Matthew 2:11-23
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 1:28:24
0 ratings
· 88 viewsFiles
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Announcements
Announcements
Are there any announcements?
The Revelation Bible Study will start back up on Thursday January 13 at 6pm.
Please pray for the Brent and Vicki Knowles as they will be traveling to Florida and will be gone for the next 5 weeks and also for Ryan and Crystal who are in Arizona until April.
The evening of worship will be rescheduled.
Communion
Communion
Prayer
Prayer
Lord, as we ponder the depths and riches of the meaning of the communion table, we ask that you would examine our hearts because we desire to take communion in a worthy fashion that only glorifies you. Our desire in to honor and remember your sacrifice upon the cross and worship you forever. Please come and examine us now.
Pause>> Silence
Lord, we pray that You would still our minds and quiet our hearts as we approach the table today. We ask that You would draw each one of us into ever closer fellowship with Yourself, as we partake together of the bread and wine, in grateful remembrance of what You did for each one of us, on Calvary’s cross.
Help us Lord, to approach this communion table with reverence and godly fear, as we share together in the bread and the cup. Lord, we remember how on the same night that You were betrayed You took a piece of bread, and blessed it and broke it, and gave it to Your disciples and said. “eat this in remembrance of Me.”
We also remember how You then took the cup and told them. “this is the new covenant in My blood, do this in remembrance of Me.” Lord, we partake of this bread and drink this cup in remembrance of what You did on our behalf, on Calvary’s cross, and praise and glorify Your holy name. In Jesus Name
Now on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?” And He said, “Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples.” ’ ” So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover. When evening had come, He sat down with the twelve.
So here church we see the Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) mentioned. This is a Jewish festival celebrating the exodus from Egypt and the Israelites’ freedom from slavery to the Egyptians.
The night of the first Passover was the night of the tenth plague. On that fateful night, God told the Israelites to sacrifice a spotless lamb and mark their doorposts and lintels with its blood (Exodus 12:21–22). Then, when the Lord passed through the nation, He would “pass over” the households that showed the blood (verse 23). In a very real way, the blood of the lamb saved the Israelites from death, as it kept the destroyer from entering their homes. The Israelites were saved from the plague, and their firstborn children stayed alive. From then on, every firstborn son of the Israelites belonged to the Lord and had to be redeemed with a sacrifice (Exodus 13:1–2, 12; cf. Luke 2:22–24).
Jesus is the spotless Lamb church who takes away the sins of the world and gives us eternal life.
Let us take together...
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.” And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Prayer
Prayer
Lord, we thank you for your broken body and poured our blood for us! And we now ask that you speak to use through your Word. The psalmist asked that he would behold wondrous things out of your law and we do this same. Speak to our hearts we plead dear Lord and transform our lives! In Jesus Name we love you amen!
Read Matthew 2:7-15
Read Matthew 2:7-15
We have come as far as verse 9, but before we dive into the text, I wanted to review the last few weeks to lay the foundation of this text:
REVIEW
REVIEW
In looking back, we discovered that there was not enough room in the INN for the Messiah church and therefore we needed to ask ourselves the question is there enough room for Him in my heart, in my life? Or are we just too busy for him and we will catch him at a later time?
Last week we talked in great detail about the Chief Priests and the Scribes (Lawyers) who were the religious leaders of the day.
We learned that the wise men sought out King Herod to find where this Child was.
Herod was troubled because this Child could take away his power and prestige, therefore he sought out the Chief Priests and Scribes (lawyers) who were the religious leaders of the day and they shared with him Micah 5:2 , that the Messiah would be born 5 miles away in the little town of Bethlehem (House of Bread). Sadly, they new this, but did not act as though it was a big deal, but remained complacent and did not budge.
The wise men must have noticed that these teachers of the law were unspiritual and unworthy men, for they had so little interest in the birth of Israel’s Messiah that they did not even accompany the Magi to Bethlehem to investigate his arrival for themselves
Herod sent the wise men to go and Search Carefully for the young Child and as I shared last week, Jesus is no longer a baby but a young Child . The Greek word for young and baby are different.
Herod had asked them to bring back the news if the wise men found the Child so he could worship him, but his motives were not pure. In fact, later in the text we see that he wanted him dead.
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.
So even though this wicked King was being used by God to fulfill prophecy, even though his motives were not pure, but rather wicked, the text says that the star appeared as they began to search. In fact, the star went before them.
Church, we can glean a few nuggets from this text here.
The Lord goes before us:
And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
‘I will go before you And make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze And cut the bars of iron.
And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”
Church, Our Heavenly Father is the same way with us His children. He wants what is best for us and no matter where we go or what we do, He is always ahead of us. He fights our battles so the enemy won’t triumph over us. He makes crooked places straight so that by the time we get there, the path is already cleared so our journey can be safe.
2. I find it interesting that the Lord used a star. Because when you go back to the OT we see the Lord leading Israel by a pillar of cloud by day and fore by night. And here we see him leading by a star.
How is God leading you? The Lord speaks to His children church, the only question we need to ask ourselves is are we following his voice.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
The wise men stepped out in faith and were seeking the Messiah and they were not going to let anything get in their way of doing it.
The same Star that was leading them, leads us today, his name is Jesus and he does this through the Holy Spirit.
They stepped out in faith, and so must we because the Bible says:
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
Charles Inglis, the well-known evangelist, relates the following remarkable incident:
"When I first came to America thirty-one years ago, I crossed the Atlantic with the captain of a steamer who was one of the most devoted men I ever knew; and when we were off the banks of Newfoundland he said to me: 'Mr. Inglis, the last time' I crossed here, five weeks ago, one of the most extraordinary things happened that has completely revolutionized the whole of my Christian life. Up to that time I was one of your ordinary Christians. We had a man of God on board, George Mueller, of Bristol. I had been on that bridge for twenty-two hours and never left it. I was startled by someone tapping me on the shoulder. It was George Mueller.
Captain,' said he, 'I have come to tell you that I must be in Quebec on Saturday afternoon.' This was Wednesday.
It is impossible,' I said. Very well, if your ship can't take me God will find some other means of locomotion to take me.
I have never broken an engagement in fifty-seven years.'
I would willingly help you, but how can I? I am helpless.'
Let us go down to the chart room and pray,' he said.
"I looked at this man and I thought to myself, 'What lunatic asylum could the man have come from? I never heard of such a thing.'
"'Mr. Mueller,' I said, 'do you know how dense this fog is?'
No,' he replied, 'my eye is not on the density of the fog, but on the living God, who controls every circumstance of my life.'
"He went down on his knees, and he prayed one of the most simple prayers. I thought to myself, 'That would suit a children's class, where the children were not more than eight or nine years of age.' The burden of his prayer was something like this: 'O Lord, if it is consistent with Thy will, please remove this fog in five minutes. You know the engagement You made for me in Quebec for Saturday. I believe it is Your will.'
"When he had finished, I was going to pray, but he put his hand on my shoulder and told me not to pray.
First,' he said, 'you do not believe God will do it; and, second, I believe He has done it. And there is no need whatever for you to pray about it.'
I looked at him, and George Mueller said this: 'Captain, I have known my Lord for fifty-seven years and there has never been a single day that I have failed to gain an audience with the King. Get up, Captain and open the door, and you will find the fog is gone.' I got up, and the fog was gone. On Saturday afternoon George Mueller was in Quebec."
Did you see the faith with works in this true story? I have used this before, and trust me, I will use it again, because it is such a good illustration of faith, but much more importantly church, is that George Mueller knew his Lord!
An old Scotsman operated a little rowboat for transporting passengers. One day a passenger noticed that the old man had carved on one oar the word faith, and on the other oar the word works. Curiosity led him to ask the meaning of this. The old man said, “I will show you.”
He dropped one oar and plied the other called works, and the boat went around in circles. Then he dropped that oar and began to ply the oar called faith, and the little boat just went around in circles again.
After this demonstration the old man picked up faith and works and plying both oars together, sped swiftly over the water, explaining to his inquiring passenger, “You see, that is the way it is in the Christian life. Dead works without faith are useless, and faith without works is dead. But faith and works pulling together make for safety, progress, and blessing.”
When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
The wise men saw the star church and they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy!
The word exceedingly in the Greek means to the extreme degree. Soon very soon, they were going to meet the King!
When you met Jesus, how did you react? Was there great joy? Did you rejoice and want to tell the world?
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.
Note when they came into the house! This is not a stable or a cave, but rather a home and as I have shared before, Jesus was young, scholars believe somewhere under two.
Do you think they knocked?
It is important for us to realize that when the wise men found Jesus, that they were wise enough to worship Him.
This point is very important, because some people seek even though they do not want to find the truth and embrace it.
Paul spoke of these people when he warned Timothy of those who are “always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7).
Some people love unbelief, and they use their accumulating knowledge as justification for it. The wise men were not like this. They wanted to know about Jesus, but they were not interested in this knowledge for its own sake. They knew when they found him that they would worship him and give him their gifts.
Notice that Matthew shared that the magi worshiped the Lord, not His mother Mary. they were excited to meet Joseph and Mary, but wanted to give praise and adoration to the Messiah.
And so they gave him gifts church...
Matthew, vols. 1-4 (The MacArthur New Testament Commentary) The Adoration by the Magi
Right worship is always, and must be, the only basis for right giving and right learning and right service. Giving that is generous but done apart from a loving relationship with God is empty giving. Learning that is orthodox and biblical but is learned apart from knowing and depending on the Source of truth, is empty knowledge, like that of the chief priests and scribes. Service that is demanding and sacrificial but done in the power of the flesh or for the praise of men is empty service.
Let’s take a closer look at these gifts:
gold – we understand the yellow stuff. Throughout history we know the most precious of all metals and a sign of power and wealth.
frankincense – made from the yellowish resin of the Boswellia sacra tree found in Arabia. The resin was dried and used in incense and the holy anointing oil. Incense in the Bible is used in relation to prayer. In Bible times it was actually more valuable than gold.
myrrh – made from the reddish gum of a plant called commiphora, also found in Arabia. It was found in the holy anointing oil, in perfume, and in embalming.
What’s the significance of the gifts?
There are prophetic hints that Gentile leaders would one day give gifts to the Messiah:
The multitude of camels shall cover thee, The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; All they from Sheba shall come: They shall bring gold and incense; And they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord.
It has been suggested that the gold was given to Him as a king, the frankincense because of His role as a priest, and the myrrh was a hint of His coming death.
The early church Fathers understood the gold to be symbolic of Christ’s deity, the frankincense of His purity, and the myrrh of His death.
It’s hard to really grasp what it means to give to God and others until you’ve been touched by what God has given to you.
Have you been touched by God’s love for you?
Have you been touched by God’s love for you?
There are some gifts you could give to God this Year church:
Gold – You can give to Him from your resources. This will involve things like our time and finances.
Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.
You may not put yourself in the category of being “rich”, but I’m afraid that’s just a quick excuse not to be challenged with how we use our finances. Compared to the rest of the world, most people in this room would be considered “rich”. Do you realize that in India, a typical native missionary exists on $120 per month? . We are wealthy.
Some of us need to be challenged with how we use our time. They say time is money. Some say time is more valuable than money. How much time do you spend on Kingdom work? I’m not just talking about volunteering for Sunday School, though that may be something you could do. What are you doing in your life to consciously, purposefully, to serve God?
Charles Spurgeon said there are three conversions:
First your heart
Then your head
Then your wallet
But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
As the Lord leads, let us give cheerfully...
2. Frankincense – You can give Him your worship. You can draw close to Him. You can pray. David wrote,
Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; And the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Keep in mind church that people in Bible times valued this more than gold.
3. Myrrh – When we think of the wise men giving myrrh, we think about it reminding us of this Child who would one day die for the sins of the world.
I think we could also think about how we follow Jesus in laying down our lives as well.
Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
I wonder if some of us are a little too sensitive when it comes to giving of our gold and frankincense because we haven’t learned yet to lay down our lives for Him?
Prayer
Prayer
Lord Heavenly Father, thank you for speaking to our hearts today about faith, about following your voice, and about the resources that you have given us. Please help us in all of these areas to be good stewards over what you have given us so freely! Help us to know you more and to grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ!
In Jesus Name we love you! Amen and Amen!!!
Benediction
Benediction
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
THE LORD BLESS YOU!
YOUR MISSION STARTS NOW!