Matthew 2:1-12 "Heart Attitudes Toward Jesus"

Good morning! Turn in your Bibles to Matt 2. The last few weeks we looked at Jesus' genealogy...his earthly lineage and his heavenly lineage...as Mary conceived of the Holy Spirit. Chapter 1 of Matthew emphasizes who Jesus is...He is the Messiah and King, as seen in his lineage, where He fulfills the Davidic and Abrahamic covenants, He was born of a virgin by the Holy Spirit, and His name is Jesus "Yahweh saves"...all of these realities shout to the Jews that Jesus is the King, He is the Messiah. In Chapter 2, Matthew will continue this theme citing 4 prophecies fulfilled by Jesus, and we will encounter 3 main characters, or groups of characters, and their attitude towards the King. A key theme in our message today is "Heart attitudes towards Jesus." LET'S PRAY... LET'S READ... Matt 2:1-12 and observe the heart attitudes of Herod, the religious leaders, and the wise men toward Jesus. Matt 2:1-2 "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him." 1. Between Matthew 1-2, Matthew skips over a few accounts listed in Luke...details more important to Luke's audience...Greeks/Gentiles, and less significant for Matthew's Jews. 2. So, prior to Matthew 2, Luke recorded... 3. Joseph and Mary were living in Nazareth, but because of a census decree from Caesar Augustus, they had to return to their city of origin...since Joseph was of the house of David, and David was from Bethlehem (1 Sam 16)...so they head from Nazareth to Bethlehem which will fulfill Mic 5:2. A most inconvenient 90 mile journey for Joseph and especially Mary since she was with child. 4. Luke also records the Shepherds and Angels visited the Baby Jesus in a manger. On the 8th day Jesus was circumcised, and on the 40th day, Jesus was presented at the temple to God...according to Exo 13, Lev 12. 5. And, that brings us to Matt 2. 6. In verse 1, we will see the visit of the wise men occurs about 1-2 years after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea... 7. Bethlehem of Judea is mentioned to differentiate this city from another Bethlehem...Bethlehem in Galilee. Bethlehem of Judea was the Royal City...again, as mentioned earlier, where David was born. An important detail to fulfill prophecy. 8. Bethlehem when translated from Hebrew to English means "House of Bread" and Jesus said, "I am the Bread of Life." How fitting that the Bread of Life would be from the House of Bread? 9. In verse one we are introduced to 2 of our main characters in this account...Herod the king and the wise men, 10. Let's first get to know Herod the king also known as Herod the Great. 11. Herod was a very troubled person. Under 5 foot tall...He had a Napoleon complex before Napoleon even came on the scene. I know my kids are going to ask me later, "What's a Napoleon complex?" It's an inferiority complex attributed to people of short stature, and Napoleon was about 5'6". 12. Herod was an Idumean. Idumea was another name for Edom or the Edomites...the descendants of Esau...as in Jacob and Esau. Their father was Isaac and Grandfather was Abraham. So, they had common ancestry with the Jews, but they were not Jewish, and they were known for their idolatry. The Edomites had come against the Israelites numerous times, and even allied with Nebuchadnezzar when he besieged Jerusalem. Isaiah and Jeremiah both pronounced judgments upon Edom for their treachery (Isa 34:5-8; Isa 63:1-4; Jer 49:17). They settled in southern Palestine and prospered for over four centuries. During the time of the Maccabees the Idumeans were subdued and forced to conform to Jewish laws, and submit to the Jewish government. So, Herod's lineage was one of discord with the Israelites, but was also influenced by the Israelites and either because of this influence, or for political motives, Herod publically identify as a Jew, though he did not observe Jewish law. 13. Prior to Herod's rule, The Hasmonean dynasty reigned over Judea for about 80 years (140 to 63 B.C), and controlled about as much land as Solomon. The Maccabees founded the Hasmonean dynasty and they did a lot of good in Judea. Herod was the son of Antipater, a high-ranking official in the Hasmonean dynasty. 14. In 63 B.C. Judea was conquered by the Roman Republic which was the beginning of the end of the Hasmonean dynasty. 15. In 40 BC Herod the Great was named governor of Galilee. The Hasmoneans remained in conflict with Rome, and Herod sided Rome. He was a bit of a sell-out, and made many powerful friends. The Roman Senate gave Herod the title "king of the Jews" and charged him with conquering Judea. After about three years of fighting, Herod was victorious in 37 BC. and was effective in maintaining the Pax Romana (the Peace of Rome). 16. Herod attempted to legitimize his rule in the eyes of the Jews by marrying Mariamne, a Hasmonean princess, and appointed her brother, Aristobulus III, as High Priest. He also enacted policies fostering economic prosperity, and built a number of magnificent structures...all of these achievement earned his the the title "Herod the Great." 17. Some of the structures he built: 18. Most significant: Around 20 B.C., he enlarged and updated the Second Temple in Jerusalem (the Temple built when Ezra and Nehemiah returned from captivity) to a size and magnificence never before seen, not even in the days of Solomon. After the major updates and upgrades, the temple became known as Herod's Temple, which was ultimately destroyed in 70 A.D. during the Roman siege of Jerusalem. All that remains today of this temple is the Western Wall in Jerusalem, a most holy site of the Jews today. 19. He also built many other amazing cities and structures: the artificial port city of Caesarea Maritime, the fortress of Masada, the Herodium; He fortified Jerusalem including building the Antonia Fortress; and he built many other fortresses, aqueducts, theatres, and other public buildings, and beautified many surrounding cities. 20. For all his achievements, he also had a dark side. Herod became increasingly suspicious and paranoid that others wanted to overthrow him...including his own family. 21. He killed 3 of his sons from his 10 wives (2 of those son's from Mariamne). 22. He had Aristobulus III, the High Priest and Mariamne's brother drowned by his men during a rough game of water polo. 23. He was known to love Mariamne above all his wives, but besides murdering her sons and her brother, he also executed her grandfather, her mother and Mariamne herself. 24. He was particularly suspicious of Mariamne's family because he considered them a legitimate rival to the throne because of their Hasmonean lineage. 25. Caesar Augustus is reported to have said, "It is better to be Herod's pig then his son." because he kept Kosher...he didn't eat pork. 26. He put to death 46 members of the Sanhedrin- the supreme Jewish Religious Council. 27. And, he killed many others either to keep the peace, in his paranoia, or because of his, as Josephus put it, "barbarous temper," ...including killing all of the male children of Bethlehem 2 years old and under, as he attempted to kill the Christ who was and is the legitimate King of the Jews. 28. In 4 B.C., Herod the Great died in Jericho of an excruciatingly painful and foul disease, which became known as "Herod's Evil." Doctors, through medical investigative work, have come up with the diagnose of "kidney disease complicated by Fournier's gangrene" which they describe as (and I quote) "chronic kidney disease complicated by a very uncomfortable case of maggot-infested gangrene of the genitals." 29. Gangrene is extremely foul smelling, and it has been said that his guards could only stand a short post before they had to be excused and were sick to their stomachs themselves. 30. Josephus, in The Antiquities of the Jews, wrote Herod was so despised in his final days and he had become so bitter towards his people that , upon realization that his death was imminent, Herod ordered his sister, Salome, to assemble the most notable men of the entire Jewish nation to the large arena, the Hippodrome in Caesarea Maritime, and placed soldiers round the hippodrome who would shoot them with darts (perhaps Plumbata) upon Herod's death- just to guarantee there would be mourning in the kingdom. 31. Josephus quotes Herod saying, "I shall die in a little time, so great are my pains... but what principally troubles me is this, that I shall die without being lamented, and without such mourning as men usually expect at a king's death." 32. Salome ultimately disobeyed the order and released the prisoners when Herod died. 33. Understanding how foul of a man Herod was helps us to understand his ill motives when he interacts with the wise men, and helps up to understand the wretched political leaders in the days of Jesus and the early church. 34. After Herod died, Herod's sons, also named Herod, came to rule...and the apple did not fall far from the tree. Herod was a family name almost synonomous with "ruler." I like how J. Vernon McGee referred to the Herodian Dynasty...he called them "a bunch of rascals." 35. 1st 3 rulers after Herod died... 36. Herod Archelaus- appointed ethnarch (ruler of an ethnic group; ruled over 1/2 of the territory Herod the Great oversaw)- over Samaria, Judea, and Idumea. Very cruel and a poor leader. This is the same Archelaus we will read about in Matt 2:22. By 6 A.D. (after only 2 years of rule) Rome replaced him with a number of Roman Prefects or Governors. At Christ's crucifixion the Roman Prefect was Pontius Pilate. 37. Herod Philip II- appointed tetrarch (ruler of a fourth)- who lost his wife to his half-brother Herod Antipas. 38. Herod Antipas- appointed a tetrarch- rebuked by John the Baptist for taking Herod Philip's wife (Matt 14; Luke 3). Antipas was also part of the trials and crucifixion of Jesus (Luke 23). 39. Herod Agrippa I- reigned from 41-44 A.D. and was given the title "king of the Jews" by Rome. We read about him in Acts 12...persecuted the church and had the apostle James, Jesus' half-brother put to death. You may recall the account when he gave a speech to the people of Tyre and Sidon and the people kept shouting, "The voice of a god an not of a man!" And, Herod accepted the praise instead of giving glory to God, so God struck him and he was eaten by worms and died. 40. Herod Agrippa II- seen in Acts 25-26. He saved Paul from trial and imprisonment in Jerusalem and said to Paul, "You almost persuade me to become a Christian." He ruled outside of Judea 41. After Agrippa II, the Herodian dynasty fell out of favor with Rome. There were a total of 8 rulers in the Herodian Dynasty, not all mentioned here or in the Bible. And, overall they ruled various areas in and around Judea from 40 B.C. to 100 A.D. (140 Years). 42. I hope you took notes, there will be a test later. 43. In our lifetimes, our political climate has never been like it was in the early church. As crazy as our days are, we can be thankful for this. 44. The second main characters in this account were the wise men... 45. Wise men...magos in Greek...by definition it's a word of Persian origin...an astrologer...a magi...where we get our English word "magician." "The name given by the Babylonians (Chaldeans), Medes, Persians, and others, to the wise men, teachers, priests, physicians, astrologers, seers, interpreters of dreams, augers, soothsayers, sorcerers etc. 46. The Wise Men were very likely involved in some disturbing pagan occult practices back in their homeland. 47. In verse 1 the wise men were said to come "from the East"...while, we don't know exactly where in the east these wise men came from...here is what we do know... 48. There is a strong possibility, these wise men came from Babylon... 49. In 605 B.C., the Babylonians deported a number of Jews to Babylon, including Daniel. 50. In Dan 2, Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream, so he called the Wise Men...his top advisors (magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and Chaldeans). He wanted and interpretation of his dream, but to make sure they were being authentic, he wouldn't tell them the details of the dream, and he threatened to cut them all in pieces and burn down their houses if they did not tell him the content of the dream and the interpretation of the dream. 51. Without getting too far into this account, Daniel, by revelation of God, is the only one who was able to tell Nebuchadnezzar the dream and the interpretation, so at the end of Chapter 2 Nebuchadnezzar promotes Daniel to be ruler over Babylon and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. 52. With such great influence, Daniel likely exposed the Wise Men to scripture. 53. One scripture that may have influenced the Wise Men, was Num 24:17 Balaam predicted "...a Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel..." speaking about Messiah, and the Wise Men watched the stars...this was one of their divination practices. And, ultimately, they followed a star from their geography in the East to the Messiah. 54. Also, in Dan 9:24-25, Daniel laid out the prophecy of the seventy weeks which foretold the specific time of Christ's first coming, so these Wise Men not only would be looking for a star, but also knew when to look, which was at this specific time. 55. Daniel's prophetic career lasted from 605 B.C. to 520 B.C. 56. Fast forward just 500 years, and wise men come from the East and are at king Herod's doorstep asking "where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him." 57. The wise men could have come from anywhere, and God could have even have spoken to them supernaturally, but whatever the back story of the wise men was, it was miraculous that God moved on the hearts of these pagan magi, and they took the steps to seek the truth and to worship the true King. 58. You may have heard the saying, "Wise men still worship Him." And, it's true. It doesn't matter your background, you could have been influenced by the ways of the world, and the doctrine of our times that teaches truth is defined by you. These wise men were surrounded by similar lies, but they were in search of truth...they searched for the King...the Messiah. 59. How true it was when Jeremiah spoke to the Jews in the captivity in Babylon, "...you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." Jer 29:5 60. These wise men travelled a great distance seeking to behold the King and to worship Him. This should be our heart attitude as well...a heart attitude of being willing to sacrifice much just to worship Him. 61. What a scene...king Herod, an insecure appointed king of the Jews...paranoid about rivals to his throne, being asked by wise men from a distant country about a true heir to the throne. Let's continue in verse 3 and see the response. Matt 2:3 "When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him." 1. Herod's response to hearing the news of the One born King of the Jews...was he was troubled, and the word also says all Jerusalem was troubled with him. 2. Many scholars like to point out that the whole city would not be troubled by just 3 Wise Men, that these travelers from the East likely came with an entire entourage. The Bible does not declare that there are 3 Wise Men, only that there are 3 gifts, as we will see in verse 11. There could have been dozens or hundreds of wise men and guards in this entourage. They were men of stature...they advised the rulers of their land, so to assume just 3 Wise Men is an assumption...it's not founded Biblically. 3. Could this entourage be why Jerusalem was troubled? I don't think this is why Herod was troubled...If a large entourage of foreigners came to Herod to establish trade...I don't think this would trouble Herod one bit. 4. Herod was troubled because he loved his position, he loved his power. We know from history that he killed many people to ensure he did not lose his power. The news of a true King and Messiah over Israel was not good news for him. He perceived Jesus as a threat. 5. So why was Jerusalem troubled? When Herod was troubled, he caused trouble. So, the people may have been concerned and troubled for what may happen in the city and in their lives, because of Herod's personal instability. But, I do wonder if some of them were also troubled about the revelation of Messiah? 6. Troubled by the revelation of Messiah? How do you mean? 7. For many people in the world, the revelation of Jesus in their lives brings trouble...not from an eternal sense, there could be nothing better... but from a worldly sense. I remember when I was first saved, I was in college and when I truly started to walk with the Lord, my friends were troubled. They wanted the old me back. They didn't love this Jesus loving Marc who shared the gospel with them and wouldn't participate in sin. They wanted that old man who had no conscious, who lived to feed his flesh, who helped them to justify their sinful living. Those friends were troubled when I now felt conviction in my heart towards sin, as I took a stand against drunkenness, and against the bar scene, and everything that goes along with it. I ultimately lost those friendships. 8. Jesus said, "Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. 52 For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. 53 Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law." Lk 12:51-53 9. Scholar William MacDonald "It is a curious mark of man's perverted nature that ungodly relatives would often rather have their son a drunkard and dissolute person than have him take a public stand as a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ!" 10. Certainly Herod and possibly the people of Jerusalem were troubled by the perceived disruption in their lives that the Messiah would bring. People want to hold on to the status quo, they don't want change, they don't want disruption, and in this many people reject Jesus Christ. 11. John 3:19-20 "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved [agapaō] darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed." 12. In stark contrast to Herod and the people of Jerusalem, the wise men were willing to greatly inconvenience their lives, and travel over a 1000 miles...a 1-2 month journey, in search for the truth. They were not troubled by the coming King... Well, let's look at one more group of people and their response to this news of the revelation of the Messiah...verse 4 Matt 2:4-5 "And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.' " 1. In verses 4-5, Herod gathers the Religious Leaders of Judea to ask where the Christ, the Messiah was to be born. And, they seem to easily provide the answer, quoting the prophecy from Mic 5:2 that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. And, right they were, and Jesus indeed was born in Bethlehem fulfilling this prophecy which was prophesied by Malachi somewhere around 430 B.C. 2. What is amazing about the the Religious Leaders in this account, is that very little is recorded. The Bible does not mention they are troubled. It doesn't mention they have been waiting with expectancy and are excited. There is no mention that they want to verify the accuracy of these Wise Men...and we do not see them travel to Bethlehem...which is only 5 miles south of Jerusalem...about a 2 hour walk...even faster by donkey or camel. 3. The Bible records no action from the Religious Leaders...they seem rather indifferent...which is tremendously sad. 4. In John 11:47, After the Pharisees and Scribes had seen miracles of Jesus, and heard His teachings...when they had observed His ministry which clearly demonstrated He was the Messiah...John recorded this heart attitude of the Religious Leaders... "Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, "What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. 48 If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation." 5. The leaders were concerned that allowing Jesus to continue would result in the Romans coming and destroying their Temple and scattering the Jews abroad. They were concerned about their job security. 6. F. B. Meyer said, "Christianity endangers businesses, undermines profitable but wicked trades, steals away customers from the devil's shrines, attacks vested interests, and turns the world upside down. It is a tiresome, annoying, profit-destroying thing." 7. When the Wise Men came, the initial heart attitude of the Religious Leaders was indifference. Later, when Jesus was in the thick of His ministry, they were not so different from Herod...they were threatened by Him. 8. The Religious Leaders should have been the ones to seek out truth, to worship the Messiah, but they were too caught up in their Religious routine... they knew the word of God, they had it memorized, their life was all about devotion, prayer, sacrifice, and the Temple... but it was an outward appearance...they performed many works, but their heart was far from God... they had left their first love. 9. We have to be very careful that we do not fall into this same trap. Many people get into a routine of reading their Bible in the morning, praying, going to church, even serving, but where is their heart? Do they truly love Jesus? 10. Don't fall into the indifference trap in your walk with the Lord. Whatever you need to do...taking a day or a week to go away and seek the Lord...go on a mission trip...serve locally...fast/ pray...encounter God in a very real way....whatever you need to do...Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength...go out of your way to walk 5 miles to Bethlehem to seek Him and worship Him as the Wise Men did. Let's finish in verses 7-12 Matt 2:7-12 "Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also. 9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way." 1. Herod, full of ill motives, is able to discern from the Wise Men an approximate time frame when the star appeared. Likely, it was 1 to 2 years prior, for in verse 16, Herod puts to death all the male children under age 2, "according to the time which he had determined from the wise men." Herod was not for Jesus, he was definitely against the true King. 2. Herod sends the Wise Men along to Bethlehem to search carefully for the young Child Jesus, who is likely 1-2 years of age at this point, and asks them to return with news, so he too can worship...an absolute lie. He desired only death for the Messiah. 3. in verse 9, the Wise Men depart for Bethlehem once again guided by the star... and the star stood over where the young Child was... and they rejoiced with great joy... 4. Now, this star has led many to wonder what kind of celestial event this was...a alignment of planets?...a comet?...a supernova? Any of these natural explanations fall short...they are inadequate, because stars don't travel from west to east, and then north to south, disappearing and then reappearing, and they don't stand over a specific house. If a star got anywhere near a house, it would incinerate not only the house, but a significant area of the planet, if not destroy the planet. A natural explanation fails. 5. It is obvious that this "star" is supernatural...it's miraculous...just take it on faith that they were guided by some supernatural light, God's Shekinah glory, or an angel...this is not too big for God. He guided the Israelites by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, He created the heavens and the earth, parted the Red Sea, made the lame walk and the blind see, He brought forth His Son born by a virgin who conquered sin and death, and rose from the dead. 6. If you can't believe he guided a few pagan wise men from the East to Judea by some sort of bright light...how can you believe any of the other miracles of God? 7. Now Verse 11...it just wrecks the nativity scenes we set up during Christmas...on one hand you could say they are entirely biblically inaccurate, or since they don't come with instruction manuals...one could also argue that you are setting up your nativity scene wrong, since no instructions told you you have to place the wise men in the manger. 8. Here's the problem with the nativity scene. Verse 11 states the wise men came into the house...notice...not the manger...and worshiped the young child...not the baby. When you set up the nativity with Baby Jesus and the Wise Men, that's Biblically inaccurate......when Jesus was a baby...the Wise Men were far off. By the time the wise men finally meet Jesus, Jesus' family is in a house and Jesus is a young child. Plus, the wise men were very likely more than just 3 men, likely an entourage of wise men. 9. This year, if you want to be biblically accurate, you should set up your manger scene and put your wise men in an entirely different section of the house to represent them being far off preparing for their journey...and set up an entourage of wise men. 10. I'm not really serious, and I'm not trying to burst your Christmas bubble, but the manger scene is either inaccurate or being set up wrong. 11. Notice also in verse 11, "...when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped her." 12. Oh, no wait, it doesn't say that...they worshipped Jesus. "...they fell down and worshipped Him." They saw Mary and worshipped Jesus. Mary is not a co-redemptress with Jesus...that's an entirely unfounded teaching in scripture. It is biblically inaccurate. I'm not going any further down that rabbit trail, but just want to point that out. 13. Finally in verse 11, "...when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh." 14. So, 3 gifts...this is where people assume there are only 3 wise men. It could have been 20 wise men presenting gold, 50 wise men presenting frankincense, and 10 wise men presenting myrrh...we don't exactly how this gift giving went down... 15. There are also some other assumptions or speculations about the meaning of or symbolic nature of these gifts. 16. Some have said Gold is a symbol of deity, glory, and purity; incense represented the fragrance of His life of sinless perfection; and myrrh (which was a bitter herb and used for embalming the dead) signified His sacrifice and death. 17. Others have said these gifts represent the Threefold Office of Christ- King, Priest, and Prophet. Gold was a gift for a King; Incense was used by the Priest, and Myrrh was for the Prophet Jesus who predicted His own death. As a Prophet, in the past He died for us, He presently is seated at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us as our High Priest, and in the future He will return in the Second Coming of the King. 18. Now there is an interesting couple verses in Isa 60, where Isaiah speaks about the Second Coming of Messiah, and the Millennial Reign... 19. Isa 60:5-6 "...The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.6 The multitude of camels shall cover your land, The dromedaries [young camels] of Midian and Ephah; All those from Sheba shall come [Arabian tribes]; They shall bring gold and incense, [but not myrrh, because He only will die once] And they shall proclaim the praises of the Lord." Isa 60:5-6. 20. Very interesting, and a good support verse that the gifts had symbolic meaning, but still we are not told what the gifts exactly symbolize. 21. Others think the giving of these gifts Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh has a interpretation that is much more simple...Matthew's theme is Jesus is the King of the Jews, and these were gifts that were fit for a King. Only Matthew tells us the account of the Wise Men coming to worship and bring these gifts. None of the other Gospel writers even mention this account, perhaps because of Matthew's emphasis on establishing Jesus as the King. 22. Whatever, your bent on the interpretation, this entourage of Wise Men present 3 valuable gifts, and we are also not told how much gold, how much frankincense, and how much myrrh, but we do know that this poor family is able to finance a costly trip to Egypt immediately following. 23. And, it's worthy to note that the Wise Men in their worship offered gifts that were very valuable, as worship is costly. 24. When David repented for taking a census of Israel, the Lord sent a plague and then instructed David to erect an altar on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite (1 Chr 21; 2 Sam 24). Ornan was going to give David the threshing floor for free, but David responded, "No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing." 25. Sometimes we come to church, only seeking what we can get, and if this is our heart attitude, surely we will be let down. The church may not look how you want, someone will fail to greet you, the worship may not be your style, the Pastor's message may be too short... 26. In the examples of David and the Wise Men, they were prepared to pay a costly price to honor the Lord. If you come with expectation of giving and not receiving, you will not be disappointed. The Wise Men did not come with expectation of getting anything from Jesus, they travelled a great distance over several months to give their treasures and to give their hearts in worship. 27. And, I love how this segment ends, they receive from the Lord. Verse 12 tells us they were "...divinely warned in a dream..." not to return to Herod, so they returned to their home another way. 28. Not only was Jesus protected, but who knows what Herod would have done to the Wise Men? 29. These men who came from pagan backgrounds surely returned to their homeland not only by a different route, but also with a different heart. If you sincerely are seeking the Lord with a true heart, he will transform your life. These verses today, give us a picture of three heart attitudes toward God: Herod was troubled by Jesus, the Religious Leaders were indifferent towards Jesus, and the Wise Men...they sought Him out and worshipped Him. And, the question that faces all of us is 'Where do you stand? What is your response towards Jesus Christ? Do you identify most with the heart attitude of Herod, the Religious Leaders, or are you a Wise Man?' If you are here today, and you know you have fallen into indifference or apathy towards God; or you are troubled by how your life will be impacted by Jesus, and you want to repent of this, and invite Jesus into or back into your life... I'd love to pray with you afterward. I'd love to pray with you that you will find your first love, that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and that you would worship Him in spirit and truth. For those of you who identify with the Wise Men, your relationship with the Lord is right, your love for Him is sound... keep pressing forward towards the prize, don't get complacent and drift from your first love, and be aware of the people in your lives and the people you will meet that are struggling with their heart attitude towards Jesus. I pray the Lord uses you this week as an instrument of His grace to be a light in the world. Let's pray!