Sermon Tone Analysis

Where is He?

INTRODUCTION

The story of the wise men who travelled many difficult miles to bring gifts to the new born Christ captures our attention at Christmas time.

These wise men stir our imagination.

Suddenly they step into Scripture searching for Jesus.

They find Him, worship Him, give him expensive gifts.

Then they suddenly step out Scripture and disappear.

They fill our thoughts with questions.

Who were they?

What nation did they come from?

How many of them were there?

Where did they get their information about the promised Messiah?

How did they know the star marked the time and place of His birth?

These and other questions concerning them come to mind.

In the wise men themselves ask a very important question: “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?”

As we will see, different people have different motives in asking the question “Where is He?”

Those who sincerely ask this question will find Christ and His blessings.

BODY

The enemy who seeks to destroys Christ asks this question.

Herod ruled the area of Judea at the time of Christ’s birth.

He was ruthless and evil.

He was insecure.

He wanted no rival to his throne.

The idea of another king being born troubled him greatly so he diligently sought to find Jesus.

He asked, “Where is He?”

He wanted to know.

He was exact, diligent, and thorough in his effort to find and answer.

He interviewed the religious experts to demand and answer to his question.

He even interviewed the wise men privately ().

He wanted their answer as well.

He sought to deceive them by saying he too wanted to worship the new king while in reality His heart held murderous intentions.

Herod viewed Jesus as a rival to his throne and wanted to eliminate the threat.

The wise men, having been warned in a dream, did not return to Herod.

As a result, Herod ordered the murder of every baby boy in the vicinity of Bethlehem in the hopes of killing his rival ().

Herod represents all people who see Christ as an enemy.

Motivated by satan, they seek destroy Christ’s influence in the world.

These “Herods” persecute the church, kill God’s people, and oppose Christ at every turn.

They will war against Christ to the very end.

God the Father led Joseph and Mary to take baby Jesus to safety and avoid Herod’s wrath.

God in His wisdom and time will eventually fully enforce the victory of Christ on the cross, all the “Herods” of this world will suffer defeat.

The “Herods” of the world will rage and slander and fight and war against Christ and His church but one day even they will bow their knee and proclaim Jesus Christ is Lord.

So, dear friends, when persecuted and ridiculed because of Christ, take heart, for the sufferings of this present world are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us—the Herods cannot and will not win!

The indifferent and unbelieving don’t consider the question or its answer important.

Herod asked the most knowledgeable and respected religious leaders to answer the question and they gave him the correct answer ().

They knew the prophecies, they knew the answer, yet they did not believe the prophecy had come to pass.

They had the answer!

These men were experts in the knowledge of Scripture.

These men were experts in the knowledge of Scripture.They knew all the prophecies and possessed all the facts about the anticipate birth of the Savior.But they didn’t even bother to travel the few miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem to see for themselves that the Messiah had been born.

They knew all the prophecies and possessed all the facts about the anticipated birth of the Savior.

But they didn’t even bother to travel the few miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem to see for themselves that the Messiah had been born.

They knew the prophecies, they knew the answer, yet they did not believe the prophecy had come to pass.

They did not believe the report of the wise men.

It is not enough to simply know the facts about Christ and His birth.

We need to know the facts of the Christmas story, but more importantly, we need to act on what we know to be true.It is not enough to simply know the facts about Christ and His birth.The Virgin Mary.Joseph and Mary’s trip to Bethlehem.The manger.Swaddling clothes.Shepherds.Angels.Wise men.And so on.We should know these things, but more that this we must know Christ and trust Him to give us new life!

It is not enough to simply know the facts about Christ and His birth.

The virgin birth.

Joseph and Mary’s trip to Bethlehem.

The manger.

Swaddling clothes.

Shepherds.

Angels.

Wise men.

And so on.

The religious leaders who answered Herod knew the facts but refused to believe.

Many today know the story of Christ, but refuse to believe.

The Wise Men made the trip, discovered the Christ, believed on Him, worshipped Him, and they went home different than they came.

If you will trust Him tonight you will go home different than you came.

Sincere seekers will find an answer to their question.

Matthew 2:9-

Here we find the miracle of the Christmas star.

Verse 2 tells us that the wise men saw it when it rose.

The recognized it as a sign from God.

They journeyed towards it until they came to Jerusalem.

Now, in vv.

9-10 it seems that the star moved ahead of them and guided them straight to Jesus.

They rejoiced in the miracle of the star that brought them to Christ.

I can think of a few ways, and I am sure there are more, that the Lord uses to draw us towards Christ and to a deeper life in Christ.

The Bible.

Believing friends and family.

The still small voice of the Spirit within us.

Preaching and teaching.

Songs.

And I am sure you can think of others.

For those who sincerely seek God, God will make a way for them to be drawn to Jesus.

Let us follow the example of the wise men and draw near to Jesus this Christmas.

: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

says:

Wise people seek to come near to Christ.

A tornado of flying wrapping paper and torn open boxes.

Draw near Him and grow in joy, in peace, and in grace.

Chi

Draw near Him and grow in righteousness, mercy, and patience.

Excitement and joy.

Grow

Soon forgotten

Draw near Him and grow in faith, perseverance, and the Holy Spirit.

Seek Him, draw near to Him, and grow in Him.

Wise people worship Jesus.

The wise men fell down and worshipped Jesus.

I am not convinced that these men knew exactly who they worshipped that night, but I do believe them sincere in their worship.