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| Order Of Worship (Liturgy) Song of Praise TPH 313 (Angels from the Realms of Glory) Scripture Reading Philippians 2: 5-11; Matthew 2:1-2; 9-11 |
King of Kings and Lord of Lords
Beloved brothers and sisters of our Lord Jesus Christ, when Matthew wrote his account of the Gospel, he wrote it with a Jewish audience in mind. And, being a Jew himself, Matthew wanted to highlight the fact that Jesus was their long-awaited, much anticipated Messiah and King.
This is made clear right at the outset of His gospel – in Matthew 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Not only was Jesus the promised seed of Abraham, but he was also the promised son of David. Jesus was the fulfillment of the covenant which God made with David in 2 Samuel 7:16, Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.
That promise was repeated by Isaiah in chapter 9: 7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.
Matthew gives us a glimpse of Christ’s royal reign here in chapter 2. He is the only Gospel writer to record the visit of the wise men. These men come to Jerusalem, bearing gifts for him who was born “King of the Jews”. Boys and girls, even as a little baby Jesus was worshipped as king. Born thy people to deliver, born a child and yet a King, born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom bring.”
On this Christmas morning we are going to begin our consideration of the Lordship of our Savior Jesus Christ. Today, we’re going to look at the homage, the worship paid by the Wise Men. Then next week Thursday, on New Year’s Day, we are going to look at what it means that we call Jesus Lord. So just for today: we consider: The Homage Paid by the Wise Men
As I mentioned before, at the outset of the Scripture reading, our emphasis today is not going to be on Herod and his reaction to the visit of the wise men (his slaughtering of the babies of Bethlehem). Rather, our focus is going to be on the stunning visit of the wise men and the worship and homage they pay to the infant-king Jesus.
Verse 1 tells us that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, BEHOLD wise men (Magi) from the east came to Jerusalem. That word behold is the inspired, Biblical equivalent of a yellow highlighter. God wants to draw our attention to what is being said. It is a command for us to look deeper, to perceive, to take note of. Spurgeon said the word behold is a word of wonder designed to excite admiration.
Matthew uses the word behold 62 times in this gospel account – which tells us something about him as an author. As he wrote this Gospel account, he (like a little child) stood in constant awe and amazement of God and of His Son Jesus Christ! It’s just like a little child who looks out the window of the car, and everything he sees amazes him – he keeps saying “Look mommy! Look!”. (That’s a good reminder to us as we read God’s Word -- may we never lose our sense of the awe and wonder of the Gospel as we read God’s Word!).
So Matthew writes: BEHOLD wise men (Magi) from the east came to Jerusalem.
Who are these wise men, these Magi? We read about Magi in the book of Daniel. Magi, or wise men, were men of great knowledge whom the king would consult for advice and guidance or to interpret dreams or signs. Wise men or magi studied the stars and planets and constellations.
They looked for the movements of the stars which they believed were signs or portents of certain events – like the birth or the death of a king for example. That certainly fits with what is revealed by Matthew, because verse 2 tells us that these wise men from the east saw his star, and travelled to Jerusalem to worship the newborn king. (They came from the orient – think Mesopotamia or Babylon, modern day Iran or Iraq).
The journey would have been over one thousand miles one way, and it would have taken upwards of several months to complete. It would have been a very dangerous and expensive journey – so it was not a pleasure trip by any stretch of the imagination, and that highlights the determination and desire of their hearts to worship the king!
What these wise men saw (by way of a star) is not exactly clear. Some suggest it was a comet or constellation in the sky. But Matthew tells us that they saw His star, and that this star seemed to move or at least to guide them to the place (to the house) where they finally found the infant Jesus.
I believe that this was not a natural star at all, but rather it was a divinely appointed star. Much like the shekinah-glory-cloud that led Israel in the Old Testament, the Lord set this light, this star in the heavens for this one purpose – to light the way for these wise men to find Jesus.
We may also wonder -- how did these wise men come to know about Jesus? How did they make the connection between the appearance of this star and the birth of the Christ child? And what would compel them to leave their homes, and travel to this distant country all for his sake?
Based on everything Matthew reveals to us, and how they worshipped, we can safely conclude that these wise men “traversed afar” because God had worked saving faith in their hearts. So, when that sign (his star) appeared, God made it known that Christ was born; they believed, and they obeyed the call to worship – and they left to find the newborn king.
How was it possible for them to have faith? We can only speculate, but we can trace this back to the presence and influence of God’s people, like Daniel and the rest of Judah, who lived in Babylonian captivity for 70 years.
It’s ironic when you think of it this way – but how else can we explain this? Back then, the people of God were forced to live in the midst of a pagan nation, among a wicked and depraved generation, where the rulers deliberately changed their Hebrew names to Babylonian names, and tried to brainwash them, to reprogram them, so that they would forget their Hebrew God, forget their homeland, and just assimilate to Babylonian culture, religion and education.
But quite obviously, in spite of those attempts, the Lord kept a faithful remnant. There in that pagan land, Daniel and others with him (think of Esther and Mordecai) bore witness to the power of their God, YHWH, and how He alone is God, and how he alone can save! God even directed things so that the mighty rulers of these empires would look kindly on his people and put them in positions of influence and authority!
The mighty nations and empires of Babylon and Persia could not remove (or put out) the light and witness of the Lord God of Israel! Rather, God’s light shined in the darkness, and there were those among the Babylonian and Persian Empires who came to a saving knowledge of the Lord – and these wise men were evidence that 500 years later, there were still those who feared and loved and worshipped the Lord in pagan lands.
Perhaps that is why Matthew tells us to BEHOLD this -- so that the people in his day and ours would be amazed, that we would be encouraged to know that even as God’s people live in a pagan empire (like the Roman Empire) or a nation like Canada that is increasingly hostile to the Christian faith, the light of the Gospel can never be extinguished.
The power of the Gospel always prevails over the darkness of evil and unbelief. Remember Christ is an everlasting King; His kingdom endures forever. As we sing in the Hallelujah Chorus of Handel’s Messiah: “King of Kings and Lord of Lords! And He shall reign forever and ever!!
Now let’s take note of where the Magi were led. The star does not lead them directly to the town where Jesus was born, to Bethlehem, but instead God directs the wise men to Jerusalem. Why is that? God could have had them bypass Jerusalem, so why stop there?
By doing so, the Lord would set in motion a series of events that led to Herod’s slaughtering of the babies of Bethlehem, and it forced Joseph and Mary to take baby Jesus and flee to Egypt – so that the Scriptures would be fulfilled (Matt 2:15 “Out of Egypt I have called my Son).
But something else to notice: these wise men come to Jerusalem bearing gifts for a king, but they have no gifts for king Herod. They did not come to honor him. They did not come to worship him or to bow at his feet. They owe their honor, their worship and their allegiance to another! And no doubt that not only surprised, but it embarrassed and angered king Herod (a man of great anger and sinful pride).
After learning that the Christ child was to be born in Bethlehem they went on their way. And as they went, we’re told the star appeared once more above the place where the child was (vs 9), we’re told that they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy!
That’s a way of saying that their hearts and souls were thrilled beyond belief, their joy was an unconstrained joy – and it was all driven by their anticipation of finally seeing and meeting and worshipping Jesus – the object of their faith, their Savior and their Lord!
I’m reminded of what Psalm 122:1 says, I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord...” And there’s Psalm 27: 4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”
The Psalmist seems to have this same ‘exceedingly great joy’ in his heart at the thought of going into the presence of God to worship. This is the same joy that should fill the heart and soul of every believer – as we long to be in the presence of our Lord. In this life, there should be a natural and deep seated, overflowing joy, a sincere desire and anticipation to worship God, to be in the presence of our Lord, to seek him out and worship him.
And this truth also applies for the life to come – what greater comfort is there, what deeper joy, what brighter hope is there than the knowledge that after this veil of tears is over, when we have come to the end of our earthly pilgrimage, as sorrowful as it will be to depart and to bid ‘farewell for now’ to family and friends, that sorrow and sadness disappears in a moment, in a flash, in the blinking of an eye, and then we find ourselves standing in the presence of our Lord, our Savior and our God. There is no joy on earth that can be compared to that – and that is what we long for and anticipate even as we live this life!
Going on in verse 11, we’re told that the Magi went into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him. What an amazing scene this must have been for Mary and Joseph. To see these complete strangers -- men traveling a great distance – all to fall down at the feet of this baby, Mary’s son, and worship him.
Earlier we read Philippians 2: 10 At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth. That passage is talking about the final exaltation of Christ – where he who humbled himself to death, even death on the cross, and there on the cross descended to the depths of hell, all for sinner’s sake, to pay the ransom for our sins – he is the same one that God will lift up, will raise up from the dead, and glorify and exalt and give the name that is above every name!
This scene here in Matthew 2 is a foreshadowing of that final state of glory! And isn’t it so amazing, so wonderful to see that even in Christ’s state of humiliation, where he is despised and rejected by men, where he will suffer and die a cruel death on the cross, there are these glorious episodes throughout Christ’s life and ministry where his glory shines through, where Christ is recognized, where Christ is received and where Christ is worshipped as Lord and King!
In Luke’s account, it was the angels and the shepherds. Here in Matthew, it is the wise men. After falling down at his feet in worship and adoration, they opened their treasures and offered Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myth – gifts fit for a king.
Much has been written about what these gifts represent: 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 (since it was used for embalming). Another commentator wrote: "Unquestionably the gifts were chosen appropriately: gold for His deity and majesty, frankincense for the fragrance of His life and His intercession, and myrrh for His sacrifice and death."
Matthew mentions nothing about the symbolism of these gifts, and we shouldn’t fret about their meaning. Practically, these gifts were very valuable and Joseph and Mary no doubt needed these gifts as they escaped to Egypt, so God provided much needed traveling money through these gifts.
But the greater point which we are to BEHOLD here -- with eyes and hearts of faith – is that from the moment of his birth, Jesus was worshipped and glorified as King of kings and Lord of lords!! These wise men from the Orient fall down before him in worship, and so too, should we, and everyone in our world today.
Just as the Christmas angel proclaimed to the shepherds, “For unto you is born this day, in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord.” Amen.
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