Matthew 2
COMMENTARY:
: 2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. (4352 “worship” [proskuneo] means prostate oneself before, kneel, fall at another’s feet, bow low, to salute, or to kiss.)
DEVOTION: The wise men came from the east to prostrate themselves before this child. They had seen HIS star in the east and followed it to Jerusalem where they asked the present king where HE could be found.
The chief priests and scribes went to the Old Testament to find where the Messiah was to be born. They found the passage that stated that HE was to be born in Bethlehem. They knew the Old Testament well enough to find this verse but not well enough to realize that HE was coming as a suffering servant first.
Once the wise men found out where to go they left for Bethlehem to kneel before Jesus. They were genuine in their thoughts of saluting this new King that had come into the world. They knew HE was unique. That is the reason they traveled so far.
On arrival at the house where Mary and Joseph had their young son they fell down and saluted Jesus. They gave HIM gifts. They were told by an angel not to go back the same way they came.
Why? Because Herod told them that they were to report back to him so that he could salute Jesus. He was lying. He wanted to kill him and the LORD knew his purpose.
There are those who truly want to worship Jesus and others who are fakers. This is true of people who come to church on Sunday. Some of them are there just for social contact or other purposes. It is not to truly worship Jesus.
Too often church can be used as a place to pick up a date or find someone who needs help and the person wants to take advantage of that person. The focus is on self rather than on the LORD. It is hard to see the motives of the person sitting in church. The LORD can give wisdom to those who are genuine worshipers if they ask the LORD for wisdom from above regarding starting a relationship with them.
CHALLENGE: Even relationship in church need to be those who ask for wisdom from the LORD. The motive for attendance can be seen through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
: 3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. (5015 “troubled” [tarasso] means agitate, disturbed, distress, to cause inward commotion, to disquiet, make restless, or to strike one’s spirit with fear and dread.)
DEVOTION: Jealousy can be a killer in people. Here we have the king of the area but didn’t want any competition. He wanted to know where Christ was born to kill HIM not worship HIM. He lied to the wise men.
We find that after the wise men never returned that he sent soldiers to kill all the children that were two years old and younger. He knew about how old the LORD was go be at the time and had any and all children in the area hoping to kill this future king.
He didn’t have all the facts. He didn’t know that Christ was coming the first time as a suffering servant. He didn’t have to worry about his throne. What he did was fulfill Old Testament references to the coming Messiah.
God’s Word is always TRUE. It is going to be fulfilled by people who don’t realize that they are helping others understand that God is working a plan HE set up before the foundation of the world. HE gave HIS prophets insight into the future, so that, when they wrote it down people could see that HE was in control. We need to understand that the Bible has given us enough information for us to know what happened in the past was part of God’s plan and what is going to happen in the future is part of God’s plan.
CHALLENGE: It is going to disturb those who are against the LORD but encourage those who are followers of the LORD. Do the times we are living in encourage you or discourage you?
: 11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (3813 “young child” [paidion] means a half-grown boy or girl, an infant, or a little boy or a little girl.)
DEVOTION: This Greek word is used seven times in this chapter to refer to Jesus. The wise men met Jesus and his family in a house. The Bible says that Herod killed all the children two years old and younger. The wise men came much later than the birth of Jesus. We are not told how many wise men there were but that they gave three gifts. When we read the Scriptures, we need to make sure we understand what it is saying.
What is amazing is that the priests and scribes knew where to look for the birth of the coming Messiah. There was enough information for them to realize that the Messiah had come. What was their reaction: troubled. They were not excited. They were confused. They knew the Old Testament and that there was a coming Savior but they were troubled instead of joyful.
These were religious leaders who were more interested in keeping their status than in honoring the LORD. They were not looking forward to a Savior. They were not interested in going with the wise men to worship Jesus. They were just troubled.
We are to be students of the Word. The wise men were never at the manger with Jesus. It is interesting that the Bible tells us that Jesus was worshipped as a little boy. When we study the Word of God, we find that the angels refused worship because only God was to receive worship. The Bible is telling us early that not only was Christ virgin born but he was also worshipped by the wise men. It is our responsibility to worship the LORD. We don’t receive warnings in our dreams from the LORD regarding what to do next but the LORD directs us through HIS Holy Spirit. Are we listening to HIS directions?
Today we have many people who are troubled when they hear about their service to Jesus that comes along with their becoming a follower of HIM. They want the blessings but not the work. Once we become followers of Christ we have a responsibility to bring HIM gifts each day. Our worship is one of these gifts.
Are we worshiping the LORD daily? Does HE bring joy to our hearts each morning? Or does serving HIM trouble us?
CHALLENGE: Have a worship service in your home today. Sing praises. Read HIS word. Talk to HIM in prayer. Leave home with the joy of the LORD in your heart.
: 12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way. (5537 “warned” [chrematizo] means reveal divine message, be admonished of God, instruct, or to make known a divine revelation.)
DEVOTION: In this passage we find the LORD warning people in dreams. HE warned Joseph in a dream to marry Mary. HE warns the wise men here to not return to Herod to give him the location of Jesus. HE warned Joseph to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt to get away from Herod. Finally, an angel appeared in a dream to tell Joseph htat Herod was dead.
Once Joseph began to return to the Bethlehem he heard that Archelaus the son of Herod was reigning he went to Nazareth because he was afraid. He wasn’t warned of a angel in a dream to not go back to Bethlehem. He decided it was wiser to go to Nazareth where he originally came from before the census was taken. He knew people there.
Now with all these warning coming from angels in dreams we can assume that the LORD could use our dreams to warn us of coming problems in our life. When this doesn’t occur today what do we think?
Too often we hear of people who have dreams and visions today that say that the LORD spoke to them. Many times these are extra biblical revelations. Some people want us to believe that God is still speaking the Bible to people today. The Bible is closed, the only things that the Holy Spirit does today is give us more insight into what has already been revealed in the Bible. We don’t have to add to the Bible. It is not outdated. It is true today just as it was in the first century.
Sometimes after I have studied a passage of Scripture throughout the day the LORD will give me insight into the meaning of the passage during the night. We are to meditate on the Word of God.
CHALLENGE: Don’t look for more revelation to add to the Bible. Learn what it is saying to us today by meditating on it daily. Don’t wait for angels to come in your dreams for answers.
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