague notion of Christmas without Christ? Or, do they simply like the colors red and green? Who knows?

Actually, we Christians do know. We know why we are together today. We are not like the Athenian Greeks whom St. Paul upbraided on Mars’ Hill, for having an idol to the “unknown god” in Acts 17:23. They ignorantly worshipped the works of their hands and of their own minds, being yet unenlightened by Christ. In that scene, St. Paul echoed the words of this epistle by telling them there is a God who made all things.

No, beloved in Christ, we know who He is. We know why we are here. We are glad of His coming to us today in great humility. We look for His coming again in great power and majesty. This is His day and the source of our everlasting rejoicing.

John 1:1-3: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.”

John 1:14: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

Who could say it better than that? Merry Christmas, Christians!
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