Bowing to Jesus

        We in North America don’t see much bowing. Maybe at the end of a play when the actors bow or curtsey to the audience. Maybe in snippets of documentaries of Japan as businessmen or politicians bow to each other.  Maybe some of us have been involved with worship that expects members to bow to an altar or a cross.

        In ancient times it was often a case of bow or die, as witness the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in Daniel 3:6. In fact, in Jeremiah 39:6, it was more like bow and die!

        Sometimes, bowing is only gesturing—it means very little. On the other hand, we want to look at a few people in the New Testament who bowed or kneeled to Jesus the Lord—with eternal repercussions.

        Some bowed in mockery—it seems that the soldiers really “did not know what they were doing.” [Mat 27:28] Some bowed because they couldn’t resist His inherent power—the demon-possessed man and the evil spirits themselves. [Lk.8:27; Mk.3:11] Many bowed for physical help—lepers, a sick woman, a man with a dying daughter, parents with demon-possessed children, even the sister of a dead man—and went away content.

        One young man came for spiritual advice but then couldn’t accept it and went away sad. Others were thrown to their knees by the glory and purity of the Saviour: Peter said, “Go away from me Lord; I am a sinful man!” Peter, James, and John fell facedown in terror at the voice from heaven, “This is my Son.” Paul fell to the ground on the Damascus road.  In fact, one day “every knee will bow.”

        But at last we come to examples of willing worship—we see the wise men at Bethlehem bowing to the Child and presenting their gifts; we see Stephen bowing before the Lord in heaven; and finally, we see John [Rev.19:4], with the angels, the living creatures, and the elders, falling down in worship, and crying, “Amen, Hallelujah!”                                                                    Ì