Seeking A King (Behold)

Opening and Introduction

When I think of looking for something, a book designed for kids comes to mind. It’s a book with pictures called “Where’s Waldo”. Did anyone see any of those books? The idea was to look for this guy with a red and white stripped shirt that always seemed to blend-in really well with the background.

I think this book is an interesting way to view life. We often know what we’re looking for, but sometimes, it sure is hard to find. Has anyone found Waldo yet? If you’re still looking for him, he’s in the lower left corner.

Tonight, our text talks about some interesting people, all with different motives and all searching for something. The magi, sometimes called the wise men, King Herod, and his chief priests and scribes all in search of the King of the Jews. But none of them were searching for the same reason. All of them didn’t have good motives.

Tonight, we’re going to take a closer look at the visit of the wise men and see what they were looking for.

We’ll also look at King Herod and see what he was trying to find. And finally, we’ll look at what we’re searching for, and how we can improve what we seek.

Magi seeking a king

Scripture tells us that the magi were from the East which would have been away from the tribes of Israel. In the world at that time, they would have most likely been from Persia, or modern-day Iraq or Iran. Given their likely home, they would have had a different culture and religion from Israel.

Later in Matthew, we learn a little bit more about these magi as the apostle describes the gifts that they brought. They brought Frankincense and Myrrh which might hint at an Arab influence because they typically came from regions southeast such as Yemen and Ethiopia.

They were academics who studied the stars, and studied prophecies as well, including Hebrew scripture with its promises from old. Their research would have taught them a lot about the world, appreciate different cultures, and be wise and sophisticated in many ways.

They likely would have read prophecies that pointed to the new king.

In Numbers, a prophecy said that the King of Israel would come, mentioning symbols of royalty of a star, and a scepter, which indicated God’s authority to rule. I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; (Numbers 24:17, ESV)

In another passage, a ruler of Israel is said to come from the tribe of Judah, in a little suburb of Jerusalem called Bethlehem.

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. (Micah 5:2, ESV)

The magi studied stars, and with these prophecies known, when they saw a star overhead that didn’t match anything else, they knew, they must have connected the dots, and followed it in search of a new king.

They showed a willingness to seek out the source of true wisdom. Not wisdom in their Eastern religion, not among religions leaders who should have joined in their quest to find Jesus, and not in Jerusalem where they asked Herod where the new King might be. They didn’t find wisdom in any of those places.

They knew the star didn’t point to Herod. The prophecies told them that they were looking for someone from the line of David, and that was no king today.

So, they continued to seek out the new King of the Jews. When they found Him, they didn’t find a young king on a throne surrounded by servants, but a poor family in an otherwise quiet neighborhood.

The magi didn’t know what to expect. But when they found who they were looking for, they presented their gifts, honored His family, and worshiped this child named Jesus, who was probably 2 years old. The wise men sought out a king, and instead, they found their Lord, their savior, their messiah.

Herod seeking a rival

But it seems like so many Christmas stories have a villain. The movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” has the greedy businessman, Mr. Potter. In “Home Alone” it was the thieves Harry and Marv. And in the story of the magi its King Herod.

But who was Herod? He was the Roman appointed governor of Judea who took office around 40 BC. He was known as Herod the great because of the great public works projects that he instituted, including some very impressive aqueducts in the area, and the rebuilding of Solomon’s temple.