1 Peter 1:20 - This week’s hymn of the week, “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise.” Peter would remind us, “He was foreknown before the foundation of
the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you.” The
sacrifice of Jesus on the cross wasn't improvised. God didn't make it up in
response to the unfolding events of history. Peter writes that Christ was known
before the world was founded. Jesus existed in eternity past as the one whose
blood would cover the sins of all who receive salvation. Jesus' birth, life,
death, resurrection, and return to the Father were always God's plan to save
you. Always. Jesus was always the answer to the questions asked by the prophets.
Jesus is the fulfillment to which the Old Testament prophecies were pointing.
In this Epiphany season Jesus is made manifest as the promised coming one.
Taking Matthew 1: 1-11 as his theme for stanzas 1-3,
the hymn likens the journey of the wise men who came to worship the Christ to
our own Christian pilgrimage. The pattern of these stanzas is "as they …
so may we." Stanzas 4 and 5 are a prayer that our journey on the
"narrow way" may bring us finally to glory where Christ is the light
(Rev. 21:23) and where we may perfectly sing his praise.
Throughout stanza 2, Jesus is manifested as “prophet,
priest and king supreme”; thus we confess that Jesus is anointed with the Holy
Spirit to be our chief prophet and teacher, our only high priest and our eternal
king.
The refrain ends by confessing that “God in flesh [is]
made manifest.” By faith we confesses
that Jesus took to himself, through the working of the Holy Spirit, from the
flesh and blood of the virgin Mary, a truly human nature.
A prayer for newness of life in Christ – Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness and put upon ourselves the armor of life, now in the time of this mortal life, in which Your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility, that in the last day, when He shall come again in glory to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal.[2]- 12 February 2022
[1] Schnorr Von Carolsfeld woodcuts “Jesus teaches the disciples” copyright © WELS permission granted for personal and congregational use
[2] Collect for newness of life in Christ, Lutheran Service Book © 2006 Concordia Publishing House. St. Louis
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