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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Wednesday, 3 January 2024:
Matthew 2:1 – Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king.
Herod was one of the most powerful kings of his day, his ruins still remain visible to this day. But in the time of Herod, Jesus was born, without earthly wealth, without political power, and without grand acclaim. He had no armies and never built anything we can see today. It took incredible faith to believe that in the time of Herod, a small poor Jewish child was the Savior. Would you have believed then? Do you believe today? Do you believe enough to surrender your life to Him? Have you placed your complete trust in Him? Has He become your life’s purpose?
Matthew 2:1-7 – Wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him….”
“Herod… [assembled] all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him…. Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.” Very few people knew Gods’ word well enough to know that the time of Jesus was at hand – almost everyone completely missed it. However, among the very few who knew that the Messiah had come, even fewer sought Him out to honor Him as King. Some studied God’s words with intent to counter Jesus while others studied the same word in order to worship Him. Even armed with superior knowledge, some still chose to reject Jesus. The same remains true today. Elite Bible knowledge is required, but it isn’t enough. Ultimately, belief is a spiritual matter not an intellectual matter.
Matthew 2:8-14 — …he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him” ….an angel of the Lord appeared… and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.
A key theme for Matthew 2 is – two kings, two kingdoms, two choices. “Wise men” who clearly had been studying God’s word close enough to see the signs of the times, new the Christ had been born, knew were to find Him, and had the heart to make the hard journey to worship Him in costly ways. (Matthew 2:1-6) Only these God-seeking wisemen understood who the real KING was (is) and were willing to go out of their way to honor Him. However, Herod also had his chief priests and scribes who knew “where the Christ was to be born.” (Matthew 2:4). However, Herod wasn’t interested in worshipping Jesus but rather destroying Him, getting Him out of the picture, seeing Him not as His Lord and Savior but rather as a threat to His worldly kingdom. Though He understood Jesus was the Messiah, He would rather be in control of His own life (seemingly) than to acknowledge Christ as KING and submit to His authority. So, Herod, before eventually dying painfully from kidney disease and a rare infection which causes gangrene of the genitals, ended up killing “all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under,” (Genesis 2:16) in a futile effort to stop God’s plan of loving redemption through Jesus.
We see in Matthew two kings (Jesus and Herod), two Kingdoms (the Kingdom of God vs. the kingdom of man) and two choices – worship and follow Jesus for seek to eliminate Him. Every human on earth will choose their king and kingdom and who they will serve, whether they acknowledge that choice or not. One choice leads to eternal life, and the other choice leads to eternal pain and death. Some will choose to follow Jesus and be a part of the eternal Kingdom of God, and some will choose to follow some form of self-determination (often shrouded in some form of religion) and be a part of the doomed kingdoms of man. Notice that Herod, outwardly proclaimed his goal was to worship Jesus (Matthew 2:8), but in truth, His ‘religion’ was a destructive façade intended for personal gain.
Our readings in Matthew today give us an opportunity to reflect on what it means to us that Christ is KING and how that reality is evident in this world we live in and in our lives. Day-to-day, do we have the faith to go out of our way to worship in costly ways the KING who is unseen and unrecognized by most people who are placing their faith in worldly leaders, worldly teachers, worldly philosophies, and worldly systems, all futilely attempting to save us from our human condition? Will we seek first the Kingdom of God today or our earthly kingdom? Will loving Jesus and others be our ultimate priority today and the primary goal for which we plan and labor, or we be self-serving? Prayerfully reflect on your readings today.
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 3 January 2024: Love God and others today through intentional labors of love. Serve your KING, Jesus today by doing his bidding in every situation today and in every encounter with others. Love others as Christ loved you, wholly sacrificially and fully.
Defenders Bible Reading Plan 