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Week:01, Season:1,
2015
Posted on Saturday by PCT
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Accept or Deny？
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Scripture：《
Matthew 2:1-12
》
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 when it rose 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 Messiah 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 shepherd 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 search carefully 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 when it rose 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, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
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Today is the first Sunday of the year and also one of the most important Sundays in the Christian church calendar, “Epiphany of the Lord.” According to the tradition of church festivals, the time starting from “Advent” (the four Sundays before Christmas), Christmas Day (25th December) to Epiphany (6th January) is called “the Christmas Cycle” which celebrates that the Lord Jesus is the light of the world shining into the darkness.
Following the shining star
It is traditional to read the Bible passage in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 2, verses 1 to 12 at Epiphany. This passage is about the Magi (in Today’s Chinese version Bible, they are called “astrologists”) who predicted important events or people to be born through observing the changing positions of the stars.
One night “the three wise men” suddenly saw an extraordinary star shining in the dark night. According to their expertise and great experience, this showed a sign that a special king was to be born. After a discussion, the three wise men decided to journey to follow the star to search for this special king. They packed their luggage, carried gifts for the new born king and started on their journey with the star to guide them. So three wise men left their homes, friends and families, and carried precious gifts on the road. They came from the east and determined to follow the star to search for the truth. After a long journey on a rugged road, they finally arrived in Jerusalem to worship the new born king, Lord Jesus.
As soon as they arrived in the city of Jerusalem, they knew that the new born king was near. They all got very excited and questioned people around, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews？ We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” Somehow, in this Bible story, the three wise men were not clever enough to find the “King of the Jews” without seeking Herod’s help.
Where is the king of the Jews？
News of the three wise men’s searching for the king of the Jews soon came to the ears of Herod, who was an evil, sceptical and cruel king sitting on the throne through the support of the government of Rome. Herod was prepared to use any means to secure his throne and to kill anyone daring to threaten him.
Therefore, when King Herod heard that the three wise men were searching for the king of the Jews, he was worried and disturbed. He kept thinking, “Who is this Messiah and where is he to be born？” ”Why did these Magi who are foreigners say, ‘We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him？’” So all Jerusalem, all the officers of King Herod were disturbed because their king was worried.
King Herod thus called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, who were the religious leaders and who knew the Old Testament best. King Herod asked them, “Where was this Messiah to be born？” These chief priests and teachers of the law, who were experts about the Old Testament immediately answered without reading the this, “In Bethlehem in Judea, for this is what the prophet has written: ‘“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.’” (Micah 5:2)
Then Herod secretly called the Magi and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” What King Herod said to the Magi sounds as if he were keen to worship Jesus but in fact, this was his scheme to use the wise men to find this “king of the Jews” in order to send his soldiers to eliminate this threat to his authority.
After the three wise men had heard King Herod, they went on their way. Suddenly, the star they had seen appeared again and guided them until it stopped over the place where baby Jesus was born. The wise men came to the house and saw baby Jesus with his mother Mary. They bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Different response to Jesus
From this Bible passage, we see two different responses people often have to the birth of Jesus. The three wise men are not God’s chosen people; they could not receive clear inspiration from God or understand the Bible precisely like the chief priests and the teachers of the law did. But God sent them an extraordinary star to guide them. In addition, Jesus was not the king for these wise men but they still cared about the birth of this new born king, were willing to come to Jesus, accepted him, offered precious gifts and worshipped this “king of the Jews.” What the wise men demonstrated is the attitude of opening one’s heart to accept Jesus.
Another completely different attitude from this Bible passage is the responses from King Herod and the religious leaders. The reason that King Herod wanted to know about the prophecy in the Old Testament was to secure his own power and safety. He even wanted to kill Jesus through finding him with the clue in the Bible. As for the experts of the Old Testament, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, quite ironically, they did not rejoice about the good news of Jesus or want to worship him; rather, they were King Herod’s accomplices. What King Herod and the religious leaders showed was an attitude of rejecting Jesus.
Today, if you were witnessing the birth of Jesus, which attitude would you have？ Accept or reject him？
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For discussion：
1. What you will do in practice to celebrate the birth of Jesus？ How did you obey and accept his authority？ Why？
2. What gift will you offer to Jesus？ Why？
3. why did the three wise men present gold, frankincense and myrrh to Jesus？
Please pray for：
1. Church ministers, elders and deacons. May God give them a humble heart to obey the authority and guidance of Jesus.
2. Church brothers and sisters. May God help them to know and love Jesus more through his Word.
3. Yourself. May the Holy Spirit work on you and shine into the darkness inside you; may the Holy Spirit awaken you to admit your wrongdoing and help you to repent to be a true follower of Jesus.
Prayer：
Merciful Lord, help us to read and study the Bible often as this not only increases our knowledge of the Bible but also helps us to love Jesus more deeply. Help all church brothers and sisters to be like the three wise men, to honour, to be loyal and devoted to you. Help our love for you not only to stay in our minds but also to become a motive to act for you. In the name of Christ. Amen.
Something you can do：
1. This year, promote a Bible study project in your church and fellowship; encourage one another to build a solid foundation of the Bible study and declare that Jesus is the head of the church.
2. Encourage yourself to carry your own Bible to Sunday worship on every Sunday this year; try to arrive at church thirty minutes early to prepare your heart to worship with humility and to be ready to receive God’s teachings.
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