Untitled Sermon (3)

Luke 1:1–6 NKJV

1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

Luke 1:1–6 NKJV

1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

Luke 1:1–7 NKJV

1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

Luke 1:1–5 KJV 1900

1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, 2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

Matthew 1:1–4 NKJV

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: 2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. 4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.

Luke 1:1–5 KJV 1900

1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, 2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

In the Days of Herod

Matthew 1:16–17 NKJV

16 And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.

Matthew 1:

If I could summarize the days of Herod very briefly as a foundation for 4 truths that I will declare over the next few weeks leading up to Christmas...

I would work to draw the parallel to explain that in many ways, it is today, much the same as it was in the days of Herod.

Herod was the client King of Judea. He was appointed by Rome to govern the small area of Judea.

He pandered for the loyalties of the Jews, but his affection was to the Roman Government. While his assignment was to govern and care for the wellbeing of the Jews, reliable sources recorded that Herod neglected the affairs of the the Jews and spent his time studying philosphy, rhetoric and history of Greece and Rome.

Yet still, under the reign of Herod, there were many great and wonderful improvements afforded in the lives of the Jewish people: First and foremost, he expanded the dimensions of the temple beautified its walls and gates. He constructed the cities of Cesarea and the mountain fortress of Masada… the ingenuity and innovation of Herod rivaled even the most modern technology.

Not only did Herod provide the people with astounding architecture…but he also provided a sense of safety and security. Under the reign of Herod, Judea was prosperous…and even though he cruelly and unfairly taxed the people, he provided them protection.

History also records that during a period of time that famine overtook the land, Herod used his political connections to provide for the Jewish people.

The Jewish people were grateful for all that Herod did for them.

Herod did just enough to enable the people to cope, but never empowered them to overcome.

He mesmerized the people with beautifully ornate buildings while distracting them from the fact that they were still governed by Roman rule.

the Jewish people

Yet, for all of the wonderful structures and edifices designed and constructed at his hand..Herod was also a man of great evil. He became a madman, paranoid of anyone and anything that might threaten his position and his authority. He had his wife and three of his four sons executed as well as issuing the decree that every Jewish male child under the age of 2 be put to death.

Everybody loved what Herod the Great could do, but everyone hated what he cost. The Jewish historian Josephus tells us that when Herod knew he was dying, he arrested the elite citizens of Jerusalem and ordered that they be executed at the moment of his death—just so someone in Jerusalem would be weeping when he died. The people both loved and hated Herod the Great.

We love what Herod does; we hate what he costs.

In every life there is a Herod that has gained some power over you. You are seduced into calling it "great" because it does things for you. It helps you feel secure. It helps you cope. It's been around for a long time. Herod is the name of whatever it is that offers you something you crave at a cost you cannot afford. You love what it does; you hate what it costs. But as taxing as it is, you just keep paying.

For some of us, Herod is our workaholic addiction to success. There's certainly nothing wrong with success—unless you are obsessed with getting it at any cost. That's what we call "addiction." Maybe it started out more innocently than that. Maybe it started out with the resolve to work hard, to make your loved ones proud of you, to make a contribution to the company or to the community or to the church. But along the way, you lost track of the long hours, of your son's basketball games that you missed, of the missed dinners with friends, of the number of evenings interrupted by the beeper, or the number of working vacations.

Meanwhile, the promotions and the accolades piled up—no one can build a career quite like Herod—and for a while that felt good to you. But one day, somebody who needs you and has been missing you is going to look at you through tears and ask: "Don't you see what this is costing? Don't you see what this costs?"

For others of you, Herod is the name of an old hurt to which you have become addicted. You didn't deserve the hurt. Maybe it happened a long time ago. You've tried to forget about it, but the hurt just keeps hurting. You can distract yourself from it for a while, but it's always waiting for you, especially when you're tired. In order to gain a little freedom from the pain, you've tried to forgive the person who hurt you, but you haven't succeeded, because the hurt's been around so long that you don't even know who you are anymore without it. Every time you try to get rid of it, it isn't long before you invite it back into your heart.

We hate to hurt. Nobody likes it. But oddly, we can become so familiar with it, so secure with it, that we've just learned to make it a part of life. When that happens—when you've grown comfortable with your hurt—Herod is running and ruiningyour life. The hurt will make it impossible for you to trust people. It will make you cynical about all authority figures. It will sabotage more of your relationships than you want to admit. When you find yourself alone, you will curse the hurt all over again. Then you'll say to yourself: Don't you see what this is costing?

Herod can be the alcohol that abuses you. It can be the spouse that abuses you. It can be the job that abuses you day after day. But you can't let it go.

But Herod is so paranoid that he'll do anything he can to keep you from seeing the cost to your very soul—until it is too late.

One day a long time ago, some wise men entered Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the one who has been born the king of the Jews?" It is striking that the text tells us that not only was Herod frightened by their question, but all of Jerusalem was frightened. The city did not rise up with joy at the announcement that a liberator-king had just been born. People have always preferred the misery they know to the mystery they do not. It doesn't make sense, but it is our human nature. Just because you know you are addicted to how things are doesn't mean you want to be delivered.

My point both today and over the next 3 weeks is not to focus merely on Herod, but to tell you that in the Days of herod…even in the day that we are tolerating the very things that are killing us…there are good things that are happening

Luke 1:5–10 NKJV

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. 8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense.

Luke 1:5–8 NKJV

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. 8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division,

Luke 1:5–12 KJV 1900

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. 8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 9 According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

Luke 1:5–9 NKJV

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. 8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.

Luke 1:

lets us know that in the days of Herod, the angel of the Lord shows up and speaks to Zacharias.

it had been 400 years since God had spoken...

And if ever there was a time that it looked like God wouldn’t speak, it would be in the days of Herod…if there is ever a time that it looks like God can’t speak its when we’ve tolerated the very thing that is killing us…but God is still speaking!

I want to give you hope today…The bible says that Zecharias and Elizabeth were both righteous and kept the commandments of the Lord.

The both

They were both out of the lineage of Aaron the priest.

If you want to look at people that should have had everything going for them…it would have been Zecharias and Elizabeth…they had the pedigree…they had the

but they were barren.

maybe here go back to the lineage listed in ...

Pedigree is not a prerequisite

4 women listed in the lineage of Jesus…one was a woman that pretended to be a harlot (Tamar)…another that was a harlot (Rahab). One that was an outcast (Ruth) and one that was an adultress (Bethsheba).

Perfection is not a requirement...

In the days of Herod…God is speaking!