MEEKNESS AND MAJESTY
Meekness and majesty, manhood and deity,
In perfect harmony – the man who is God;
Lord of eternity, dwells in humanity,
Kneels in humility, and washes our feet.
Oh, what a mystery –
Meekness and majesty;
Bow down and worship,
For this is your God,
This is your God!
Graham Kendrick’s beautiful hymn, ‘Meekness and majesty’ captures one of the most profound mysteries of the nature of Christ, of how in his humanity we see a coalescence of the supreme majesty of God and the utter meekness of a man. More than anything else, it is this mysterious union of apparently contradictory natures that draws man to Christ in worship and adoration.
Paul talks of this coalescence in Philippians 2:5-7;
“You attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who being in very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of as servant, being made in human likeness—-”
During his lifetime, Jesus could have chosen to be born as a prince, going on to rule a kingdom, live a comfortable life and create decrees that forced man to worship him. No one could have pointed a finger at him if he had chosen to do so, because he is God and all things on heaven and earth were created by him and for him. There is no disputing his majesty and his sovereignty.
Yet he was found in frailty- a helpless babe, with no room but a manger for his birth, fleeing persecution soon after birth, living life in poverty, subjecting himself to men, receiving insults and persecution, ultimately giving up his life in obedience to God. Christ taking on human flesh is the incredible transformation of God lowering himself from being everything to becoming nothing, going from author of this world to servant of mere man and from life eternal to a painful physical death on the cross.
As we view this amazing spectacle, unanswerable questions arise- how is it possible to lower oneself to such a degree? Is this because of love and if so what manner of love is this? Difficult as it might be to answer these questions, it is possible to receive Christ and be the beneficiary of this mysterious coalescence. When man looks at Christ and finds none like him- supreme in both majesty and meekness, he responds in worship and submission.
Dictators who wield power and nothing else, cause fear and revulsion. Men who are of little substance barely cause a ripple in this world. But it is the nature of God and of Christ to wield supreme power, yet with meekness and love, deal with men. It is this union that signifies majesty and is worthy of our worship. It is this union that we are called to emulate.
