Matthew 2:1-12 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, (2) saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (3) When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; (4) and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. (5) They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: (6) “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” (7) Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. (8) And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” (9) After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. (10) When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. (11) And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (12) And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
TWO KINGS
Text Matthew 2:1 - 12
It has been said that in every heart there is a throne. Who sits on the throne as the king of our hearts?
Since Jesus came to us as the the Word made flesh we have to make a choice about how we will respond to Jesus in our lives. Even trying to sty neutral is making a choice. Jesus said we are either for Him or against Him (Matthew 12:30). We can never slight the role that eternity can have in that decision!
In today’s text we have the story of two kings who are poles apart. One is ruthless and his kingdom is fleeting and the other is God’s only begotten Son whose kingdom is forever (Luke 1:32- 33). One is self-centered and threatened by those who won’t bow down to him and the other is the One---our Messiah to whom every tongue must confess and every knee must bow that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:9 -11)! One king built his kingdom on the foundation of his success and ego. Matthew 2:13 -16 mentions how Herod wanted to search for this new king to destroy him and ordered that all male babies that were under the age of 2 yrs old to make sure he got rid of this new born king. Jesus Christ, the other King is the Foundation upon which we must all build our lives if we want to have a home in heaven.
What three adjectives could you to describe King Herod? The three that come to my mind are haughty, hateful and incorrigible. What three adjectives would you use to describe Jesus? I choose these ---humility, hope and heaven.
HUMILITY
What is the litmus test for our humility?
1) Autonomy: Do we seek the lime light or the back seat of the bus? Herod like to be in charge and resents it it when he is not.
2) Humility: Philippians 2:7 -8 says it the best …. [Jesus] emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. (8) And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (ESV).
3) Litmus test: Consider how Winston Churchill put things into perspective. The story is told that “Once Winston Churchill was sitting on a platform waiting to speak to a large crowd gathered to hear him. The charabanc of the event leaned over and said, “Isn’t it exciting Mr. Churchill, that all these people came just to hear you speak?” Winston Churchill responded, “It is quite flattering but whenever I feel this way I always remember that if instead of making a political speech I was being hanged, the crowd would be twice as big.” (Steve May. The Story File. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishing, 2000, p. 160). Do we let our accomplishments go to our heads? Or, are we like Winston Churchill who had a way to keep himself in check?
How does King Herod do with this test?
1) Jealous king: As we know from Matthew 2:13 -16, Herod fails this test miserably. Herod is a pretender---a jealous king when he claims that he wants to welcome this new king along with the Wise men (Matthew 2:8).
2) Herod’s history: Herod’s history speaks for itself. He had been a king installed by Rome for thirty years and he foiled countless plots and waged many wars to remain king. He has ordered many executions. Herod even ordered executions of one of his ten wives and her mother and two sons Alexander and Aristrobulus. In less than a year he will order the execution of another male offspring. … Roman emperor Caesar Augustus is rumored to have said, “It is better to be Herod’s pig than his son”. (Bill O’Reilly. Killing Jesus. New York: Henry Holt Company, 2013, p. 13). Herod would later reap what he had sown. Matthew 2:13 -16 reminds us of Herod’s evil.
What do the Wise men symbolize? The Wise men symbolize how Gentiles would seek God. Tradition is that we say that there were three Wise men because of their three gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The Wise men also symbolize humility as they were kings (as church tradition tells us) who came from distant lands to pay homage to King Jesus. Tradition tells us that each of these three Wise men were kings: Balthasar (from Arabia), Melchior (from Persia), and Gaspar (from India). (https://www.britannica.com › topic › Magi). That would explain why one of our hymns is entitled “We Three Kings”.
HOPE
How does Jesus’s birth symbolize hope?
1) Empathy: Jesus comes to us in a way that He identifies with us in our birth, development, maturity and temptation (Hebrews 4:15).
2) Adoption: Through Jesus Christ God’s only begotten Son we can become adopted sons and daughters. Consider John 1:12-13 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, (13) who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God (ESV). God proves His love toward us in the life, witness, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 5:8).
Can Haughty hearts have hope? The answer to that question is an emphatic “no”.
1) Haughty hearts: A haughty heart is an uncircumcised heart (Leviticus 26:41)---- a prideful heart. Proverbs 16:18 tells us that “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (ESV).
2) A cross and a throne: In every heart there is a cross and a throne! The late A. W. Tozer said it bests when he said, “In every Christian’s heart there is a cross and a throne, and the Christian is on the throne till he puts himself on the cross. If he refuses the cross he remains on the throne. Perhaps this is at the bottom of the backsliding and worldliness among gospel believers today. We want to be saved but we insist that Christ do all the dying. No cross for us, no dethronement, no dying. We remain king within the little kingdom of Mansoul and wear our tinsel crown with all the pride of a Caesar, but we doom ourselves to shadows and weakness and spiritual sterility.” https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/1199909-in-every-christian-s-heart-there-is-a-cross-and-a We have to ask ourselves who is sitting on the throne of our hearts!
HEAVEN
How can we make it to heaven without Jesus?
1) One Way: How many roads lead to heaven? Can we get right with God without God’s help? Some would tell us that there is more than one way to heaven.
2) Money won’t do it: Two men were dying across town from one another. One was a very wealthy man who had amassed and enjoyed a fortune. His Victorian house was lavishly furnished with antiques and expensive paintings. A stylish car sat outside the door, and a boat was on the nearby lake. The second man had never flourished financially, but he had loved the Lord and worked faithfully in the village church.
The first, as he died, moaned, “I’m leaving home.… I’m leaving home.”
The second died with a glow on his face, saying, “I’m going home. I’m going home.”[ In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. ] Galaxie Software. (2002). 10,000 Sermon Illustrations. Biblical Studies Press. John 14: 6 tells us that we cannot make it to heaven without Jesus Christ.
Do we love our friends enough to tell them about the Savior?
1) Bad dreams: I once had a church member told me that he dreamed about eternity in a way that shocked him. He attended church regularly. He said at first he dreamed about other relatives who greeted him in the next life. The shocker was that he said he woke up when he realized that this was not a dream about going to heaven. He seemed to think that God was telling to get busy about witnessing to others about Christ.
2) Our witness matters: The chief priest, the scribes and Herod did not take the birth of Jesus Christ seriously! We expect behavior like that from Herod but it is shocking to hear that religious leaders did not do anything with that knowledge of Jesus’s birth.
3) The testimony of friends: When our friends get to heaven’s pearly gates what will they say about us? Will they be mad at us because we put them in danger of missing heaven because we said nothing about Jesus? Or, will they give thanks that we shared the Gospel? “John Newton said that when we get to heaven, there will be three wonders:
1. Who is there
2. Who is not there, and
3. The fact that I’m there!”
Morgan, R. J. (2000). Nelson’s complete book of stories, illustrations, and quotes (electronic ed., p. 421). Nashville: Thomas
Nelson Publishers.
Again, John 14: 6 tells us that we cannot make it to heaven without Jesus Christ---the King of kings!
