Matthew 2:1-12 New King James Version
Wise Men from the East
2 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, [a]wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the [b]wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”
9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Many people in ancient Judea were aware that the prophets of God had spoken of a Messiah who would one day come and finally, ultimately, set things right.
Most of these residents of Judea eagerly anticipated the wonderful things this Messiah would do for God’s people.
But, ironically, in the natural course of human events, most of them missed the arrival of Jesus – most had long since stopped praying with the expectation of their receiving an actual answer from God – actual physical, viewable, answer.
But far to the east there were Magi, scholars who studied the stars, and one night they noticed something new in their observations shining in the heavens.
Were they aware of prophecies about a Messiah?
Did they have the assumption that somewhere under that heavenly event, this promised Messiah, who would bring salvation for God’s people, had arrived?
To these scholars, a sign in the heavens meant something important, like the arrival of a new king, they started on a journey, a season of seeking after a star, a season of seeking God with inquiring minds to see what God might be doing.
Others Were Not So Eagerly Seeking Messiah’s Arrival
Matthew 2:3-6 New King James Version
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”
Isn’t it ironic that we can think we have every intention to seek God, but we ultimately have ulterior motives for doing so and we miss what he is doing?
When Jesus was born, seven centuries after the prophet Micah had prophesied where He would appear, His arrival was met with a variety of different reactions—and those responses are much the same today as they were then: hostility, and jealousy – perceived threats to our power base, indifference, or no faith.
King Herod was the epitome of hostility toward Jesus.
He stands for everyone who says to themselves, “I don’t mind some religious person sitting quietly in the back seat, but I don’t want anybody driving the car of my life.” “I am the “king of the kingdom, the one who is in authority here!”
A “king of their hill” who keeps quiet is acceptable; the one who makes higher claims on any person’s life, does not agree with what they already think, is not.
King Herod did all he could to ensure there would be no other authority, no other king to rival him and his authority over his kingdom (Matthew 2:16-18).
And many do so still today.
Jerusalem’s religious professionals of the day responded to the arrival of Messiah with prophetic indifference – some with well established fears.
Fears for their lives and personal safety – fears for what Herod would do to anyone – man, women or child – to ensure that Herod would remain #1.
When King Herod asked them about the coming of the Christ, they were able to go to the temple search their scrolls answer his questions with great specificity.
They were aware Micah had prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem; but they were indifferent, they were so helpless to help, simply didn’t care.
Notice they wouldn’t make the effort, even take the time to make a six-mile journey to meet and worship the newly born, long-awaited King of the Jews.
They completely disregarded Him – perhaps in fear of him or to protect him.
Were they too busy with their religion to make time for their rescuing King?
Or were they welcoming and protective of the child, protective of the people?
Then there were the arrival of the wise men to the kings throne room, this group of foreign kings (?), astrologers who saw a star in the heavens, worked out what it was announcing, packed their bags, and responded to Jesus in faith.
What moved these powerful men who were authorities in their field, to presume on their king’s time, not to bow to him but to bow down at the cradle of a child?
How in these seasons of expectation and seeking a “king” does that happen?
How in these seasons of anticipation, of expectation and seeking “after one whose authority over a kingdom and its citizens is literally second to no one?”
Only by the power of God. And it was the wise, not Herod or the priests, who were the ones who “rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (Matthew 2:10).
There is only one true dividing line between people.
It has nothing to do with ethnicity, skin color, intellect, sexual orientation, or political correctness or social justice or social status, authority of government.
Which “king or KING” do we the people seek after?
1 Samuel 8:1-12 New King James Version
Israel Demands a King
8 Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. 8 According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also. 9 Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.”
10 So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked him for a king. 11 And he said, “This will be the behavior of the king who will reign over you: He will take your sons and appoint them for his own chariots and to be his horsemen, and some will run before his chariots. 12 He will appoint captains over his thousands and captains over his fifties, will set some to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and some to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots.
It is the chasm, the grand canyons, raging rivers, between unbelief—whether or not that unbelief manifests itself as hostility or indifference—and unbelief.
We may take note, make harsh commentary that the Western world grows in hostility to a God who insists on ruling His world, but we should also note that “religious” people are also at risk of unbelief: the unbelief of high indifference.
Proverbs 3:5-8 New King James Version
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall [a]direct your paths.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your [b]flesh,
And strength[c] to your bones.
Those of us “wisest of the wise ones” who have all heard the Christmas story countless times, who know our Old Testaments, and who are in church Sunday by Sunday are not immune to the indifference that is seen in a lack of joy over the Lord and a lack of response to His word when it calls us to change our plans.
And whoever we are, or however wise we believe we are if we won’t have Jesus as our King in this life, we won’t live in His kingdom on the other side of death.
If we choose to ask Jesus to leave us alone, either in our hostility or in our wise only and alone in our own eyes, religiosity, He will leave us alone—forever.
Our response to our seasons of seeking after Jesus has high eternal significance.
Look highly upon Him who came to die for hostile and indifferent sinners, then, and in that season of “king gazing” allow His great love to soften your heart so that you may respond to Him in real, joyful, obedient faith, today and every day.
Psalm 13 New King James Version
Trust in the Salvation of the Lord
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
Enlighten my eyes,
Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.
We either seek after a king or we seek after a KING to have #1 authority over us.
But, will we recognize and acknowledge and confess we all know the difference?
We pray for healing but might not recognize healing that has already occurred.
We will ask for prosperity without pausing to give thanks for the ways God has already provided.
The good news of Jesus is far too magnificent to be contained, yet it can still be missed if we ourselves are complacent or indifferent in our search for our king.
The king of this world?
The KING of all the expanse of the heavens above, our hearts, the earth below.
But when we are open to seeing what God is doing, the wonder of his mighty acts can move us from seasons of being so very far away from his presence we are no heavenly good to seasons of our approaching him with sincere worship.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 27:1-9 New King James Version
An Exuberant Declaration of Faith
A Psalm of David.
27 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked came against me
To eat[a] up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
3 Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
4 One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the [b]beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple.
5 For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
6 And now my head shall be [c]lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of [d]joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
9 Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
Father in heaven, separate me from my wisdom, keep me from having such a narrow view of your saving grace that I miss the wonderful things you are doing. By my Jesus
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 