Hebrews 13:16-21; St Mark 10:13-16
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
Did you wake up this morning to find some chocolate gold coins and an orange in your shoe? No? Well, if not, don’t fret, it has nothing to do with being on the wrong side of a legendary list from a fabricated gift giver who resides in the north. It’s probably just that your family doesn’t celebrate St Nicholas Day. You should. Not for candy and trinkets, but because Christians ought to remember and give thanks to God for the lives of His pious and just people, His saints, who serve as examples to us in their various vocations, of the Christian faith and life.
As you heard in the collect for the day, St Nicholas was from Myra, a city in present-day Turkey. He was orphaned at an early age, but graciously adopted by his uncle, who was bishop of Patara. A pious young man, his uncle encouraged Nicholas toward service in the Church. In about AD 317, Nicholas was elected bishop Myra in Lycia.
While not much is known of the historical figure, St Nicholas, stories of his kindness to the poor became well-known throughout Christendom. Perhaps the most famous was the account of a poor man who had three daughters, but no dowry to give any of them. The girls would most likely have ended up in slavery or prostitution.
But the kind bishop, hearing of their plight, used funds from the church to secure their freedom from such a cruel fate. Under the cover of night, he dropped into the house small bags of gold coins. According to some accounts, all three pages were delivered at once; according to others, the bags were delivered to each the day before a given daughter came of age. Either way, the young ladies were able to marry and thus rescued from lives of disgrace and hardship. As this story spread and was fictionalized in colder regions, Nicholas was portrayed as dropping the bags of gold down the chimney, landing in a shoe or stocking hung to dry.
Other accounts of the saint exist as well. Myra was known for its licentiousness and immorality. Once, three innocent men were false accused of a crime and sentenced to death. Nicholas is said to have intervened, defended for the men’s release, and they received back their lives.
He also became beloved by sailors due to an account of a sea voyage he once took. He was on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land when the ship he was traveling in fell into a fierce squall. The kindly bishop prayed to the Lord of wind and sea, the sea grew markedly calm and the sailors rejoiced.
Whether these stories are true, or merely based on true events, it is interesting to note that in many of them the symbolism of three keeps popping up. Three daughters without dowries. Three men falsely accused. Three sailors whom he rescued from drowning. Fabled though they may be, the number three is fitting. For what is true is that St Nicholas was a bishop, a pastor, called by Christ to be a shepherd of His flock, over which he kept diligent watch of their souls. He did this with great joy, for to desire the Office of the Ministry is to desire a noble task. It is indeed a high and holy calling.
We submit, in a way, to the leadership of St Nicholas who defended the Trinitarian Christian faith against the early church heresy of Arianism. Many of you probably know the legend. That St Nicholas punched Arius at the Council of Nicaea. Santa socked a heretic. It gives a whole new meaning to the naughty list. It’s actually late medieval tradition and most assuredly fabricated, but humorous and fun nevertheless.
And it serves to make a point, at least. Nicholas was likely among the fathers who gathered for the first council of Nicaea. He was a staunch anti-Arian. Nicholas boldly confessed the full deity of the eternal Word. You see, a certain false preacher named Arius was teaching that Jesus was not of the same substance as the Father, but that the Son of God was a created being; god-like, but not true God. The Council of Nicaea rightly rejected this heresy and affirmed the Scriptural truth that Jesus is both fully divine and fully human. That He is, as the Nicene Creed, says, “God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.”
Each time you confess this truth, each time you boldly proclaim the mystery of the Holy Trinity and the blessed Incarnation and Two Natures of our Lord Jesus Christ, you reject and condemn the heresy of Arianism and others like it. And you punch the devil in jaw! For he hates pure doctrine.
Satan also hates children, he despises obedience and good order, he attacks sacrificial love and pious prayer, he hates honor and fathers diligently catechizing their children, and so far as is possible for him, will not allow you to have a good conscience. He hates all the things mentioned in the Epistle and Gospel and Introit. He hates the Christian charity and generosity expressed by St Nicholas.
Satan is the grinchiest, grinch of all, hating all the Christians down in Christendom and Christmas at all. This is why, beloved, we remember and give thanks for men such as St Nicholas. Not for their fables or legends, per se, but for their lives of courage and faith, of love and good works. In a time when leaders and heroes seem to fail us all around, one scandal after another, it is comforting to hear of the sure and steady love of a Man of good character.
I speak not merely of St Nicholas, but of the Man whom he confessed and proclaimed - Jesus Christ, the God Man, the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. As it stands written, He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Pt 2:22-24).
Rather than a jolly old man in a red suit and hat handing out gifts to the kiddies, picture instead the the faithful bishop St Nicholas, in full clerical garb, distributing to the precious Word and Sacraments to the children of God. For in this office and role he is sharing Christ.
Jesus Christ is the One who has ransomed you from slavery to sin and the immoral scandal brought on you by the devil who has shamefully mistreated you. He bought you back, not with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood and innocent suffering and death, that you may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness innocence and blessedness.
Jesus Christ is the One who risked death and His own name and reputation to defend you from eternal death. He stood between you and death by taking death into Himself upon the Cross. He rescued you from certain death and has given you new life in Him. Even more, Jesus is now standing before the Father as your Advocate, speaking in your defense, responding to every charge laid against you with the merits of His own blood and righteousness.
Has He not saved you through the Trinitarian flood of your Baptism, where He drown your old Adam and raised the new man to life with Him, safe and secure in the Holy Ark of the Church? In Him, you have a clear conscience, unstained by sin, cleansed by His holy blood.
You, dear children loved by Jesus, are welcomed to His side. To you belongs the kingdom of God, the gift of His mercy and grace. He gives His treasures of love and forgiveness, peace and joy, not into your empty socks and shoes, but places them into the hands of faith, by which you receive His bounty. He takes you up in His arms and blesses you. Saying, “Fear not, little one, for I am with you. I will be your Rock and Castle. I am your Defender and Guardian.”
And then, dear ones, He sets you back down, pats you on the head, and sends you off to be a blessing unto one another. To do good and to share what you have; it is He who equips you with everything good that you may do His will, as the Epistle to the Hebrews says. For this is fabric of the lives of His Christians, living in faith toward God, strengthened by His Word and Spirit, and in fervent love toward the neighbor, welcoming others as God in Christ has welcomed you.
In the Name of the Father + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
Did you wake up this morning to find some chocolate gold coins and an orange in your shoe? No? Well, if not, don’t fret, it has nothing to do with being on the wrong side of a legendary list from a fabricated gift giver who resides in the north. It’s probably just that your family doesn’t celebrate St Nicholas Day. You should. Not for candy and trinkets, but because Christians ought to remember and give thanks to God for the lives of His pious and just people, His saints, who serve as examples to us in their various vocations, of the Christian faith and life.
As you heard in the collect for the day, St Nicholas was from Myra, a city in present-day Turkey. He was orphaned at an early age, but graciously adopted by his uncle, who was bishop of Patara. A pious young man, his uncle encouraged Nicholas toward service in the Church. In about AD 317, Nicholas was elected bishop Myra in Lycia.
While not much is known of the historical figure, St Nicholas, stories of his kindness to the poor became well-known throughout Christendom. Perhaps the most famous was the account of a poor man who had three daughters, but no dowry to give any of them. The girls would most likely have ended up in slavery or prostitution.
But the kind bishop, hearing of their plight, used funds from the church to secure their freedom from such a cruel fate. Under the cover of night, he dropped into the house small bags of gold coins. According to some accounts, all three pages were delivered at once; according to others, the bags were delivered to each the day before a given daughter came of age. Either way, the young ladies were able to marry and thus rescued from lives of disgrace and hardship. As this story spread and was fictionalized in colder regions, Nicholas was portrayed as dropping the bags of gold down the chimney, landing in a shoe or stocking hung to dry.
Other accounts of the saint exist as well. Myra was known for its licentiousness and immorality. Once, three innocent men were false accused of a crime and sentenced to death. Nicholas is said to have intervened, defended for the men’s release, and they received back their lives.
He also became beloved by sailors due to an account of a sea voyage he once took. He was on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land when the ship he was traveling in fell into a fierce squall. The kindly bishop prayed to the Lord of wind and sea, the sea grew markedly calm and the sailors rejoiced.
Whether these stories are true, or merely based on true events, it is interesting to note that in many of them the symbolism of three keeps popping up. Three daughters without dowries. Three men falsely accused. Three sailors whom he rescued from drowning. Fabled though they may be, the number three is fitting. For what is true is that St Nicholas was a bishop, a pastor, called by Christ to be a shepherd of His flock, over which he kept diligent watch of their souls. He did this with great joy, for to desire the Office of the Ministry is to desire a noble task. It is indeed a high and holy calling.
We submit, in a way, to the leadership of St Nicholas who defended the Trinitarian Christian faith against the early church heresy of Arianism. Many of you probably know the legend. That St Nicholas punched Arius at the Council of Nicaea. Santa socked a heretic. It gives a whole new meaning to the naughty list. It’s actually late medieval tradition and most assuredly fabricated, but humorous and fun nevertheless.
And it serves to make a point, at least. Nicholas was likely among the fathers who gathered for the first council of Nicaea. He was a staunch anti-Arian. Nicholas boldly confessed the full deity of the eternal Word. You see, a certain false preacher named Arius was teaching that Jesus was not of the same substance as the Father, but that the Son of God was a created being; god-like, but not true God. The Council of Nicaea rightly rejected this heresy and affirmed the Scriptural truth that Jesus is both fully divine and fully human. That He is, as the Nicene Creed, says, “God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.”
Each time you confess this truth, each time you boldly proclaim the mystery of the Holy Trinity and the blessed Incarnation and Two Natures of our Lord Jesus Christ, you reject and condemn the heresy of Arianism and others like it. And you punch the devil in jaw! For he hates pure doctrine.
Satan also hates children, he despises obedience and good order, he attacks sacrificial love and pious prayer, he hates honor and fathers diligently catechizing their children, and so far as is possible for him, will not allow you to have a good conscience. He hates all the things mentioned in the Epistle and Gospel and Introit. He hates the Christian charity and generosity expressed by St Nicholas.
Satan is the grinchiest, grinch of all, hating all the Christians down in Christendom and Christmas at all. This is why, beloved, we remember and give thanks for men such as St Nicholas. Not for their fables or legends, per se, but for their lives of courage and faith, of love and good works. In a time when leaders and heroes seem to fail us all around, one scandal after another, it is comforting to hear of the sure and steady love of a Man of good character.
I speak not merely of St Nicholas, but of the Man whom he confessed and proclaimed - Jesus Christ, the God Man, the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. As it stands written, He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Pt 2:22-24).
Rather than a jolly old man in a red suit and hat handing out gifts to the kiddies, picture instead the the faithful bishop St Nicholas, in full clerical garb, distributing to the precious Word and Sacraments to the children of God. For in this office and role he is sharing Christ.
Jesus Christ is the One who has ransomed you from slavery to sin and the immoral scandal brought on you by the devil who has shamefully mistreated you. He bought you back, not with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood and innocent suffering and death, that you may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness innocence and blessedness.
Jesus Christ is the One who risked death and His own name and reputation to defend you from eternal death. He stood between you and death by taking death into Himself upon the Cross. He rescued you from certain death and has given you new life in Him. Even more, Jesus is now standing before the Father as your Advocate, speaking in your defense, responding to every charge laid against you with the merits of His own blood and righteousness.
Has He not saved you through the Trinitarian flood of your Baptism, where He drown your old Adam and raised the new man to life with Him, safe and secure in the Holy Ark of the Church? In Him, you have a clear conscience, unstained by sin, cleansed by His holy blood.
You, dear children loved by Jesus, are welcomed to His side. To you belongs the kingdom of God, the gift of His mercy and grace. He gives His treasures of love and forgiveness, peace and joy, not into your empty socks and shoes, but places them into the hands of faith, by which you receive His bounty. He takes you up in His arms and blesses you. Saying, “Fear not, little one, for I am with you. I will be your Rock and Castle. I am your Defender and Guardian.”
And then, dear ones, He sets you back down, pats you on the head, and sends you off to be a blessing unto one another. To do good and to share what you have; it is He who equips you with everything good that you may do His will, as the Epistle to the Hebrews says. For this is fabric of the lives of His Christians, living in faith toward God, strengthened by His Word and Spirit, and in fervent love toward the neighbor, welcoming others as God in Christ has welcomed you.
In the Name of the Father + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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