Sermon – Jan 10

Text: Matthew 2:1-12
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.”
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 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. 5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

6 ‘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.’”

7 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.

God’s Word Gives Clarity
Dear fellow redeemed in Christ:

Misunderstandings are terrible things. They can cause arguments and fights. Reputations can be ruined because of misunderstandings. We all like to understand and maybe even more so, we like to be understood. What a relief there is when we have that moment of clarity and realize what’s going on. It’s like having the light turned on.

In this familiar account of the wise men coming to see Jesus, we can see where a lack of clarity caused all sorts of problems. King Herod got all worked up. The city of Jerusalem became agitated because of him, and eventually he killed many babies in Bethlehem because he did not understand what Jesus was all about. God’s Word could have provided him with the needed information. The wise men could have avoided going to King Herod all together in their search for Jesus had they know where the prophecy was concerning the place of his birth. But in knowing God’s Word, they were richly rewarded and justified in their worship. Today we can learn from what went wrong in not knowing God’s Word, and the blessings that occur when we have the clarity it provides. May the Holy Spirit open our hearts to receive His message.

1. Herod had no need to be troubled
We’re told in verse 3 of how Herod was troubled when he heard that a King of the Jews had been born. He saw Jesus as a competitor for his throne. To add to the problem was the fact that he was a paranoid and ruthless man. It was said of him that it was preferable to be his dog instead of a family member because he ended up killing so many of his ow family. He jealousy guarded his throne, and as soon as he heard that there was another King out there, his ears perked up. Even though he was not a Jew, he was on the throne over Jews and was constantly thinking that he was going to be overthrown. All Jerusalem was troubled also. The people there knew that they were dealing with a violent, unpredictable man, and when he was upset they walked around on eggshells so that he wouldn’t put them to the sword. So the wise men unknowingly caused an uproar.

This was not the fault of the wise men. If Herod had been aware of what Jesus was all about, he would have found out that there was no reason for him to be worried. Jesus had no interest in the throne of Judea. Both His friends and His enemies thought He did, but during His life he repeatedly pointed ahead to His suffering and death. He came to win souls for a heavenly kingdom, not to make a power grab for the throne of a rinky-dink country. Even if He would have taken over the Roman Empire what was that to Him? Jesus rules over a far more important and lasting kingdom. Earthly kingdoms are nothing compared to the kingdom of God.

There’s a lesson in this for us. How often do we make untrue assumptions that end up hurting us? This is especially true when there is lack of knowledge concerning what Jesus is all about. Even though we have the complete works of God in written form, easily accessible, we still make the mistake of Herod and others that don’t look at Jesus in a spiritual manner.

Even if we don’t buy into Jesus being an earthly King, we have expectation of Him to focus on the care of our physical needs rather than our spiritual needs. We can become upset with Him if are not provided for in a way in which we think is adequate. I knew a woman in another state who was so upset with God for the way in which her mother suffered as she died from cancer that she stopped having anything to do with Jesus. You’ve probably heard people say when there’s a terrible calamity, ‘How could a loving God allow that to happen?’ Here is where clarity is needed. Nobody endured suffering or loss like Jesus did. And He did it in order to save people eternally. He never said there wouldn’t be bad times on this earth, but He did come in order to provide a way for an eternity in which you will not lack a thing.

2. There was a need for more information beyond what the star could provide
We find that the Scriptures were essential in providing clarity for the magi from the east as well. They were astronomers from Babylon, and how they knew what this star meant is mostly supposition. We do know that the prophet Daniel himself was a wise man in Babylon centuries before, and this is our best guess as to how the magi knew that the appearance of this particular star meant that the King of the Jews had been born. They said to Herod, We have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.

This was a most unusual star. It led them to Palestine, then it seemingly disappeared. Then after the chief priests and scribes indicated that Bethlehem was the place of this King’s birth, then the star led them to the very house where Jesus was. We read in verse 9, Behold [This word is like an arrow] the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. Somehow this star was high enough in the sky so that they could see it from Babylon, yet low enough once they got there to reveal the exact house. It was indeed a miracle. Nothing like that has happened before or since, nor can anybody really explain it.

Yet, most importantly, without the intervention of God’s Word they would have had to go door to door in Israel to try to find Jesus. The Word provided clarity. In fact, if they had gone to the synagogue rather than Herod’s palace a whole lot of trouble could have been avoided. In fact, it should have been that anyone on the street could have answered the question. God had told them where this Ruler was to be born, but most had stopped watching for Him. Wouldn’t you think that maybe from the time of Micah forward that special attention would be given to all the babies born in Bethlehem? Once again, God’s Word was needed to clear things up.

In the same way, we can go a certain distance in solving our problems, but there are limitations. For example, we have come a long, long way in the medical world. Just think of how many lives are saved by immunizations. There are several people here who wouldn’t be alive today if they had lived in a different era. Yet even with all that medical technology nobody can live forever. Death comes for us all. There is no surgery by which you can remove sin from the soul. God’s Word reveals that this was only done by the work of Jesus and the shedding of His precious blood.

We live in a very affluent society. A new phrase in my household is, “That’s a first world problem.” Maybe your biggest inconvenience during the day is the battery is dead in your remote and you actually have to get out of your chair to turn the channel. Yet no matter how much you accumulate you cannot take it with you. God’s Word reveals that there are treasures in heaven that do last forever, where moth and rust cannot destroy, and that it was this Jesus who became poor that you might become rich.

3. The wise men were justified in their worship
God’s Word also gives the clarity to know that you are on the right path. The wise men had come a long way, and were willing to part with their riches, as they worshiped this King of kings. 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.

Their faith was rewarded in that they were able to be in the presence of their Lord and Savior. The journey was worth it. God’s Word confirmed to them what they were looking for was in the Bethlehem and this had been prophesied for years. They even had a follow up visit as they were divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod. This was another indication that they had made the right choices.

So also it is worth it to you to continue in your pursuit of Jesus and His righteousness. Doubts may creep into your mind as you wonder, is it worth it? We’ve all made sacrifices for Christ whether it is a choice in lifestyle. Maybe it’s choosing to resist certain temptations, or even just hold our tongue in check. We’ve made sacrifices of our time to worship here or in a private devotion at home. Like the wise men, we’ve give up some of our possessions to support the work of God’s Kingdom. Is it worth it?

God reveals in His Word that it is. You are where you need to be this morning. You are on the right track in attempting to draw closer to your God, praise Him, and learn more about Him. You know the saying that no one on their death bed says that they wished they spent more time at the office. I don’t know of anybody on their death bed that regrets their relationship with Christ. Maybe they wish that they had spent more time being involved with Him, but never less. He promises a resurrection to everlasting life for all who believe in Him.

So I bring you the encouragement today to seek clarity from God’s Word. Not only is it the solution for problems and misunderstandings that we have, but it also can be used to prevent such occurrences. Amen.