In today’s reading, 3 types of people immediately stand out.
1) The Magi: They were from a distant land. They worshiped false gods and used astrology to come up with all kinds of false and misleading teachings. However, God spoke to them through their study of the stars, and they headed out on a journey to find the real Jesus.
2) King Herod: Herod was known around the world for his spectacular building projects. This is the man who had it all and didn’t want to surrender any of it. He was the king of his own life. He didn’t want anyone else to tell him how to live his life.
3) The Religious People: They studied the Bible for years, and they “knew” the Scriptures, but they didn’t go after the real Messiah, because they had their own ideas of who God was, and what life should look like.
The truth is, we have all three of these characters inside of us. I invite you today to blog about that. What are some ways these three types of people have shown themselves throughout our lives?
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Friday, 26. February 2010
To me the wise men are the most interesting people in this chapter. The appearance of the star must have been an amazing cosmic event that set these men on a two year journey. I would love to be able to read their daily journal, the experiences they had as they traveled to Jerusalem.
You know that this story repeats itself many times over. Every time a person encounters God they are starting a journey towards Christ, except that this journey does not last two years only, but a lifetime.
Do you know why the Bible called these men from the east “wise?” It is not because they were astrologers, but because after they saw the star they were obedient to God and followed it for the purpose of worshiping the King of the Jews.
The Bible calls all those of us who are on this journey towards Christ “wise men” and women. Isn’t that awesome ?
Saturday, 27. February 2010
1) I certainly can relate to being like the Jews. Growing up I believe I was very self righteous and wanted life to be about glorifying my own effort and will power.
I think it is man’s predisposition to be like the religious Jews. We often criticize them for being “religious”, but their ultimate problem was that they were unbelieving and self righteous. A person can reject Christ and trust in his own character without being religious.
2) Matthew 2 is certainly an “epic” chapter. Herod was certainly a turkey. He killed countless babies while trying to kill off the Savior of the world! That’s pretty nuts. I think the Gentile Magi’s reception of Jesus and the Jewish opposition to Him are themes that will be developed more in this book and the New Testament in general.
Saturday, 27. February 2010
I’d like to believe that I’m like the magi – that in some of my studying and learning I’ve managed to come up with some truth. I would also like to believe that I would act on the truth I’ve found, like the magi did.
Like anyone else, I have some Herod in me – the desire to have things one’s own way. That pretty much gets suppressed by wanting to have peace with those around me, though. Not the noblest of motives, but it’s true.
I’m afraid of being like the religious people. Once you get some scripture under your belt, the temptation is to put together a system whereby you think you have it all figured out. I constantly have to challenge myself to chew on books and passages that make less sense to me or that don’t fit comfortably into “my theology.”
Sunday, 28. February 2010
The wise men or magi must have learned of the prophecies about the King of Kings from someone. I have always thought that it came from Daniel. Maybe not directly but indirectly. Daniel shared his faith while in captivity and influenced the world around him. He was a wise man and he even influenced King Darius in Dan 6:26 who in turn changed a nation! It stands to reason that the idea of the King of Kings
originated with Daniel.