Be Sure You've Chosen the Right God!
Christmas • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 viewsPeople responded to the news of Jesus differently. It is important that we respond to the truth of Jesus correctly.
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Not Fake News
Not Fake News
We are living in the day of “fake news”…no this is not a political message…but every day you hear story after story after story about this group or that person or this event blah, blah, blah…it becomes increasingly more challenging to weed through all the garbage stories to decipher the truth...
in your heart, you wanted to do what was right…but you sincerely weren’t sure what that was…
- and people were upset…and there were multiple versions of who said what when…
- and you didn’t know if you should say something or not…or do something or not…
- it was that frozen deer in the headlights look…
- because in your heart, you wanted to do what was right…but you sincerely weren’t sure what that was…
perhaps you faced that as a parent…before you had children, you were an expert…you used to stand around at Wal-Mart and mentally criticize others for their obviously substandard parenting skills…
- before you had children, you were an expert…you used to stand around at Wal-Mart and mentally criticize others for their obviously substandard parenting skills…
- and as you were setting up your first child’s nursery…it was all ponies and clouds and happy times….
- then the little bundle of joy arrived…and sure there are plenty of joys…but there are all kinds of questions too…
When you do hear what you believe to be the truth, you then are faced with a decision about what you are going to do with the truth...
- and often they come without warning…
- and you find yourself as a parent thinking – I sincerely want to do what pleases the Lord…I want to what’s best for my children…but in this particular situation I’m not even sure what that is…I don’t know what to do?...
- or you might be thinking of some trial that came your way in 2018…we’ve all had them…some relatively small some very, very large…
- and trials have a way of catching you off guard…of taking your breath away…
We’ve come to the place in our calendar year that many stories have been told, myths perpetrated and traditions practiced to the degree that Christmas has become something different for almost everyone…to some the story of Christmas is fake news!
- you need leadership…you need guidance…you need shepherding…
- well to complicate matters…when you look around, sometimes—maybe oftentimes, human leaders have a way of disappointing, or failing…
- think about our leaders of a national level, or an international level – or maybe even locally in your town, your church, your home…
Sadly, even believers perpetrate or practice their version of the truth that it has contributed to the confusion for many...
- sometimes when you need shepherding the most, you get it the least…
I know sometimes some might consider me a theological scrooge at Christmas time when it comes to certain ways people display their nativity scenes…If you don’t know what that is yet, I will tell you in a few moments...
- you could also add this – many of you are in leadership positions in some way, shape, or form…
But one of the other things we do at Christmas time is sing certain songs that are a bit on the sketchy side theologically…
- so when the problem arises…people are looking at you for guidance…as if you know what to do…
- and in the back of your mind you’re thinking – I remember what happened the last time I tried to lead…
- my idea backfired…or people complained about my solution or wouldn’t follow it…
- so it’s really bad…when you’re in a position of leadership over people who don’t know what to do…and in the quietness of your office, you look in the mirror and think – and I don’t know what to do either…
- This is a god time of year to be raising this issue because this was also a problem on the first Christmas…in cities and towns all over Israel…or Judea/Palestine, including the small town of Bethlehem…
- they were in a full blown leadership crisis…
- because they were living under foreign domination, as part of the Roman empire…
- the man who had been placed in charge of places like Bethlehem was named Herod the Great, one of several Herod’s mentioned in the Bible…
- his appointment was offensive because he wasn’t even Jewish…he was an Edomite…yet Herod was declared by the Roman authorities to be the king of the Jews…
For example…I know Silent Night is a favorite, but if we are going to be theologically accurate, how can all the angels sing, including those named Harold, and it be a silent night?...
- but far worse than that was the ruthless and unpredictable way he ruled…
- and while history tells us that he did some good things for the Jews he governed, he was also known for treating his people in ways that were cruel, and unpredictable…
- like when he married a Jewish woman named Mariamne to solidify his rule and then later had her brother the high priest drowned out of jealousy…you can imagine the impact that had on the Jewish nation…[much less how it would affect the conversation around the family dinner table that night…]
Away in a Manger is another one… “the cattle are lowing the poor baby wakes, but little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.” When was the last time you saw a newborn baby wake up next to a cow and not be bothered…
- eventually he had his wife killed, and then her mother…and then two of their own sons…
- it was well known by God’s people that when their secular ruler felt threatened or enraged, someone was goes to die in a spectacular and unpredictable fashion…
If I was not next to a cow when I went to sleep and then woke up next to one I would cry...
- you can imagine how they longed for some kind of stable, predictable, and compassionate leadership…
- in was in that context that an incredible group of majestic people arrived in Jerusalem looking for the promised Messiah of Israel…their question was a simple one… - 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.”
Now I don’t want to ruin anyone’s Christmas…that is not my intent to destroy your joys of singing Christmas carols…singing joyously about the birth of Jesus is a marvelous and fitting thing for God’s people…but what I am fearful of is that...
- as you can imagine…that set off a firestorm from several fascinating perspectives…but embedded in the story is the revelation of a marvelous promise…that in the person and work of Jesus Christ, they…and we…have received The Promised Shepherd…
In our singing of favorite Christmas songs and endless festivities, we can become so familiar with the truth about Christmas that we are in danger ourselves of missing the entire point of Christmas.
In our singing of favorite Christmas songs and endless festivities, we can become so familiar with the truth about Christmas that we are in danger ourselves of missing the entire point of Christmas.
Even for those of us who have been around Biblical Christianity all our lives, it becomes easy for us to miss the grand purpose of God…we can become so familiar with the stories and events of Christmas so long ago that we stop considering the ultimate purpose of God in Christmas for our lives today, right now!
- with that in mind, please open you Bible to Matthew chapter 2
With all that in mind please open your Bibles to …
We are going to walk through this text step by step and draw out the grand purpose of God at the end as we conclude and then draw some application…
One of the practices I like to use in understanding a text is to ask questions as I go…and then search for the answers...
Let’s do this of the text here this morning to help us see the grand purpose of God at Christmas...
Who Were The Magicians?
Who Were The Magicians?
v. 1 — magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem…this word is also translated as “wise men”…it is the word we get magician from…they were more than just general wise men…they were astronomers, students of the stars...when you hear the word magician, don’t think David Copperfield or whomever else you know that make things disappear and reappear or things of that nature...
What we don’t know...
What we don’t know...
We don’t know their number…most people say there were three…the Bible clearly does not tell us how many…the reason people believe there were three is in the gifts mentioned by Matthew…there could have been 10, 5, 25, 205, we don’t know...
Here is another song we can sacrifice on the altar…We Three Kings…we don’t know how many…and we also don’t see anywhere in the Scripture they are called kings…so throw that one out along with Silent Night and Away In A Manger (please understand that when I say that, it is tongue in cheek…I am not advocating we stop singing those songs…just know what you are singing…) people of this caliber often travelled in caravans…
We don’t know their names…some traditions have given them names of Casper, Balthazzar, Melchoir...
By the way, we also don’t know if Jesus was actually born on December 25th, but I don’t want to totally destroy your day on Tuesday, so let’s keep moving...
What We Do Know
What We Do Know
We know where they are from — the East…I know that is pretty general, but to establish a specific country or nation is beyond our knowledge…
the word translated EAST here also can be translated “a rising up”…so if you were speaking or writing Greek and you wanted to talk about the rising of the sun, moon or stars you would use this word…that is why I think both the NIV & ESV are better in this case…the wise men were in the East when they saw the star rise...this truth debunks another Christmas carol myth...
The First Noel… “they looked up and saw a star shining in the East beyond them far.”…the truth is THEY were in the East, not the star…all we know about the star is it rose, and since they came WEST to Jerusalem we can understand the star was in a westward direction… it is believed that they travelled from the Babylon/Persia/Arabian desert area which was East of Jerusalem…so if they see a star in the East and follow it, they are going the wrong direction.
So when you get to that part of the song in the First Noel, just hum…because we don’t want the wise men going in the wrong direction.
So when you get to that part of the song in the First Noel, just hum…because we don’t want the wise men going in the wrong direction.
We know they were pretty important dudes!
We know they were important dudes!
They were well respected men with political and religious influence…the name magi also means great or powerful ones…wherever they were coming from it is obvious they were men of high position…the gifts they brought were extremely valuable, they probably travelled in caravans with soldiers and slaves which is probably why their presence stirred up the city.
If you were with us in our study of Daniel, we know that these types of trained men were part of the royal court and they would have been familiar with Jewish teachings and traditions as a result of the exile....
So we have a group of wise men who were familiar with the teachings of the Messiah and studied the stars to recognize this astronomical anomaly…they had come to worship Him as King of the Jews for they had seen His star...
What is meant by His star?
What is meant by His star?
We don’t know if this was a star like the little twinkly luminaries or one like the sun or a planet…we simply don’t have enough information...In verse 2 whatever it was they saw acted like a star normally acts, it rose up in the sky, in verse 9, it behaves differently…whatever it is, it acted much like the Shekinah that guided the Israelites in the days of Moses..
Again, we don’t know for certain, but somehow in the wisdom and kindness of God he spoke to these students of the stars in a language they could understand, somehow they connected this star to His birth.
Perhaps the wise men made a connection of this star to the Old Testament.
Perhaps the wise men made a connection of this star to the Old Testament.
We don’t have enough information to dogmatically declare this is exactly what they thought…frankly we are in the dark on all this.(pun intended)
Keep your place here in Matthew and turn to . This is one of those stories in the Old Testament that kind of catches you off guard a little but there is some fantastic revelation regarding the Messiah here that probably many of you have overlooked.
Read — This is the story of Balaam, a prophet who was asked by the Gentile Moabite King Balak, to pronounce a curse on Israel…Balak had grown scared of Israel because as they were wondering around in his neck of the wilderness, they were becoming strong and numerous…Balak offered to pay Balaam well for his efforts, so as he is going back to pronounce the curse on Israel, God intervenes. In fact, Jesus himself intervenes…the angel of the LORD…is Jesus before the incarnation…Jesus tells Him to only speak the words that He gives him...
As you move into you see the first of four prophecies of Balaam…in the first three he blesses Israel which is not what Balak has paid him to do…then you come to the last of the four prophecies
Turn to
“I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near;
A star shall come forth from Jacob,
A scepter shall rise from Israel,
And shall crush through the forehead of Moab,
And tear down all the sons of Sheth.
The rest of his prophesy goes on to tell how God will deliver His people…he says a “star will come out of Jacob”…although the star refers to a who and not a what, it is quite possible they saw that as a reference to the birth of the Messiah King...
Coming from the East and being familiar with Jewish teachings and customs because of the Jewish captivities in their lands they were exposed to the truth.
Coming from the East and being familiar with Jewish teachings and customs because of the Jewish captivities in their lands they were exposed to the truth.
When they got to Jerusalem there was no question of whether or not he had been born…they were confident…they wanted to know where He was...
The Gentiles got it, the Jews missed it!
The Gentiles got it, the Jews missed it!
Again, we don’t know for certain, but somehow in the wisdom and kindness of God he spoke to these students of the stars in a language they could understand.
Another significant Old Testament reference is in …this is near the end of his book when Isaiah is giving us a glimpse into the coming glory for Israel…
All we know about this star
Another significant Old Testament reference is in …this is near the end of his book when Isaiah is giving us a glimpse into the coming glory for Israel…
Read — noting verse 3 — nations will come to your light…what you see in Matthew is nations coming to the light…they come bringing gifts for worship…nations are drawn to the light over the Son!
The Gentiles got it, the Jews missed it!
The Gentiles got it, the Jews missed it!
Matthew is written specifically to Jews…they should have been aware of what is happening…but besides the shepherds, the Gentile wise men are the only ones who came to worship Him.
In , Jesus is presented as the rightful king and deserves royal honor…in , Jesus receives it.
The fact that we don’t have any more details than what we have is so that full emphasis can be placed on the most important thing…why did they come?
TO WORSHIP HIM...
But that is not what everyone did when they heard the news.
Why is Micah’s prophecy different than Matthew?
Why is Micah’s prophecy different than Matthew?
v. 2…saying…is a present participle meaning the wise men were goring around the city questioning everyone they met...
So Herod hears about these powerful men in his city trying to find the king of Jews…so he calls a meeting of the religious leaders and wants to know where this King would be born.
The scribes and priests knew exactly where the prophesy was that proclaimed the birth place of the Messiah...
“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah,
From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel.
His goings forth are from long ago,
From the days of eternity.”
If you compare this verse to what Matthew says there are some slight differences...
Ephrathah is changed to land of Judah…Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience and he wants them to see that Jesus is perfectly qualified to be their King that fulfills the Davidic Promise from the line of Judah...
David was born in Bethlehem so Jesus was born in Bethlehem
It was very intentional...
Least among the Leaders of Judah…this relatively insignificant city was now becoming an extremely important city...
Who will shepherd my people…is not found in Micah’s prophecy…Matthew is linking this to to the promise made to David...
“Previously, when Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and in. And the Lord said to you, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be a ruler over Israel.’ ”
God had set up the kings to be shepherds among His people…but they failed to do that…so Matthew paints the picture of Jesus as the King born in Bethlehem who will also be the Perfect Shepherd who will lead His people back to God.
Jesus will rule with a strong, stern leadership with the tenderness of a Shepherd.
What Response Did People Have to the News?
What Response Did People Have to the News?
TO WORSHIP HIM...
But that is not what everyone did when they heard the news.
What Response Did People Have to the News?
What Response Did People Have to the News?
Herod was intimidated.
Herod was intimidated.
about 40 years prior to this, Herod had been set up by the Roman Empire as the King of the Jews…ruler over Judea…history tells us he was not a benevolent king…whenever anyone anywhere close to him began to usurp his reign, or when he lost trust in them, he would have them killed…he would even go so far as to kill his own spouse and children because he didn’t trust them…
Herod hears of these powerful men inquiring of this king coming to Jerusalem and it troubled him...terrified, frightened
The word here means “agitated”…his reputation caused the entire city to be on edge because when he was agitated someone died…just look at
So after finding out, he summons the wise men for a private meeting, an tells them to go to Bethlehem...he fakes kindness and Matthew tells us he intends murder…read ,
When he finds out the truth he fakes kindness and intends murder…read ,
The Jewish leaders were indifferent.
The Jewish leaders were indifferent.
The response of the scribes and priests is really amazing…they had access to the most information and truth…all that religion and knowledge of the truth but it made no difference to them…the wise men travelled a great distance, but the religious leaders wouldn’t travel 5 miles.
priests = Jewish worship leaders
scribes = Jewish lawyers
They both knew the Old Testament better than anyone else and they hear the news that the King of the Jews had been born, the Messiah had come, and they knew where He was going to be born…yet they did nothing about it…they are not even interested in going to see Him…their knowledge of the Messiah was so thorough, yet they would continually miss the point…in fact, their indifference would later turn to hostility...
“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah,
From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel.
His goings forth are from long ago,
From the days of eternity.”
Micha 5:2
They both knew the Old Testament better than anyone else and they hear the news that the King of the Jews had been born, the Messiah had come, and they knew where He was going to be born…yet they did nothing about it…they are not even interested in going to see Him…their knowledge of the Messiah was so thorough, yet they would continually miss the point…in fact, their indifference would later turn to hostility...
Ephrathah is changed to land of Judah…Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience and he wants them to see that Jesus is perfectly qualified to be their King that fulfills the Davidic Promise from the line of Judah...
David was born in Bethlehem so Jesus was born in Bethlehem
It was very intentional...
The both knew the Old Testament better than anyone else and they hear the news that the King of the Jews had been born, the Messiah had come, and they knew where He was going to be born…yet they did nothing about it…they are not even interested in going to see Him…their knowledge of the Messiah was so thorough, yet they would continually miss the point…in fact, their indifference would later turn to hostility...
Least among the Leaders of Judah…this relatively insignificant city was now becoming an extremely important city...
They both knew the Old Testament better than anyone else and they hear the news that the King of the Jews had been born, the Messiah had come, and they knew where He was going to be born…yet they did nothing about it…they are not even interested in going to see Him…their knowledge of the Messiah was so thorough, yet they would continually miss the point…in fact, their indifference would later turn to hostility...
The Gentile wise men worship Him.
The Gentile wise men worship Him.
The people who knew the least did the most...
Read , — again in the east is better translated when it rose...
We are not sure what happened to this star between the birth of Jesus and the time it took for these men to travel…these men recognized the star and IT LEAD THEM...
Whatever the star was, it now moves by the will and power of God to point these men of renown to the exact location of the King…notice in verse 10 how they responded...
This is a statement of extreme joy…it is repetitive…they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy...
please notice also…and some of you know that this is one of my theological pet peeves…… Mary and Joseph had settled in a house and from what we gather in …Herod decided to kill every child 2 years old and under based on what he learned from them…
so here it comes, my theological scrooge moment…almost all people have their nativity sets displayed incorrectly…if your wise men are at the stable bowing in front of the manger…you need to go home and remove your wisemen…the Shepherds are gone, this is months and months and months later…if you want to display them this time of year then place them in the furthest corner of your home, in an easterly direction, (Sing for effect) Away From the Manger (pun intended)…if we really want to be theologically accurate in the display of the wise men, it is probably best to bring them out in July!
They were in a house and Jesus was a child, not an infant…from what we gather from Herod’s reaction, he believed the king the wise men sought was around 2 years old or so...
perhaps if you want to display the wise men, bring them out in July!
Now that I’ve completely ruined your Christmas celebration…think back with me about what they did when they saw Jesus for the first time…they respond with exceeding joy and present extravagant gifts…they present this little Child with gifts fitting for a king…Isaiah prophesied of this...
Isa
“A multitude of camels will cover you,
The young camels of Midian and Ephah;
All those from Sheba will come;
They will bring gold and frankincense,
And will bear good news of the praises of the Lord.
Gold = this is what you give to the rightful king…to someone superior…throughout the Scripture gold was associated with kings, queens and princes…it is an emphasis on this royalty.
Gold = this is what you give to the rightful king…to someone superior…throughout the Scripture gold was associated with kings, queens and princes…it is an emphasis on this royalty.
Frankincense = emphasized his deity = throughout the OT this was used in offerings to God, it is involved in the worship of God…smoke rising upward was a picture of prayer and praise…incense was certainly associated with the worship of God.
Myrrh = emphasized his humanity = it basically was a perfume with all kinds of different purposes…it was often used in the anointing ceremony…as well as a burial perfume…so it is very significant this would be given to Him at an early age..
Everything they did was from a desire to worship him passionately…they travelled great distances, they sacrificed their wealth, etc.
Every detail that Matthew shares and every detail he doesn’t share is intentional…just think about the significance of all this…every single detail in Matthew and the rest of the Bible is given to show us a portrait of Christ…over hundreds of years, different writers, different events in history all orchestrated by the Sovereign God and superintended by the Holy Spirit to point us to Christ…the smallest detail of the truth of Christmas was planned and executed by God for the very purpose of the world seeing Jesus as God in the Flesh…Immanuel…God with us!
Let the kings of Tarshish and of the islands bring presents;
The kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.
The scribes and priests knew exactly where the prophesy was that proclaimed the birth place of the Messiah...
“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah,
From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel.
His goings forth are from long ago,
From the days of eternity.”
If you compare this verse to what Matthew says there are some slight differences...
Ephrathah is changed to land of Judah…Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience and he wants them to see that Jesus is perfectly qualified to be their King that fulfills the Davidic Promise from the line of Judah...
David was born in Bethlehem so Jesus was born in Bethlehem
It was very intentional...
Least among the Leaders of Judah…this relatively insignificant city was now becoming an extremely important city...
Who will shepherd my people…is not found in Micah’s prophecy…Matthew is linking this to to the promise made to David...
“Previously, when Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and in. And the Lord said to you, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be a ruler over Israel.’ ”
God had set up the kings to be shepherds among His people…but they failed to do that…so Matthew paints the picture of Jesus as the King born in Bethlehem who will also be the Perfect Shepherd who will lead His people back to God.
Every detail that Matthew shares and every detail he doesn’t share is intentional…just think about the significance of all this…every single detail in Matthew and the rest of the Bible is given to show us a portrait of Christ…over hundreds of years, different writers, different events in history all orchestrated by the Sovereign God and superintended by the Holy Spirit to point us to Christ…the smallest detail of the truth of Christmas was planned and executed by God for the very purpose of the world seeing Jesus as God in the Flesh…Immanuel…God with us!
Here is what I pray and hope will grip your heart and mind this morning...
God’s Purpose for Christmas: Jesus Is To Be Worshiped By All People!
God’s Purpose for Christmas: Jesus Is To Be Worshiped By All People!
This is not fake news! What we have recorded for us in the Bible is the truth of God…it is reliable because its source is reliable…God directed nature itself to bring these Gentiles to the King…God orchestrated every last detail of Jesus’ birth to present Him as the King worthy of worship…Jesus fulfills every promise God made to Abraham, He fulfills every promise God made to David…
Christmas is not about the festivities, it is not about the decorations, it is not about the gifts...
God intends for every man, woman and child to respond to the truth of Jesus in acts of worship...
Personal Application #1 — At your heart level who receives your worship?
Personal Application #1 — At your heart level who receives your worship?
Some of you already have your king and it is not Christ…you’ve never truly accepted the truth of Christmas… in the deepest recesses of your heart, you are actually hostile towards God because you refuse to accept the truth regarding Jesus…you don’t want to be off the throne of your life…you are just like Herod being intimidated by someone whose authority is greater than yours...GOSPEL
For the believer…in what areas of life do you worship you instead of your King?
Personal Application #2 — Are you comfortable just knowing The Truth?
Personal Application #2 — Are you comfortable just knowing The Truth?
This is for unbeliever and believer alike...have you become indifferent to the truth…you possess all kinds of Bible knowledge but it does you no good…you have a religious system that serves you well...
Perhaps you’ve become comfortable with just attending church instead of being the church…
there is no joy of worship for you…there is no presenting yourself as a living sacrifice…there is no movement in your spiritual life to know God deeper and experience the abundant life He desires of you…you know all the details about Christmas, you know all the details about the Crucifixion, but you don’t know Christ in the power of his resurrection.
Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,
and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,
that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death;
in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Phil 2:8-
Personal Application #3 — Are you pursuing the right God in passionate worship?
Personal Application #3 — Are you pursuing the right God in passionate worship?
Phil 2:10-11
The same God who sovereignly designed and orchestrated the events of Jesus’ birth is the same God who sovereignly designs and orchestrates your life…every detail of your life is purposed by God to drive you to the praise and worship of His Son…even those storms of life are designed to focus your heart on worship of Christ...are you in need of finding that passion for worship of God…reflect upon the truth of Christmas…be overwhelmed with awe of God’s sovereign planning and execution…He does that in our lives....
People around you need to see how a life lived for Christ can be different…the message of Christmas is not fake news, it is good news…news that can and must be shared...
Remember how Matthew described the worship of these wise men…exceeding joy…if you would rather have everything else the world offers you will not find joy...
As for me, like the wise men...I’d Rather Have Jesus....PRAY!
Read — This is the story of Balaam, a prophet who was asked by the Gentile Moabite King Balak, to pronounce a curse on Israel…Balak had grown scared of Israel because as they were wondering around in his neck of the wilderness, they were becoming strong and numerous…Balak offered to pay Balaam well for his efforts so as he is going back to pronounce the curse on Israel, God intervenes. In fact, Jesus himself intervenes…the angel of the LORD…is Jesus before the incarnation…Jesus tells Him to only speak the words that He gives him...
As you move into
Christmas is a time when certain songs are sung
- and it is important to understand that biblical Christianity is not some kind of faith in fairy tales or myths…
- it’s choosing to carefully examine the evidence…including the miracle of revealed prophecy…promises that were made hundreds and in some cases thousands of years before the birth of Jesus…
- and for those who choose not to be followers of Jesus Christ…a reasonable question would be…how many fulfilled prophecies has your god ever made?...on the basis of the facts, could he or she or it make a reliable prediction that you could trust about next year, or next month, or next week?...
- and if the answer to that question is no – why would you want that thing to be your god?...
- some people are surprisingly careless in their selection of a god…they’ll put more time into selecting the right Christmas tree than in selecting the correct god…we will see clear evidence of that in the passage before us this am…
- that is why we are encouraging everyone who hears these messages to be careful how we build…
- Let’s build our lives -- Building on the Promises of God…
- now, our focus this year is on the revealed prophecies that Matthew points his readers to as he describes the birth of Jesus Christ…
- what is interesting for a pastor or any student of Scripture is that we come back next Christmas and look at these same verses form a different perspective…the Bible is just so incredibly rich…
- so there are many details we are going to gloss over today – to stay carefully focused on the importance of the revealed promises to the people of that day…and people like you and me…
- with that in mind – let’s read our passage – read ,
- this is one of those many places in the Bible where what the Scripture tells us, and what our culture has added over the years doesn’t match up very well…
- every year there are beautiful Christmas cards that suggest there were three of these men, they were kings, they came and visited the babe in the manger, and on and on…
- I don’t want to be the theological Grinch…because on one level I’m glad people are bringing any kind of spiritual thoughts into the celebration of Christmas…
- but it’s important in this setting to separate fact from fiction at least to the point that we understand the passage…
- these men didn’t visit Mary and Joseph in the manger…their journey would have taken some time and verse 11 is clear that by that time they were living in some kind of house….
- we also have no idea how many of them there might have been but if they could afford these kinds of gifts then it is more likely that there were many more of them…they may have even had a small army as part of their group…
- they also weren’t kings…it would be better to think of them as practicing a mixture of astronomy and astrology…
- we first meet people like this in the book of Daniel where after he and others were deported to Babylon [which today is the country of Iraq]…Scripture tells us…
- – As for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom; Daniel even understood all kinds of visions and dreams. Then at the end of the days which the king had specified for presenting them, the commander of the officials presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s personal service. As for every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and conjurers who were in all his realm. And Daniel continued until the first year of Cyrus the king.
- so Daniel served in this role well over 50 years…and was very influential throughout the reins of a number of Babylonian kings…that may explain why these magi from the east had some understanding of the Jewish expectation of a Messiah…
- so the basic story is well known…they come to Jerusalem…perhaps as long as two years after the birth of Christ based on the age of the infants Herod eventually has slaughtered…
- and they ask where the king of the Jews has been born, because they have come to worship him…
- what Scripture tells us next is fascinating… - When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
- now, you have to make some interpretive decisions at this point…it is pretty apparent why Herod was troubled – especially since he had made it clear that he viewed himself as the king of the Jews…so Matthew says he was “troubled”…a word that literally means shaken, or agitated…
- you know that cycle on your washing machine that you use when you really wash to wash something thoroughly?...picture putting yourself in there for a spin of two…
- but then you have – and all Jerusalem with him…
- you could make the argument that they were troubled for an entirely different reason…
- because of the cruelty and instability of their leader…when Herod was troubled…people usually died...
- so everybody did a fascinating thing – they got out their Bibles…not exactly, but pretty close -- - Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
- that is amazing – especially in light of the way most of the people in this story eventually responded…
- and they turned to a prophecy that was 700 years old – from the OT book of Micah…
- so hey – we have a question here – what does the Bible say?...without an inkling of questioning its accuracy…
- and it would also appear in the text that the chief priests and scribes knew the answer without having to say – well, we’ll investigate that and get back to you?...
- they just say matter of factly – in Bethlehem of Judea…
- which makes you want to say to them – since they are religious leaders – then why haven’t you had someone posted down there for the last seven hundred years?...
- why isn’t there a sign at the edge of town that says – welcome Messiah, when you arrive, please check in at headquarters…
- or why wasn’t everyone in that town, generation after generation, on the lookout?...
- but it is that incredible setting – that the people of Matthew’s day, and people like you and me, are reminded of a beautiful, and powerful prophecy… - And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, Are by no means least among the leaders of Judah; For out of you shall come forth a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’
- so we’re talking about The Promised Shepherd…and with the time we have remaining, let’s think about 3 lessons from the promise that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.
His Birth Displays God’s Sovereignty
His Birth Displays God’s Sovereignty
His Birth Points to God’s Compassion
His Birth Points to God’s Compassion
His Birth Reveals Three Possible Responses
His Birth Reveals Three Possible Responses