Responding to the King

Introduction

As we continue in our study through the Gospel of Matthew, we remain in those opening chapters where Matthew is laying the foundation for everything that follows. He is not merely recording events. He is establishing the identity of Jesus Christ. He is showing us that Jesus is the promised King, the long-awaited Son of David, the fulfillment of the covenant promises of God.

In chapter 1 Matthew traced the royal genealogy of Christ. That genealogy was not there to fill space or satisfy curiosity. It was there to show that the Lord had preserved the promised line from Abraham to David and from David down to Christ. Through sin, exile, judgment, and time, still, the promise did not fail. God had said that a King would come, and when, and only when fullness of time came that King arrived.

Then Matthew showed us the miracle of the virgin birth. The one conceived in Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit. This child was not merely another heir in David’s line. He was Immanuel, God with us. The King had come, but He came in humility. He came without earthly splendor. He came without armies, without courtiers, without palace gates swung open before Him.

Now in chapter 2 Matthew turns from the arrival of the King to the recognition of the King. Having answered the question of the identity of the Christ, Matthew now turns to another question, How will people respond to Him?

And the answer Matthew gives is strikingly simple and searching. From the earliest days of Christ’s life on earth there were three responses to Him. Some hated Him. Some ignored Him. Some worshiped Him.

That was true then, and it is still true now. When Christ is truly seen for who He is, the human heart will not remain neutral. The true King disturbs every false king. He unsettles every false peace. He exposes every empty profession. Some will oppose Him. Some will remain indifferent to Him. But those whose hearts are opened by grace will bow before Him.

Turn with me now to Matthew’s gospel as we read beginning in the 1st verse of chapter 2 down through the 12th verse. As you find your place please join me in standing in reverence for the reading of God’s holy, inerrant, infallible, authoritative, sufficient, complete and certain word...

Scripture Reading

Matthew 2:1–12 LSB

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” And when Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he was inquiring of them where the Christ was to be born. And they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, Are by no means least among the leaders of Judah; For out of you shall come forth a Leader Who will shepherd My people Israel.’” Then Herod secretly called the magi and carefully determined from them the time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” Now after hearing the king, they went their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, was going on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was. And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And after coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi departed for their own country by another way.

Our Father in heaven, we thank You for Your holy Word. We ask now that as it is opened before us, Your Spirit would open our hearts. Guard us from hardness, indifference, and unbelief. Give us eyes to see the glory of Christ, minds to understand the truth, and hearts that gladly bow before Him. May we not merely hear this passage, but be searched by it. Show us our King, and grant that we would respond to Him with humble faith and joyful worship. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we open up this text, Matthew immediately drops before us something extraordinary; Gentile scholars, from a distant land, in search of the one who was born King of the Jews.

These magi were not kings, though Christian tradition often turned them into kings. They were learned men, students of the stars, men associated with wisdom, counsel, and religious inquiry. They were men skilled in astronomy, astrology, interpretation of dreams, and other forms of ancient learning. Yet whatever errors were mingled with their background, God met them where they were and led them toward Christ.

Here, yet again is a not so subtle reminder that salvation begins with God’s initiative. The magi did not manufacture their own way to Christ. God summoned them. God confronted them. God gave them light suited to lead them onward. There is grace already at work in the very fact that these men are seeking the King.

And notice the form of their question. They do not ask, “Where is the one who will become king?” They ask, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” That language matters. Jesus did not become King by achievement. He did not earn kingship by conquest. He was born King because He is King by right.

This has been Matthew’s burden from the beginning. In Matthew 1:1 Jesus is presented as the son of David. That is royal language. Behind it stands the covenant promise of 2 Samuel 7, where God pledged to David that one of his descendants would sit upon his throne forever. Behind it stands Psalm 2, where the Lord declares, “I have installed My King upon Zion, My holy mountain.” Behind it stands Isaiah 9, where the prophet declares that the government will rest upon the shoulders of the child who is born and that there will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace.

So when the magi ask for the child born King of the Jews, they were speaking better than they knew. They came looking for a Jewish king. In truth they were being led to the King of all kings, the One to whom Psalm 72 points when it says, “May all kings bow down before him, all nations serve him.”

Calvin, reflecting on this scene, says that God revealed Christ to the Gentiles in order to show that His grace would not be confined to one nation. That is exactly right. Matthew is already preparing us for the end of his Gospel, where the risen Christ will claim all authority in heaven and on earth and will send His disciples to make disciples of all nations but Matthew does not wait for then to make this big reveal, he began in chapter 1 by identifying Christ as the son of Abraham and continues here with these learned men from distant lands; gentiles seeking the King.

There is another lesson here as well. The magi had less light than Israel, but they responded to the light they had. The Jewish leaders had far more revelation, but no movement toward Christ. One scholar states it well: “The magi had much less knowledge of the true God than did the Jewish leaders, but what they knew of Him they believed and followed.”

That is a sobering contrast. Light rejected hardens the heart while light received leads onward into truth.

That contrast comes into sharp focus in Herod’s response. Matthew tells us, “When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” Herod’s disturbance is not difficult to understand. He was a ruthless ruler, jealous for power, terrified of rivals, willing to spill blood to secure his throne. A report that a child had been born “King of the Jews” would not sound to him like good news. It would sound like a threat.

But Matthew adds something startling: “and all Jerusalem with him.” Why should Jerusalem be troubled? This was the city of promise. This was the city that knew the Scriptures. This was the city that should have been waiting for the Messiah. Jerusalem should have rejoiced. Yet instead the city trembles with Herod.

Why? Because the coming of the true King never leaves sinners comfortable. Herod feared losing power. Jerusalem feared upheaval. The true King always exposes what people are really living for. If a man is living for power, Christ threatens power. If a man is living for control, Christ threatens control. If a man is living for comfort, Christ threatens comfort. The problem is not that Christ is cruel. The problem is that our idols are.

Pink wrote that if the wise men fell down and worshiped Christ when they saw Him as a young child in the house, what will it be to behold Him in unveiled glory. That cuts in two directions. For those who love Him, the thought is sweet beyond words. For those who oppose Him, the thought is terrifying. There is no safe neutrality before the King.

Herod responds as fallen man always responds when sovereignty is challenged. He is troubled. He plots. He disguises his enmity with religious language. But before Matthew shows us his deceit, he shows us the religious leaders.

Herod gathers the chief priests and scribes and inquires where the Christ was to be born. They answer immediately: Bethlehem of Judea. They quote Micah 5 and identify Bethlehem as the place from which the ruler would come, the one who would shepherd God’s people Israel.

Here again Matthew is doing more than reporting information. He is connecting Jesus to the whole redemptive story. Bethlehem was David’s city. It was small, overlooked, unimpressive by worldly standards. Yet out of Bethlehem God had once raised up David, the shepherd king. And now out of Bethlehem comes David’s greater Son.

One commentator makes an important observation about Matthew’s use of Micah noting that the ruler who will shepherd God’s people is not merely gentle, but authoritative; shepherding includes ruling.

That is vital for us to remember. Modern people often want a shepherd who comforts but does not command. But Christ is not that sort of shepherd. He shepherds by ruling and rules by shepherding. His kingship is not less because it is tender, and His tenderness is not less because it is kingly. He is the ruler-shepherd promised in Scripture.

But then we meet one of the saddest realities in the passage. The chief priests and scribes know the answer, but they do not go to Bethlehem. The distance from Jerusalem to Bethlehem was short. The journey for the magi was long, costly, and difficult. Yet the men with the Scriptures in their hands remain where they are.

That is spiritual indifference in one of its clearest biblical forms. They knew the text, but they did not seek the Christ to whom the text pointed. They had orthodoxy without obedience, information without adoration, knowledge without movement.

Calvin warns on this passage that sluggishness toward the Word of God is a fearful thing, and Spurgeon pressed the point that it is possible to know much about Christ and yet never know Him savingly. Another commentator says it this way: they knew, but they did not believe, and their initial indifference would soon harden into outright hatred.

The same sun that melts wax hardens clay. Unbelieving exposure to truth does not leave a person unchanged; it intensifies judgment.

There are many people like that still. They know Christmas texts. They know the language of the Gospel. They know where the verses are. They know the terminology of orthodoxy. But they do not come to Christ. It is one thing to be near the means of grace. It is another thing altogether to lay hold of the Christ preached in those means.

That is why this passage is so searching for church people. Herod is easy to identify as the villain. The scribes are more dangerous because they look respectable. Herod hated Christ openly. The scribes ignored Him quietly. MacArthur said regarding this apathy, this indifference: indifference to God is simply hatred concealed and rejection delayed.

That is an uncomfortable sentence, but it is true. Failure to come to Christ is not a small matter. It is a moral response to the King.

Herod then secretly calls the magi and carefully determines from them the time the star appeared. He sends them to Bethlehem with pious language on his lips: “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.”

This is the speech of a hypocrite. He speaks the language of devotion while planning violence. MacArthur notes that Herod’s concern was not with the meaning of the sign but only with the age of the child who might threaten his throne.

That is exactly how unbelief works. It has no interest in the truth except insofar as the truth affects self-interest.

This too is a warning. Wickedness often cloaks itself in religious vocabulary. Men say “worship” when they mean “control.” They say “seek truth” when they mean “protect self.” Herod does not simply resist Christ; he lies about resisting Him.

Yet Herod’s scheming does not derail God’s purpose. The magi go on their way, and the star appears again, leading them until it stands over the place where the child is. Matthew says, “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.” The language is wonderfully intense. We see in the text that Matthew piles up terms that communicate their exhilaration to emphasize the extent of their emotion. These men are not mildly interested in Jesus. They are overjoyed to be brought near to Him.

That is what happens when God’s guidance brings a sinner to Christ. There is joy not merely in discovery, but in divine confirmation. The same God who awakened desire also completes the journey. The same God who gave the first light gives more light. Spurgeon said of men, “Only let us come to Jesus.” That is the point. Every providence, every means of grace, every line of Scripture, every inward stirring of conviction must end here: at Christ Himself.

Then comes the center of the passage: “After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him.”

That is the right response to Jesus.

Do not miss the simplicity and force of it. They saw the child, and they fell. They did not analyze from a distance. They did not consult one another about appearances. They did not stumble over the humility of the scene. There is no palace here, no visible splendor, no earthly court. Yet they bow.

Spurgeon captured the movement of this beautifully when he said that those who truly seek Christ will find Him, and those who find Him will fall before Him in adoration. That is exactly what happens here. True sight of Christ becomes true worship of Christ.

And what is worship in this passage? It is humble submission before the King. It is reverent acknowledgment of His worth. It is gladly laying treasures at His feet. The magi open their treasures and present gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

It is possible to say too much about the symbolism of the gifts, but Matthew Henry’s summary is both careful and fruitful: gold as to a king, frankincense as to God, and myrrh as to one who should die. Whether or not Matthew intends every layer of that symbolism, the gifts plainly say this much: these men do not come empty-handed in spirit. They render honor to Christ according to the best they have.

Real worship still has that character. It is not perfunctory. It is not the minimal gesture of a heart trying to remain untouched. It is the glad offering of self to the Savior. First the worshiper bows, and then the treasures are opened. Christ does not receive our gifts while withholding ourselves. He receives ourselves first, and then all else in Him.

There is a further lesson in the contrast between the magi and the leaders in Jerusalem. The magi had less light, but they came farther. The scribes had more light, but they stayed put. Grace had made the difference. One commentator puts it sharply: what the magi knew, they believed and followed.

That is a good test of whether we are hearing God’s Word rightly. The issue is not how much data we can collect, but whether what we hear moves us toward Christ in faith, obedience, and worship.

Matthew closes by telling us that the magi were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, and they departed for their own country by another way. God protects the child. God frustrates the tyrant. God directs the worshipers.

Matthew Henry comments that those who act cautiously and desire to avoid sin’s snares may expect God to lead them in the right way, and that God prevented the mischief Herod designed.

That is a wonderful reminder that the Lord not only brings His people to Christ; He preserves them as they walk in obedience.

And this brings us back to the great theme running under the whole passage: the sovereignty of God. Herod schemes, but he does not control events. The scribes know texts, but they do not set the outcome. The magi travel, but they are not self-directed. Above, beneath, and through the whole chapter stands the hand of God. He reveals. He guides. He warns. He protects. He fulfills His own word despite the opposition of sinful men.

So where does Matthew leave us? He leaves us with three responses to Christ.

Herod shows us hostility. That is the response of the heart that sees Christ as a threat.

The chief priests and scribes show us indifference. That is the response of the heart that can handle religious truth so long as it is never personally confronted by the King.

The magi show us worship. That is the response of the heart that has been awakened by grace and led to Christ.

MacArthur summarizes the passage by saying that these are the three typical responses men have made throughout history: some, like Herod, are hateful; others, like the priests and scribes, pay little attention; others, like the magi, believe, obey, and worship.

That is not merely a comment on ancient history. It is an exposure of every heart in this room.

Which response is yours?

It is not enough to say that Herod was wrong. It is not enough to say that the scribes were negligent. The issue is remains as it has the last two weeks; what you will do with Christ.

Will you resist Him because His kingship threatens your self-rule? Will you ignore Him because religion without submission feels safe? Or will you bow before Him?

The wonder of the Gospel is that this King is not only worthy of worship; He is also the Savior of sinners. The One before whom the magi fell is the same One who would grow, obey, suffer, die, and rise again to save all who trust in Him. The ruler-shepherd laid down His life for the sheep. The King came not merely to demand allegiance, but to redeem rebels and make them willing in the day of His power.

So the call of this passage is urgent, but it is also gracious. Come to Christ. Do not stand with Herod in secret hostility. Do not stand with the scribes in informed indifference. Come with the magi. Seek Him, find Him where He is revealed in the Word, and fall before Him in worship.

Conclusion

Matthew 2 is not merely a charming account of wise men and gifts. It is a revelation of the King and a disclosure of the human heart. The King has come. The nations begin to gather. The tyrant trembles. The scholars remain still. The worshipers bow. And over all of it God reigns.

Christ is still the dividing line. He still troubles false kings. He still exposes empty religion. He still receives worship from those whom grace draws near.

So as this text closes, it asks each of us a question that cannot be escaped: when confronted with the true King, will you oppose Him, ignore Him, or worship Him?

May God grant that we would respond as the magi did, with joy, with humility, and with worship.

Closing Prayer

Our Father in heaven, we thank You for the glory of Christ revealed in Your Word. We praise You that in the fullness of time You sent the promised King into the world to save sinners and establish His everlasting kingdom.

Guard our hearts from the hostility of Herod and from the indifference of the scribes. Give us instead the humble faith of the magi who sought Christ, found Christ, and fell before Christ in worship.

Teach us to treasure Him above all things. Teach us to bow gladly before His rule. Teach us to trust Him not only as Savior, but also as King.

And may our lives bear witness that Jesus Christ is worthy of all honor, all obedience, all devotion, and all praise.

We ask this in His holy name. Amen.