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The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
Sermon Notes – December 15, 2024 Rev. Cliff Jones, Guest Preacher “Find Your Focus for Christmas” Matthew 2: 1 – 20 Two weeks ago, we talked about Christmas manger scenes and the missing piece. Do you remember what animal I suggested you add to your nativity set at home? (Pause) You remembered! A crocodile, representing King Herod who sought to kill the baby Jesus. The crocodile in the manger reminds us of the evil and brutality that still exists today in our world, yet, we also remember, God’s power is greater. God power is greater. Now, I’d like to return to Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth to find different responses to the birth of Jesus. As we look at these responses, my hope is you will: Find your Focus for Christmas. Let’s read Matthew 2: 1 - 20. 2 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him, 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet: 6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ” 7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” 9 When they had heard the king, they set out, and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen in the east, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. 13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.” 16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the magi. 17 Then what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.” 19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 20 “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” Fifteen helicopters had just zoomed over my sister-in-law’s house in Annapolis and she was calling with the news: “The eagle has landed!” The helicopters were carrying an earlier President and dignitaries to the Naval Academy. Now, I would imagine there was a crowd outside the gates of the Academy. There always is. There’d be supporters, clapping and waving little American flags. Then, there’d be protestors, yelling and carrying signs. One event, one person; two different reactions. And, it was the same for Jesus: one event - the birth, one person - Jesus; two different reactions. On the one hand, there’s Herod. You remember Herod the crocodile, the murderous man who killed his mother-in-law, his uncle, his son, his wife, 2 other sons and the 300 soldiers who pleaded for the sons’ lives, who slaughtered women and children in the siege of Jerusalem, who murdered infants 2 years and younger when he couldn’t find the baby Jesus, who decreed that when he died, one person in each household should be killed so that the nation would have something to cry about. We understand when it says in verse 3, that Herod was ‘frightened’, or as other translations say “disturbed”. Paranoid Herod would not take well the news of a new king born in his territory. He shows us a murderous reaction. But, not only did Herod react. It says that “all Jerusalem was (troubled) with him.” So, think about the chief priests and scribes, whom Herod consulted. They were not notified in advance of a king, possibly the Christ’s birth. They may be thinking how come they were left in the dark and it was these pagan non-Jewish wise men who got the message? They would not react well to the news of this birth. And, the general population? They would be worried, wondering how Herod would react to the news. So, we have a range of reactions, from murderous, to negative, to neutral reactions. Matthew includes these to prepare us for these reactions throughout Jesus’ life. Before Jesus even begins his public ministry, Satan tries to de-rail him. When Jesus heals a man in the synagogue on the Sabbath, the religious leaders begin to plot to kill him. It all leads up to Jesus’ death - and he warns us that those who follow Jesus will experience persecution and negative reactions as well. There are still negative and neutral reactions today about Jesus. Of course, there are people who don’t like Jesus, who think He never existed, despite historical evidence. They want nothing to do with him. But, I’m thinking even more of people who welcome Christmas and Christ and have the best intentions, and want Christmas to be meaningful. But with all the activities, it’s hard. Can we just be honest? It’s hard to experience the wonder of Christmas again like a 5 year old child, or a new Christian still caught up in the wonder of Jesus coming to earth. I was asked this week if I missed leading worship services during Christmas. I told them that I actually had the opportunity of leading worship this week here at Blackwood, which is great, but then, I went on to say that after so many decades trying to think of something new to say about each Christmas to make it meaningful… I did not miss that pressure. But, we lose some of the glow of Christmas, don’t we, with the decorating, and baking, and making and mailing Christmas cards; shopping, and buying, and preparing, and cooking - and cleaning, and after Christmas, we feel like collapsing! Yes, we want a meaningful, spiritual Christmas, but all too often, it feels like we’re trying to pump air into a leaky bicycle tire or basketball. But, there’s another part to the account of Jesus’ birth. Wise men come looking for Jesus. We picture them as kings, but… they weren’t. These wise men are called, ‘magi’, a word used in two other places in the Bible. Paul the apostle (Acts 13: 6) encounters a man who was called a ‘magus’, the singular form of ‘magi’. He is a sorcerer, or magician. Peter the apostle comes in contact in Acts 8: 9 with Simon, popularly called Simon Magus. He, too practices magic. Magi were understood to have special powers to interpret dreams, or practice magic or see into the future by interpreting the movement of stars. The magi in Jesus’ story seem to be this kind, using the stars and heavenly events as signs from God about the future. Somehow, they interpreted the sky and came looking for a Jewish king. And, early on, Christians who heard this account of foreigners coming from another nation began to connect it to Isaiah, chapter 60, which predicts that “The Lord’s glory will be seen in Israel…and kings to the brightness of your rising.” Soon enough, the magi became kings, and, specifically 3, since 3 gifts are mentioned. In the Roman catacombs, pictures of the wise men appear crudely painted on the walls, 200 years before any pictures of shepherds and bleating sheep. It wasn’t until the 1500s and the Christian Protestant revolution that the magi were overtaken in the popular mind by the shepherds. The magi come to find Jesus, and when they do find him, they do something. The word used here is proskuneiv. It means to fall down before someone, to bow the knee, out of respect. It can also mean worship. Each time it’s used, you have to ask, “is this person bowing down out of respect, or is it worship?” Matthew 8, a leper kneels before Jesus and asks for healing. Is that respect or worship? Matthew 9, a father bows before Jesus on behalf of his deathly ill daughter; an act of desperation or worship? A woman begs Jesus on her knees to heal her daughter; is this recognition of who Jesus or a bowing, out of custom? And, for the magi come, it says, “Falling down, they proskuneo(d) him.” Is this respect, or worship? You decide. I think for many of us, we would decide, the wise men come to worship Jesus. They come to honor a king, who is more than a king, the King of the Universe, and they bow down and worship him. And, that is what we want to do as well, this Christmas, to worship Jesus. But, amid all the busyness, all the rush, and hearing the Christmas story for so many years, it’s hard to worship. It’s hard to worship. So, how do we focus in on worshipping Jesus? How do we do the Christmas thing and still focus in on Jesus? If I had the answer, I could write a book and make millions! But, if we, like the wise men, focus on worshipping Jesus, appreciating the gift of Jesus born into our world, taking on human flesh, having human nature, knowing intimately what it’s like to live in our skins, dying and rising victorious for us, overcoming the powers of evil, living to intercede for us (Hebrews) giving us his Spirit, I think we can at least move closer to worship. Let’s think creatively about how we can focus in on worshipping Jesus:
The gift the magi brings is worship. What will you bring to Jesus this day for Christmas? INTRODUCTION: The crocodile Herod, yet God is greater We will find different reactions to Jesus’ birth. Read Trans: The eagle has landed: one event, one person; two different reactions
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