Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

“What a humble birth!

It is as though Christ slipped into the world—no fanfare, no king’s palace, no silk-lined cradle.

Just humble swaddling clothes and a manger with straw for a bed!

From Rome, Caesar spoke and the world obeyed, yet for it all, he faded into an insignificant shadow in history.

The world scarcely took note of Jesus’ birth, yet the centuries have clothed him in glory such as the Caesars never knew.

While the world hardly paused to note His birth, heaven bent low to herald to humble folk this event of the ages.”[1]

Christ, the Creator of all, enters His creation.

The manner of his coming is in stark contrast to the world in which he enters.

He enters a world of pretense.

It is enamored with its’ own strength, power, prestige, and spiritual elitism.

And yet, it is all a façade.

Christ enters this deceived world cloaked in humility but possessing true power, so that he may save us.

Christ entrance into this world is a combination of the humblest of moments mixed with the grandest of concerts, a play with the poorest of settings and the wealthiest of attendees.

Shepherds in a field are the sole attendees of the most majestic concert of all times.

And the poorest setting of a stable is attended by wise men of the east.

Wise men, Herod, and Micah all point to Bethlehem.

I have always found the story of the Wise men’s interaction with Herod rather fascinating.

How is it that these men come all the way from “the East” to a city only 5 miles away from Jerusalem, only to find the religious leaders, who know exactly where the Messiah is to be born, have not put together the information that these Wise men were able to figure out?

What was the source of information for these Wise men?

Daniel perchance?

If so, how cool is that?

How is it that after these Wise men leave and travel only 5 miles away, Herod doesn’t send some soldiers or spies immediately to check this out?

Instead he waits to only find out that men, he had never met, “tricked him”?

Let’s take just a moment to read through and consider this interaction.

Herod is near the end of his reign.

Herod has been reigning for 35 years at this point.

And yet, he is still fearful of this child’s birth.

Even if this child was to be the Messiah, it would be many years before he would be a threat to Herod.

Why all the fear?

Rome allowed Herod to be titled “king” even though he was clearly under the Roman Emperor, Augustus.

He had obtained fame from his wars with Antigonus and other enemies.

He also had governed well, defended his country, repaired the temple, and built up the kingdom.

But, he was as well known for his brutality and cruelty.

Matthew Henry wrote, “Crowned heads cannot endure to think of successors, much less of rivals; and therefore nothing less than the blood of this infant king will satisfy him.”

[2]

Why is all of Jerusalem fearful with him?

The Jews have longed for their Messiah.

Why wouldn’t they be waiting for such news?

In my speculative mind, I would have imagined that Bethlehem would be the place to have babies back then.

If they all knew the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, why weren’t women traveling to Bethlehem for their births?

Maybe because, as Matthew Henry puts it, “carnal wicked hearts dread nothing so much as the fulfilling of the scriptures.”

[3] The passage tells us that Herod was troubled “and all Jerusalem with him” (Matt 2:3).

Of what might they have feared?

What possible consequence of Christ’s birth would lead them to be afraid?

Could the birth of a new king result in war?

Might their comfortable lives be upset in some way?

Whatever the reason, they preferred no other king, not even the Messiah himself.

And this dynamic remains alive and well because humanity still prefers the slavery of sin to the glorious liberties found in Christ, but only because they expect that Christ’s rule may require a reformation of their soul.

When Herod inquired of the chief priests and scribes about where the king of the Jews was to be born, the religious leaders knew.

They even directed them to Bethlehem, and then just let them go.

None of them bothered to follow along with them just in case they may be on to something.

Consider with me, if you had an entourage from the East come to you and ask where the Messiah was being born, a Messiah you all claimed you were looking forward to have come, wouldn’t you think, “you know what, maybe it would be a good idea for some of us to go with these guys.

Maybe they’re on to something.”

I can’t imagine that the people in Jerusalem hadn’t noticed the star as well.

Why didn’t any of them go with the Wise Men?

How is it that they knew that the king would be born in Bethlehem?

It seems that with very little thought, they are able to recall the prophecy regarding the birthplace of the Messiah.

Their knowledge comes from a prophecy in Micah.

It is within this prophecy that we find a contrast to the Messiah’s coming and the world into which he came.

Micah reveals a sharp contrast between Christ and His creation.

Before we jump into the contrasts, let’s take a moment to see why I believe the text is intending to communicate a contrast.

The first verse is outlining for us a period of time in which war is imminent and the Jewish people need to prepare themselves.

This is likely referring to the period when Nebuchadnezzar would conquer Jerusalem in the 500’s BC.

At that time, Zedekiah would have been the last king of Judah who was blinded by Nebuchadnezzar and quite literally fulfilled the statement, “strike Israel’s ruler on the cheek with a rod.”[4]

The next verse then starts with, “But you.”

In contrast to the war of verse 1 or the weakness of the king in verse 1 or the destruction and defeat of verse 1 or the slavery resulting in verse 1, from Bethlehem will come one that is wholly opposite.

He came in humility into a world of pride.

Let me offer a longer title.

He came with immense power cloaked in weakness into a world of great weakness cloaked in power.

Micah 5:1 calls out for troops.

Why?

Because the city of Jerusalem was under siege.

They were under attack and would be defeated by such strength that even the face of the king of Israel would no longer be protected.

The imagery is quite clear, but the exact historic moment is less so.

Some believe it to be speaking of the conquest of Sennacherib in 701 BC[5] and others believe it to be the siege by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BC.

BARKER.

If so, the ultimate reference of Israel’s (i.e., Judah’s) “ruler” probably would be to Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar blinded by having his soldiers quite literally “strike Israel’s ruler on the cheek with a rod” (see 2 Kgs 25:7; Jer 39:6–7; 52:10–11).[6]

Nebuchadnezzar.

It was this Nebuchadnezzar who would, not too many years later, stand “on the roof of the royal palace in Babylon” and say, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” (Dan 4:28, 30).

“While the words were still in the king’s mouth” God removed the kingdom from Nebuchadnezzar, driving him to fields to live like an ox for seven years until Nebuchadnezzar came to know “that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will” (Daniel 4:31-32).

Nebuchadnezzar was great weakness cloaked in power.

Consider Herod, the king at the birth of Christ.

Herod the Great became governor of Galilee in 47 BC, when he was only 25 years old.

He was given this position by his father, Antipater.

It was not until 39 BC that he was formally crowned the King of Judea due to his unwavering loyalty to Rome – who possessed the actual earthly power.

For the next 33 years he ruled Judea under Roman appointment.

Even though he reigned for 33 years, he was always insecure in his position.

The origination of his family was outside the Jewish fold, and Jews didn’t like kings claiming the throne that weren’t from the Davidic line.

Even more people found Herod’s reign repugnant due to his loyalty to the foreign power of Rome.[7]

Herod ends up having two of his sons executed due to alleged plots on his life.

And the height of this insecurity is shamefully displayed in the slaughter of all the male children under 2 years old in Bethlehem.

“Herod’s declining years were so full of bloodshed that an incident of this kind might well have gone unreported . . .

Bethlehem was a small place and may well have had no more than twenty or so boys below the age of two years.

With Herod’s ferocious killings this one may well not have attracted much notice.”[8]

What a threat a baby boy must have posed to this old king!

Herod is great weakness cloaked in power.

And then there’s Christ.

Who “Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.

Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being” (Phil 2:6-7, NLT).

He was made “for a little while lower than the angels” (Heb 2:7, ESV).