Sermon Tone Analysis

The Magi Visit

We looked at this passage of scripture during this past Advent Season.

We talked about the Magi coming from across the desert and travel with their entourage for many months up to two years.

The area we didn’t talk about much was the “faith” of the Wise Men.

I love the connections to the Old Testament that are so rich here are a couple of my favorites from this passage

There is a passage that leads the OT reader to expect a star

And of course a prophecy where the Messiah would be born

Focus if you will on the last part of verse Mathew 2.2, “have come to worship.”

When I was in college, before I got saved, before I even met Jill, I went to a couple of “Jesus” things.

I think Campus Crusades came once and I was drug there by a girl I was interested in and the other is these two guys who came to our campus.

Stood by the fountain in the center of campus and screamed at us about how we were all going to hell.

Not the most effective way to reach me...

Like the Wise Men... at the correct time, the Gospel message that was hanging out in my head finally made 100% sense.

I had to follow that “star” in my life.

Regardless of your background, regardless of your history, regardless of the choices that you have made the Gospel message is always hanging out in our heads.

We just have to acknowledge that the star “has risen” and we MUST follow it.

So these “Wise Men” In the NT the word refers to possessors of secret wisdom, and in our passage it probably connotes astrologers, that is, men who gained special insight into world affairs from their observation of the planets and stars.

So these “Wise Men” In the NT the word refers to possessors of secret wisdom, and in our passage it probably connotes astrologers, that is, men who gained special insight into world affairs from their observation of the planets and stars.

The gifts they brought...

By tradition they gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh all have a spiritual significance.

gold as a symbol of kingship on earth, frankincense (an incense) as a symbol of deity, and myrrh (an embalming oil) as a symbol of death.

First some clarification… The NIV uses “disturbed” more correctly he was in a panic and paranoid about any threats to his throne.

He killed numerous family members fearing assassination.

“All Jerusalem” means all the rulers who feared losing their place on the gravy train.

I want to jump down to Vs. 7-8

Mt

You see Herod was lying through his teeth…he had no intention of worshipping Jesus.

In fact it became very clear what Herod wanted to do.

His goal was to continue in power as long as he could, and to do that he would have to kill the Christ child.

I went to those two Gospel presentations on my college campus and at least at one of them I heard about Grace and Mercy.

I’m sure that I heard about hell and damnation at the other.

Beyond what I heard and experienced at those presentations I wanted to date that girl that invited me.

Like Herod, what “I” wanted is NOT what God had to offer.

The Wise Men really knew nothing about the Christ child… They were pagans, they were probably worshipping a piece of rock, or the sun, or the water.

They had no idea about the one God, Yahweh coming, like the prophets had said.

Yet they came, they brought with them the most expensive, rarest items they had as gifts.

These are three unique gifts… we will call them “gigagifts”

2,

3.

Picture of them

These represent the three most valuable things that you have… the results of your crops for the year, your pension for the year, your income for the year, the receipts from your business for the year, your social security checks for the year.

All of everything material that you have to offer.

How much are you holding back from the Christ child?

God really doesn’t want much…he wants it ALL.

ALL of your time, your talents and your treasure.

Then he will give back to what you need and want.

This is a RADICAL concept…GOD owns it all.

Whoa Jeff, this is to much… I get it, these are demands I can’t do.

He does not expect YOU to do them… He expects that your in a relationship with him, with God, with Christ and that each day you focus more on him and less on you.

You see, God’s offer was to allow the Gospel to grow and become known throughout Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

He expects us to grow the gospel in our world.

This might sting a bit but… we are more like Herod than we want to admit.

Selfish, proud, possessive, stubborn, frightened,

Herod’s immaturity and impulsiveness, like mine drove away the message of Christ and the opportunity to become a follower of Jesus… For 3 more years.

You see God will show up in ways that you don’t expect, with words you don’t want to hear, and dangle Grace, Mercy and life-everlasting life in front of you.

I KNOW that I heard the Gospel that night and pushed it away.

Herod had the opportunity to change himself and his whole family tree from a hater of God to a lover of Grace and Mercy delivered without cost by Jesus his only son.

God in a supernatural way moved the star from pointing at Jerusalem to pointing at Bethlehem, where the Christ-child was.

Why did God do that… Was he ready to let his child be killed by an agent of satan even before he took his first step??? NO, may it never be!God is still sovereign.

God’s plan for redemption would not be stopped.

God allowed the wonder and the awe that the Kings were about to experience when they saw the Christ-child.

God knew what Herod’s next move would be.

He was ready to delay the birth family from fleeing so that three former pagan’s who had travelled maybe for two years could WORSHIP the Messiah who was in a feed trough.

Note with me…the worshipped

My God…cared enough about me to allow a set of circumstances in my life that he left the door open.

He left the door open for me to walk in and see the Christ-child.

I saw the Christ child for the first time not on December 25th but in the Spring of 1987.

Not in a manger, not in barn but in a parking lot of the Burger King in Puyallup, WA.

I had it all, I was young, invincible not a care in the world.

And I just didn’t peek in the door to the Christ child.

I ran as hard and as fast as I could through that door.

In that instant, I worshipped God and Jesus in the only way I knew.

I threw my hands up, got down on my knees, crying like a baby.

Understanding everything and nothing at the same time.

I see you nodding, I see you understanding.

Thus one born in obscurity is recognized by unlikely devotees as the future King of Israel.

The child whose birth is shrouded in suspicions of illegitimacy (chap.

1) is in fact God’s legitimate appointee.

On the other hand, the legal rulers, both political and religious, by their clinging to positions of power and prestige, prove themselves to be illegitimate in God’s eyes.

Sadly, the church in many ages has perpetuated this pattern.

Meanwhile, God often chooses to reveal himself to pagans, at times even in the midst of their religious practices, to lead them on to the full truth found only in Christ.

The Christ child, born in obscurity is recognized by these Wise Men, total witnesses as the future King of Israel.

This child whose birth is surrounded by suspicions of illegitimacy is in fact God’s Son.

The one who would one day will walk on water and heal the leper and feed the thousands.

This child would one day leave the world in death only to defeat it and rise from the dead and again return to reign forever on a the new earth.

Thus one born in obscurity is recognized by unlikely devotees as the future King of Israel.

The child whose birth is shrouded in suspicions of illegitimacy (chap.

1) is in fact God’s legitimate appointee.

On the other hand, the legal rulers, both political and religious, by their clinging to positions of power and prestige, prove themselves to be illegitimate in God’s eyes.

Sadly, the church in many ages has perpetuated this pattern.

Meanwhile, God often chooses to reveal himself to pagans, at times even in the midst of their religious practices, to lead them on to the full truth found only in Christ.

That day, the Wise Men, who are getting wiser every time they took a step of faith.

Saw their futures, their future was in the worship of Jesus.

Meanwhile, here I am…on my face worshipping Jesus, balling like a baby in the parking lot of a Burger King.

I’m seeing the Christ child…I’ve worshipped at the manger.

The Wise men had to sleep they couldn’t keep the pace up forever

Mt 2.

While they slept, they had a dream.

God spoke in the is dream.

And he gave them specific instructions on what to do and what not to do.

They obeyed.

God didn’t give me a dream and probably didn’t give many of us dream.