INTRODUCTION

Read Matthew 2:1-12, Luke 2:8-14

1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Matthew 2:1-12 (NIV)

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

Luke 2:8-14 (NIV)

For the last two weeks I’ve been promoting the idea, the belief I have that there is amazing positive potential residing in the Christmas celebration that exists because of the foundation of Christmas which is the historical account of the incarnation – “God with Us”

It is a story that pretty everybody in this part of the world is familiar with to some degree. But what many don’t realize is that we each have a part in this story! You see the incarnation – upon which Christmas is based – isn’t a complete story. How it ends in your life depends on you. The chain of events that happened over two thousand years ago were initiated by God’s choice to make His salvation available to everyone including you and me. He created potential, the possibility for a relationship with Him. But our part is what we’re going to do with the offer.

In looking at the story of the incarnation, you can’t help but notice that there different responses to the circumstances that happened. Responses that are foretell similar reactions we find today with people who come face to face with the Christmas potential.

Let’s start by looking at the response of King Herod and Jerusalem when they heard the news of the special baby.

Response of King Herod and Jerusalem…

Some observations:

First, notice that the news of the baby was delivered to King Herod (and Jerusalem) by some wise men (who were perhaps unwitting messengers sent by God to the people of Jerusalem – notice that the star first led them to Jerusalem [vs9]) Ultimately it was God who was delivering this message to the people of Jerusalem.

Second, notice that scripture records them as being disturbed. There are many ways of translating or describing the meaning of this word: agitated, troubled, inward commotion, take away calmness of mind, disquieted, restless, stirred up, anxious or distressed, perplexed (Strong’s Greek Number 5015). Whatever way you choose to describe the emotional behaviour of the people of Jerusalem, it is important to note that there was something about the Magi’s search that set the presses rolling and the gossip mill running and this disturbance led to their response. Why were they so disturbed? Well let’s look at King Herod first.

King Herod’s response…

Recall the magi’s question, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

I think there’s some important background information we have to look at in order to understand why this question would be so disturbing to Herod.

Background information on Herod “the Great”:

The Bible records history. It has proven itself an accurate and reliable record of people, events, and places. Independent historical accounts verify the Bible’s descriptions and details of many famous lives. One of these was the father of the Herodian family, Herod the Great.

Herod is remembered as a builder of cities and the lavish rebuilder of the temple in Jerusalem. But he also destroyed people. He showed little greatness in either his personal actions or his character. He was ruthless in ruling his territory. His suspicions and jealousy led to the murder of several of his children and the death of his wife Mariamne.

Herod’s title, king of the Jews, was granted by Rome but never accepted by the Jewish people. He was not part of the Davidic family line, and he was only partly Jewish. Although Israel benefited from Herod’s lavish efforts to repair the temple in Jerusalem, he won little admiration because he also rebuilt various pagan temples. Herod’s costly attempt to gain the loyalty of the people failed because it was superficial. His only loyalty was to himself. (taken from Life Application Bible Study Notes – Character Study of Herod the Great)

Into the life of this man comes these men from the East with their question about the one who has been born King of the Jews. Note that they did not question if this king had been born but where he was. They spoke with absolute conviction that this king had indeed already been born!

So, why would Herod be disturbed then?

1. Herod was not the rightful heir to the throne of David and he knew it! Therefore many Jews hated him as a usurper. If this baby really was an heir – there could be a threat to his power.

2. Herod was ruthless and as is the case with people who are relentless and are careless about the enemies they make to gain power – there is always the worry and concern that someone is plotting to get him out of power.

3. Herod didn’t want the Jews, a religious people, to unite around a religious figure as that could further enflame the discontent in the territory he was overseeing and any rioting or rebellion that got out of hand could draw the attention of Rome and cause him to lose his place of power.

4. If these Magi were of Jewish descent and from Parthia (the most powerful region next to Rome), they would have welcomed a Jewish king who could swing the balance of power in the area away from Ceasar. The land of Israel, far from Rome, would be easy prey for a nation trying to gain more control.

In the end Herod’s response was to reject the news of the baby.

Notice I didn’t say that He didn’t believe that what the magi was saying was true. BUT Herod chose not to accept the news. Rejection is very much the response of people who don’t believe something to be true but it is also the response of people who don’t want something to be true – even though they know it is.

Of all the reasons I brought forward for why Herod would be troubled by this news there is one thing that stands out. And that is that this baby threatened Herod’s identity – He was king – and if this baby was king somebody would be going. Herod spent most of his life rising to power through ruthless and cunning and despicable means. Listen to me closely – Herod had built his entire life around His rule as King and in turn his life depended on his kingship. Without it, he was nothing and he would be defenseless against those he trampled to get there. Herod had defined himself by his title and position as king.

Ultimately Herod’s response to the disturbing news of the wise men was to try to cover up and actually prevent this baby from becoming king. When you read further in the story you find him sending his soldiers to kill every boy in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two and under.

APPLICATION:

– some people choose to reject the good news because it threatens their identity – now your identity may be based on your job, or your family, or your position in society, or your possessions…

– some people just don’t like the idea that they are a sinner or that they are lost or that they are doomed and will seek to cover it up any way they can…maybe it won’t be on the level of Herod’s cover-up but nevertheless their rejection becomes an active force in pushing away the good news of Christ.

People in Jerusalem’s response…

So there we have the first response – Herod rejected the news of the baby.

But Herod wasn’t the only one disturbed by the wise men’s question. I find it astonishing that verse 3 says, all Jerusalem with him was disturbed!! You would think that the people of Jerusalem who were predominately Jews