Delighted not Disturbed

|| Disturbed or Delighted 6 Jan 2019

The gospel writer Matthew’s purpose to present Jesus as the ultimate fulfillment of the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. Written for Jewish audience. Messiah would have a kingdom with no end. Their scriptures were full of prophecies and expectations: tribe and town he’d be born in. First chapter includes a long list of Jesus’ ancestors and by the beginning of chapter 2, Matthew has already mentioned “Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham,” “Jesus who is called the Messiah,” and “Jesus the Messiah” again. Is it really surprising that Matthew wants to convince those who were waiting for the Messiah to consider Jesus as the Messiah?

So right near the beginning of Matthew’s story we find this interesting account about Magi from the east who had seen a star and rightfully figured out that it meant there had been a birth of a king of the Jews. This prompted them to travel a long way to pay him tribute. And here’s where there are lots of questions regarding these guys. Growing up hearing this story we don’t think it’s too strange. Even the calendar reminds us (Happy 3 Kings Day). We’ve come to expect them to show up sometime with the Christmas story. But one might wonder who were these guys and where did they come from? What kind of star did they see that made them pack up and head out to make this journey? All of these are great questions with not many answers. But somethings are possible to speculate about. They probably came from Babylon or Persia, they probably were Magi for a country in that region and not kings themselves (Happy 3 Magi Day). Another great question is when did they show up? It seems like we always see them visiting the manger with baby Jesus, at least the nativity sets we have around the house place them there. But it’s possible that this visit could be up to two years after Jesus was born. And how many where there? Was it three? Twelve? Or a traveling party who brought gifts?

Fortunately for us, Matthew gives exactly what we need to know to keep Jesus at center stage. Sometime after Jesus’ birth, Magi appear on the scene to pay an important visit to the one born king of the Jews. And they go to the most logical place, King Herod’s, the one who has already proclaimed himself to be King of the Jews. Not that he was “born” king of the Jews, because he wasn’t even Jewish, but he actually weaseled his way into the position by a combination of force and politics with the Romans who were the overall occupying force in Judea at the time. So King Herod received these important visitors who informed him of the shocking news that there was someone “born king of the Jews” and that they wanted to visit him.

Verse 3 is a telling verse of how King Herod felt about the news: “He was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” Being disturbed in this sense isn’t a good disturbed. A few verses later, we discover that Herod would take measures to make sure no one threatened his hold on power, especially some kid. This is totally in character for Herod. Even other histories written at that time record that he was a paranoid ruler. E.g. he built a series of fortresses to a safe zone just in case he needed an escape plan. He even killed or jailed people in his own family to hold onto power. He was a paranoid ruler who was legitimately threatened by the news of someone who had been “born king of the Jews.” Then calls in religious leaders who tell him about Messiah and Bethlehem.

And so Herod sent the Magi to Bethlehem, a mere six miles away, to find Jesus. And again the star somehow indicated to them the place where the child was. Their reaction when they arrived? They were overjoyed, or as R.T. France translates it, “they rejoiced with an exceedingly great joy.” [i] If you could imagine after traveling for months at the least, maybe years, because of a star you’re following, you could imagine the culmination of such a journey to be pretty exciting. With so much anticipation, they might have been jumping up and down! Now that’s the kind of nativity set I want – one with Magi who are exceedingly joyful.

So they’ve been to King Herod’s expecting to find the child in a palace, but they’re outside of town in the little village of Bethlehem, in front of just another house. It could have been any of the houses in the village. And just like any other house in the area, it probably had two floors: the ground floor that housed all of the family animals and the upstairs where the living areas and rooms were. This is quite possibly the same house where Jesus was born, in the downstairs with the animals because the other rooms upstairs were already full. The scriptures don’t elaborate on this point. But none-the-less, the star has led the Magi to this particular house that they’ve spent a long time traveling to. And they were overjoyed. They bowed down and worshiped Jesus and presented their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The Magi’s story ends with a dream warning not to go back to Herod so they returned to their own country by another way. And right afterwards - Jesus’ family flees to Egypt and likely uses the gifts to sustain themselves (providence).

Now in all likelihood, the Magi didn’t know truly how big of a deal the birth of Jesus was. They seemed to know it was exceptional and they wanted to be a part of it. They also may not have known the full extent of bowing down to worship him. And so without even knowing the full meaning of their worship, they worshiped. And even with only a glimpse into what this birth really meant for humanity, they were overjoyed. They “rejoiced with an exceedingly great joy.”

Certainly in this story, Matthew aims to show how even though there’s vulnerable little child being hunted by the most powerful man of the region, a paranoid king with many resources, God is still in control. It’s really amazing that the odds can be so stacked, it’s an engaging story, like a mission impossible (How’s that going to work!?). And then in the end it does somehow. And the story isn’t just a made up story, but a real story that shows God is in control. But even with that, it’s not like the purpose of the amazing story is to show how fully in control God is. The purpose is more so that the God who IS IN CONTROL CARES about our circumstance and orchestrated a way for us to have a relationship with him. And that’s exciting news! And even though the magi didn’t fully get it, they still rejoiced with exceedingly great joy, an occasion to celebrate. But not everyone was rejoicing.

Look at verse 3 with me again for Herod’s response. “When King Herod heard this [the news of the birth] he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” This word “disturbed” has drawn my attention before, but this time it’s been really eye catching. It’s a simple word, but worth taking time to highlight this morning. ILLUSTRATION: Spencer walking a path blindfolded, I’ll disturb him, and let him go. In 10 years when you’re reading this passage, I want you to pause and think about this word. We’re parking on this word today because every time we read it, we should ask: Are we Disturbed or Delighted when confronted with Jesus?

It’s a fair question, one that the author Matthew is drawing us to answer. Are we delighted or disturbed?

I. Christians will be delighted and not disturbed when we recognize authority properly.

Are we wearing HIS title? Authority is an important concept. Herod was disturbed because he liked the title he gave himself: King of the Jews. By this point in history, King of the Jews was also understood to be messiah. Herod wasn’t “born King of the Jews” he weaseled his way there. His situation was like impersonating someone to get all the benefits, but far from legitimate. [Walk into any shoppette across the military, from anything stateside to probably the little trailers across combat zones, and you’ll almost always find a four star general rank. WHY?!?!?! Do they lose their rank all the time? Is AAFES that incompetent to order and evenly distribute that many 4 star ranks? Seriously! But don’t for a MOMENT take one of those pin-on ranks and wear it around post, demanding that 3-star generals salute you. Reminds me of the guy who was jailed for claiming to be a general and demanding a helicopter ride to the front yard of a HQ of some business. Herod was disturbed because he was illegitimately wearing Jesus’ title. Are we properly recognizing his authority? E.g: Are we delighted with Jesus in charge? Some equate this to Jesus as the your pilot in charge, not the co-pilot. I’d go further and stick with king/servant even though our western mindset has a hard time understanding a monarchy since we fought wars to get rid of them. So if you’re wearing his title, you might be disturbed at when confronted with Christ, but Christians will be delighted and not disturbed when we recognize authority properly.

II. Christians will be delighted and not disturbed when we point others to Christ and not ourselves.

Are we trying to become the object of everyone’s desire? If so, when confronted with the one who everyone actually desires and needs, we’ll become jealous and “disturbed.” Check this out: Herod had to secretly send the magi to Bethlehem because if the people who were waiting for the messiah, the common folks, if they found out about this, they would certainly make it a big deal. Further, Herod had to keep it secret because his plan was to get rid of this problem, so it could be even worse for him if the people who heard there was a messiah born but Herod killed him, the little vulnerable kid. Herod needed to secretly take these actions because he wanted all the attention. He wanted everyone to accept him. He was clearly an arrogant, paranoid person, but paranoid and insecure are hand in hand. His insecurity couldn’t handle any challenges. I don’t mean to psychoanalyze Herod, but the story and Herod’s secrecy suggests that he wanted all attention. This is why he was disturbed and not delighted. Christians though, will be delighted and not disturbed when we are not trying to be the object of everyone’s desire and point others to Christ, not ourselves.

III. Christians are delighted and not disturbed when we are exclusively secure in the Savior.

Do we fully trust and find all security in the Savior?

The setting wasn’t unusual, the boss just had an RFI (request for information). He had a question and the scribes and experts were called in. Herod connected the title king of the Jews with the messiah and knew that the scriptures had something to say about where it would occur. So they informed and advised the boss on the scriptures, staying true to their duty. But Matthew makes it clear that they too were disturbed. Why would they be disturbed? Probably because they didn’t need a messiah, they had a boss. They didn’t need saving, they were comfortable. They already had a king of the Jews, they didn’t want another one! They were just fine thank you very much. They were disturbed because they had a different definition of success. They were disturbed because they missed what God was actually doing. And before I make it seem like they knowingly made this trade, perhaps the religious leaders justified to themselves that this couldn’t have been the right timing for the messiah to be born or it wasn’t with enough pomp and ceremony. Perhaps they used fancy arguments to persuade themselves this couldn’t be God’s work. BUT, it was and they obviously missed it, and kept missing it all through the book of Matthew until Jesus was crucified and resurrected. But before seemingly giving them a full pass, they certainly weren’t tuned in and on the hunt for the messiah. They were disturbed and not delighted because they frankly didn’t see a need for the long awaited messiah, even though they were teachers and religious experts.

How do you do well with a boss? What’s important to the boss is important to me. Good phrase normally. But WHO or WHAT do we delight in and put all security, all trust, all hope, all our future and well-being and success?

If we were suddenly disconnected from the military next week, although probably sad, could we distinguish the loss of employment from despair and loss of all hope and security? Especially true for us guys, we are often accused of finding our identity in our job. Even as a chaplain! Fulfillment in work? Sure. But that’s different and certainly far from finding security and hope of a future and well-being in Christ. Christians are delighted and not disturbed when exclusively secure in the Savior. Do we need a savior? Do we WANT a savior? Or are we satisfied with a boss?

Throughout Matthew’s gospel, the God who cares and is in control continues to orchestrate events. Later on in the book, chapter 27:27; 37, Jesus has been condemned to death by a mock trial. And as the Roman soldiers are preparing to crucify Jesus, they make fun of him “King of the Jews” (v27) and place a sign over his head (v37) that read: King of the Jews. Again, disturbed religious leaders tried to get rid of Jesus once and for all through false accusations and manipulation. But with God’s care and control of a salvation plan through Jesus, the cross that was supposed to bring shame and defeat, now brings hope and salvation and indeed, victory and delight! That’s what we celebrate today in communion. That God is in control, yes, but he CARES about our circumstance and orchestrated a way for us to have a relationship with him.

Pray 1. Authority 2. Affection on X 3. Security

Communion:

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. ii

[i] R. T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publication Co., 2007).

ii The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), .