All Who Are Bowed Down

December 24

(Psalm 145:8-17 NIV) “The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. {9} The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. {10} All you have made will praise you, O Lord; your saints will extol you. {11} They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, {12} so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. {13} Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. {14} The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. {15} The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. {16} You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. {17} The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.”

(Luke 2:8-20 NIV) “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. {9} An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. {10} But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. {11} Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. {12} This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." {13} Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, {14} "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." {15} When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." {16} So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. {17} When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, {18} and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. {19} But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. {20} The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”

(Matthew 2:9-11 NIV) “After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. {10} When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. {11} On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.”

Christmas is about many things. One of those things is compassion. Instead of scrapping His humanity project, God chose to send His Son to redeem us. That’s compassion. When we realize what God has done for us, our hearts are filled with praise. We extol Him, and tell others of His glory. We want everyone to know that this everlasting King is faithful and loving, and that all who bow down to Him will be lifted up. This is David’s story. This is the story of the shepherds and Magi of Christmas. They believed what was told to them about the Christ child, and put feet to their faith. They were filled with gratitude and joy. They bowed down in worship and glorified God. They told others about the newborn King. To this day, they are lifted up as models of faith and worthy of imitation. Their response to God’s compassionate invitation established a pattern for every Christian living today. Merry Christmas! -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day