Godly Wisdom

Good morning, friends. My name is Daniel. I'm a pastor at Church of the Messiah, and like George said, a very hopeful church planter.

We're looking to plant a church in Canada, and yeah, it has been a tough go, but these are the times where it seems like God shows off a bit,

when things seem very implausible, maybe even impossible, and the Lord shows up so that all the glory will unmistakenedly be given to him.

So pray for us. It's a real joy this morning to open up God's word. Yeah, we'll get right into it. Let me pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for your goodness and kindness to us. Lord, open our eyes to see our ears, to hear our hearts,

to understand what your word would say to us by your spirit. In Jesus' name. Amen.

So, first Sunday of 2021, and I have some wise advice for you guys. And here it is.

Do not invest in Blockbuster video. Instead, invest in Netflix.

Before you go on and say Blockbuster doesn't exist, it technically does exist.

There's one location still around. I think it's in Oregon.

And they are still traded on the stock market, at least as of New Year's Eve 2020, when I was putting this together.

It still trades. The stock is down 17.5%.

So, if you want to buy a share of Blockbuster, you can buy one for 7 one-hundredths of a penny.

So, a good deal, probably not given that. It just went down 17.5%.

Meanwhile, Netflix, you know, it's worth something like $30 billion.

This is not wise advice.

I say this as a big joke because, ironically, Blockbuster had a chance to buy Netflix back in the late 90s.

And they laughed at the founders.

Anyways, I don't bring up the story to talk about Blockbuster's blunders.

But just to simply say that this is obvious advice.

There's nothing wise about this.

But if I was to tell you this back in 1999,

I don't know.

That would be pretty ridiculous advice.

I would be probably the smartest, most financially savvy 13-year-old at the time.

But it's interesting how wisdom proves itself with the passage of time.

Time and again, this current generation,

talks as if we are the most wise generation that has ever existed.

The people that went before us, they were dummies.

Maybe not dummies, but not as progressively advanced as us.

George kind of cracks a joke about how just because people didn't have flush toilets

doesn't mean they weren't smart.

But we treat it kind of like that.

As time goes by, we somehow fall into this fallacy that we are the wisest.

That the prevailing wisdom of the moment is the wisdom of all the ages.

But it's not quite true.

You know, it's interesting.

The prevailing wisdom, 150, 140, whatever years ago,

from both political parties here in Canada,

was to forcibly remove indigenous children from their families

and put them in residential schools.

And we know that there's been an absolute...

There's horror stories of that.

That was prevailing wisdom from our cultural and political elites.

The intelligent people at the time.

And I'm not looking back on them and saying,

listen, tear down all the statues.

I'm just making a point that that was the prevailing wisdom.

The prevailing wisdom in the 30s was to turn a boat away

that was seeking safe harbor at our shores in Canada

that had almost a thousand Jewish people in it.

And that boat was sent back to Europe.

And a quarter of those people died in Nazi camps.

That was prevailing wisdom at the time.

It's interesting that our culture prides itself

at being the tip of the sword.

And yet time and again,

the future generations look back just a generation prior

and they are ashamed.

Or people in the current culture

that are more historically minded,

they'll look back and say,

hey, listen, we're following the same follies

that happened yesteryear.

But either way, there is this kind of hubris

that says we are the smart ones

and those people are, they're backwards.

And we have huge national apologies

and restitution and all of these,

I guess, noble-minded things

to correct the mistakes of the past

while failing to understand

that we're likely creating those same mistakes

in the present.

So where can we find wisdom?

Real wisdom.

A wisdom that doesn't just last one generation,

but lasts multiple generations,

maybe forever.

Where can we find this wisdom?

It's a worthwhile thing to consider

on the first Sunday of the new year.

And George just read the biblical story

of the Magi or the wise men

venturing from the east to pay homage

and worship the Christ child in Bethlehem.

I think, and we will see this morning,

that this passage, this biblical story

is full of examples of real wisdom.

Wisdom that has lasted

not just one or two generations,

but has lasted up until the present

from 2,000 years prior.

That this is wisdom that is eternal.

So if you have your Bible,

please turn with me to Matthew chapter 2,

Matthew 2:1–12

verses 1 to 12.

I'll be reading out of the same version

that George was reading,

the English Standard Version.

So we'll get into the text in a minute,

but we'll see just a few aspects

of what godly, real, eternal wisdom looks like.

And there's three things I'm going to touch on.

The first thing is that real, godly, eternal wisdom,

this text will show us that it is inclusive.

That it is also authentic and humble.

And finally, it is courageous.

And it is something that has deep conviction.

So inclusive, authentic and humble and courageous.

So let's look at the first one, inclusive.

So it's important to put this text into context.

So this is the passage that is traditionally read

on the Feast of Epiphany.

Epiphany on the Christian calendar

will be this upcoming Wednesday, January 6th.

And like George mentioned,

it is the end, it marks the end of the 12 days of Christmas.

And it is traditionally understood

as the Epiphany of Christ to the Gentiles

or to the nations or to the non-Jewish people.

And the Magi are these non-Jewish people.

Although there were instances throughout the Old Testament

of non-Jews being included in the people of God,

we can think of Ruth.

We can think of Moses' wife, Zipporah.

Esther, well, Esther was, but man, so is Ruth.

Rahab is what I was thinking of.

That these are key people in the biblical story

that were not Jews,

but were considered a part of God's people.

But by far, the majority of God's people

in the Old Testament were from the historical

ethnic seed of Abraham.

They were Jewish people.

And although it's very clear throughout Scripture

that God's desire was for all the nations to worship him,

that the Jewish people had a special job

to be the light to the nations,

and they failed at that.

And by the time Jesus' birth comes around,

there was suspicion among the Jewish people

against non-Jews.

And it's understandable.

There was conquering nations that would come in.

There was constant falls into,

falling into idolatry.

There was almost like a colonization,

first of the Greeks,

and then eventually the Romans.

All probably legitimate reasons

to be suspicious of non-Jews,

but the point is they were suspicious,

and this is not what God had called them to.

So in walked the Magi,

right off the bat in Matthew chapter 2.

Matthew 2 · chapter mention

And they were most certainly not Jewish.

They come from the East,

and we're not sure exactly where in the East.

The text doesn't tell us maybe Persia,

maybe Babylon.

They were diviners.

They were astrologers.

Not in the way kind of NASA does astrology,

but they look to the stars for prophecy and for signs.

All these things, interestingly,

were things that the Hebrew scriptures forbade.

The point is these people were as far from Jewish

as a part of the in crowd as you could get.

And yet, they are juxtaposed here by Matthew with the in crowd.

So take a look with me.

Chapter 2, verse 1,

and we'll read down to verse 4.

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea

in the days of Herod the king,

Herod is,

he is of some Jewish background,

but he was essentially put in place

to be the king of Judea,

but really he was an extension of Rome.

But he was the political elite at the time.

So in the days of Herod the king,

behold, the wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,

the wise men, the Magi,

saying,

Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?

For we saw his star when it rose

and have come to worship him.

When Herod the king heard this,

he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him.

And assembling all the chief priests

and scribes of the people,

those are the religious elites.

These are the spiritual leaders

and really the cultural leaders

of the people at the time.

Herod inquired of them,

the scribes and the chief priests,

where the Christ was to be born.

And then they go on to tell him.

It's interesting here that these people

are supposed to be the real leaders,

the people that are leading

and showing by example

to God's people

how to be a light among the nations.

And here they are juxtaposed with the Magi.

And the Magi are the,

apart from Jesus,

they're the real stars in this story.

Not Herod,

not the chief priests,

not the scribes.

And it's interesting

because inclusivity in our day

is quite the buzzword.

There is such a push

to accept people

for how they are

regardless of who they love,

what they do,

what families they come from.

And in a sense,

there is a nobility to this.

There is a desire

to not have people on the out,

but have people on the in.

But all too often,

this inclusivity

looks to exclude certain people.

There has to be

some sort of uniformity of thought.

And when somebody

has, say for instance,

a traditional view on marriage,

on monogamous,

heterosexual marriage,

that flies in the face

of inclusivity in our culture.

That's one example.

There are many.

But it's interesting

that in our day,

inclusivity looks a lot

like exclusivity.

There's an inclusivity

when it aligns

with a certain type of thought.

There is no plurality

of thought here.

And just in case

you're watching at home

and you're a Christian,

you think that I'm letting you

off the hook

and just railing

on our culture,

it happens in the church

all the time.

Sometimes really subtly,

sometimes overt,

but it's there.

We have this habit

in the church

of forcing conformity

onto people

before they actually

join the church.

We expect a certain

type of talk,

a certain type of dress,

a certain type of

vernacular behavior,

political affiliations.

It's like there's this

big list of things

you ought to endorse

and then you can come

into the church.

But that's not the way

of the scriptures.

That's not the way

of the Bible.

And yet we see the scriptures

speak so favorably here

about the wise men,

just as they are.

Nowhere does Matthew

condemn their religious practices

as they are seeking out

the Christ child,

nor does he justify it either.

But what he does do

is he commends

their eagerness

and courage

to travel

the distance

they traveled

all the way

at great cost

to see Christ

and to worship him.

It's very,

very interesting

that no longer

is the invitation

for the people of God

just to one specific

people group.

But it's for all people.

All people,

regardless of where

they have come from.

Regardless of their

socioeconomic background,

the language they speak,

the family they come from,

the things that happened

in their past,

the things that they did

in their past,

whether they're male

or female,

regardless of the color

of their skin,

that there is this

wonderful,

wonderful

inclusivity

that we see

in the scriptures

that the wise men

are just so,

it's so evidently

they are lifted high

as the

real in crowd

in this

scriptural

story.

So change must come

for a Christian,

but it has to come

after salvation.

We have to understand that.

It can't be a precursor

for salvation.

We come as we are.

We are broken.

We are beggars.

We are sinners.

That's the only prerequisite

and that is something

that is shared

by all of humanity.

This is what

the scripture teaches.

If you struggle

with that idea

that humans

are inherently sinful,

I mean,

I would say

take a bit of a

survey of history.

There is a lot

of good,

but the running

thing that seems

to unify humanity

is sinfulness,

is brokenness.

The wisdom

of the scriptures,

of this story,

it speaks to

this inclusivity.

And in many ways

to be a Christian

is to be

your most authentic

self.

So we touched

on the inclusivity,

real,

genuine inclusivity

of the wisdom

of this story.

But there is also

this authentic

and humble aspect

of the wisdom

as well.

we have this

interesting exchange

between Herod

and the Magi

where Herod

tries to show

how pious he is,

wanting to worship

the child.

If you join me

in verse 7,

this is what it says.

Then Herod

summoned the wise men

secretly

and ascertained

from them

what time

the star

had appeared.

And he sent

them to Bethlehem

saying,

go and search

diligently

for the child.

And when you

have found him,

bring me word

that I too

may come

and worship him.

We read a bit

farther,

not in our portion

this morning,

but just a few

verses down

in verse 16.

We see that

Herod here

is lying

through his teeth.

The Magi

are warned

in a dream

to not go back

to Herod

so they go

in an alternate way.

And Herod

is so

vexed

by this.

He is so

angry

that his true

intentions

come out.

See,

Herod here,

he is a

pretender.

He's a

hypocrite.

He is

inauthentic.

He makes

believe he

is godly

when he

is anything

but.

And here's

the thing.

History

tells us

that Herod,

so unwilling

to give up

power,

so suspicious,

so greedy

and self-absorbed

that he

killed his

wife

and some

of his

children

and relatives

because

he had

suspicion

that they

were going

to betray

him.

And here

in verse 16,

this is what

it says.

Then Herod,

when he saw

that he had

been tricked

by the wise

men,

became furious

and he sent

and killed

all the male

children in

Bethlehem

and in all

that region

who were

two years

old

or under.

So I'll

read the rest

of it.

According to

the time

that he

had ascertained

from the

wise men,

he did

not want

to share

the throne

with this

supposed

king of

the Jews.

So what

does he

try to

do?

For his

own

pomp,

for his

own

pride,

for his

own,

so to speak,

political

welfare,

he has

people

murdered.

Inauthentic,

humble,

not humble

whatsoever,

prideful man

this Herod

was.

So we

don't have

murdering

megalomaniacs

running our

country,

our provinces.

You can

make jokes

and snicker

at home,

but the

truth is

we don't.

But we

have this

attitude

everywhere.

We have

this inauthenticity

that seems

to be

thoroughly

Canadian.

That we

have this

facade of

humility,

but inside

it is,

we are

prideful

people.

People

who make

themselves

out to

be humble

and authentic

and pious

and righteous,

but when

one scratches

the surface,

you see

something

different.

The

practice

of cover

up is

alive and

well in

Canada.

We have

non-disclosure

agreements

to shut

people up

so the

truth doesn't

come out.

That is

not

humble.

That is

not

authentic.

And again,

guys,

this isn't a

thing that's

just out

there in

bad Ottawa,

bad Canada.

It's in the

church too,

isn't it?

Just in the

past few

months,

two very,

very high

profile Christian

leaders,

celebrity

Christian leaders

in the

Protestant

church,

have had a

huge,

huge falling

away,

rattling

people's

faith,

purporting

to be

righteous

and holy

and humble

and their

sin has

been found

out.

In one

case,

while the

person was

still alive,

in another

case,

when somebody

passed away.

It's also

in the

Roman Catholic

church with

the sexual

abuse

cover-ups

as well.

This seems

to be a

human problem

and the

church is

full of

humans,

so it's

a problem

in the

church as

well.

The

interesting

thing about

the Magi

are that

they are

actually

cultural

elites

where they're

from.

They are

people that

would be

somewhat akin

to the

scribes

and the

chief

priests,

people that

are looked

to to

lead,

people that

are

intelligent

and that

they have

responsibility

that extends

far beyond

their own

home.

And yet,

with their

prestige and

their wisdom

in their

native countries,

they travel at

great lengths,

great lengths,

at great

cost.

We,

I mean,

just on a

pause,

we sing

We Three

Kings,

it was likely

that there

were more

of these,

and they

weren't kings,

they were

wise men or

Magi,

and there

was likely

more than

three.

We say

We Three

Kings

because there

was three

gifts,

but it's

likely that

there was

multiple,

that there

was a

whole entourage

with them.

I mean,

the cost

of travel

must have

been

astronomical,

and yet,

what do

they do?

They seek

out this

child.

They hear

this story.

It's unlikely

that they

would have

known much

of the Hebrew

scriptures,

maybe enough

to know

about this

prophecy,

but here

they are

with so

much prestige,

and they

suspend it.

They spend

it to find

this child,

and then they

see this

child in a

home,

likely a

very,

very poor

home in

Bethlehem.

We remember

that Mary

and Joseph,

when they

were presenting

an offering

at the

temple,

all that

they could

afford were

two pigeons

to sacrifice

for Jesus.

They were

poor.

These rich

people went

to a poor

home,

and in the

end,

they worshipped

just the

child.

They didn't

say,

well,

bring the

child to

us.

We are

important

people.

They

condescended,

even though

Jesus was

the true

one who

condescended

from heaven

to earth.

But they

lowered

themselves.

And they

didn't do

it begrudgingly.

It says

that when

they found

in verse

9,

they went

on their

way,

verse 10,

sorry,

when they

saw the

star,

they rejoiced

exceedingly

with great

joy.

That this

was something

that completely

enraptured

them.

And they

were very,

very,

very joyous

about finding

Jesus.

And they

fell down

and worshipped

him,

gave him

gifts,

kingly

gifts,

royal

gifts.

We have

this true

authentic

and humble

wisdom

that pursued

Christ,

pursued the

right thing,

even though

it cost

them.

So we

have a

wisdom that

is inclusive

and also

authentic and

humble,

but also

courageous.

Look with

me at

verse 3.

When

Herod the

king heard

this,

that the

wise men

were looking

for the

king of

the Jews,

he was

troubled in

all Jerusalem

with him.

And assembling

all the chief

priests and

scribes of

the people,

he inquired

of them

where the

Christ was

to be

born.

They,

the priests

and scribes,

told him,

in Bethlehem

of Judea,

for so it

is written

by the

prophet,

and you,

O Bethlehem,

in the

land of

Judah,

are by

no means

least among

the rulers

of Judah.

For from

you shall

come a

ruler who

will be

shepherd of

my people

Israel.

When the

Magi inquire

in Jerusalem

to Herod

where this

king of the

Jews would

be born,

where they

could find

him,

Herod enlists

the religious

experts of

the time,

the chief

priests

and scribes,

the thing

is they

correctly

identify the

truth in

the scriptures.

They know

the scriptures

very well,

and they

nail it.

I mean,

they just

do.

They cite

Micah chapter

five,

and if you

read Micah

chapter five,

it actually

doesn't have

that bit at

the end,

who will

shepherd my

people Israel.

But that

little bit

is from

King David's

coronation in

2 Samuel.

And this

is a

remarkable

thing for

them to

include in

this prophecy

because it

means that

they have

deep insight

into who

the Messiah

will be and

what he

will do.

These people

know their

Bible,

and yet

it's just

the Magi

that go to

Bethlehem.

King Herod

doesn't go,

and neither

do the chief

priests and

the scribes.

They had a

chance.

You'd have to

think they

had a chance,

and they

don't go.

They know

the scriptures

and they

don't act

on them.

Maybe because

like Herod,

they were

risking their

own political

gravitas,

their own

standing within

society,

or maybe they

were just

afraid of

Herod.

I mean,

it said that

all Jerusalem

was troubled

with him.

My guess is

that all

Jerusalem was

troubled with

him because

they knew

that Herod

was a

paranoid guy

that could

fly off the

handle,

kill people.

They had a

chance.

They knew

the scriptures

and they

didn't act

on it.

They weren't

courageous.

They didn't

have deep

conviction.

Their wisdom

only went so

far and proved

to be a false

wisdom at that.

This is a huge

warning for

Christian people.

It's a huge

warning for

pastors.

We can say

the right things.

We can go to

church on Sunday.

We can take

communion,

have our

children baptized,

do devotionals,

have a wonderful

journal,

Instagram with

your hot coffee,

beautiful journal,

your Bible open.

Everybody thinks

you are so holy.

And when you

don't follow through

with scripture,

when it says

something and it

convicts you of

sin and you

brush it away,

your heart gets

black.

your heart gets

stone hard.

It's a huge,

huge warning

for us.

It's a huge

warning for me.

True wisdom

isn't just

knowing what

to do,

but it's the

conviction and

the courage to

do it.

If you feel

like a

coworker or

a superior

is encouraging

you to

compromise,

at work,

you have to

have the

courage and

the conviction

to stand your

ground.

There's ways to

do it that is

a bit more

winsome for

sure,

but there has

to be

courage or

else it's not

wisdom.

If you're in

a relationship

and there's an

unhealthiness to

the relationship

and instead of

choosing to do

the right thing

and repent and

involve other

people,

into the

relationship or

maybe break

off the

relationship if

it's not a

marriage and

you don't act

on it,

then that is

not wise.

Wisdom is

wisdom if it

is acted

upon.

I don't look at

the chief priests

and the scribes

and think,

oh,

those guys.

I look at

them and it's

a mirror right

back at me.

You know,

you have to

understand in

verse 16,

Herod here

kills all the

firstborn.

It doesn't

seem like,

like at best

they were,

they were

silent on it.

they didn't

try to stop

it.

Their

successors were

actually the

ones that

would push and

push and push to

have Jesus

crucified.

And yet they

knew the

scriptures.

Real wisdom

must be

courageous.

It must be.

in preparation

for today,

I was going

through a

commentary

written by

Bishop J.C.

Ryle.

That's our

seminary's

namesake.

And he said

this of this

specific verse,

familiarity

with the

sacred things

has an awful

tendency to

make men

despise them.

When you

think you

know what

to do and

you don't

act on it,

you become

a hard-hearted

person.

This is why

friends,

confession is

actually a

beautiful,

beautiful gift

to us.

Because it's

an opportunity

for us to

recognize that

we are sinful,

that we fall

short,

that we don't

act in wisdom

in ways and

at times that

we should.

But we

confess it,

we communicate

it to people

around us that

we can trust

and love,

that love us

back.

But we also

confess it

and we

communicate it

to God.

That stuff

keeps our

heart soft.

I'd encourage

you guys,

as a bit of

a sidebar,

if you need

to confess

sins,

confess them.

You can find

somebody to

confess them

to and pray

so that you

may be healed.

The end of

the epistle

to James

says that.

wisdom,

Godly,

long-lasting,

eternal wisdom

that is

inclusive,

that is

authentic,

and that

is humble,

and also that

is courageous.

I don't want

people to leave

thinking that

there is no

wisdom outside

of the church.

There's nothing

to be learned

from secular

authorities.

I don't think

that's true

at all.

There's plenty

of good and

practical wisdom

to be learned

from leadership

experts and

business experts

and parenting

experts that

aren't explicitly

Christian one

way or the

other.

just yesterday,

I started

watching a

video by

Tim Ferriss.

He's this,

I don't know

exactly what he

is, but he's

something, this

lifestyle, whatever

coach, and it

was how to

improve your

morning routine.

I stopped the

video because I

realized this is

not applicable to

me until I

don't have young

children, but

nevertheless,

there's tons of

practical wisdom

to be gained,

gained.

But the

thing with

practical wisdom,

there's a whole

principle in

scripture that

says that God

sends rain on

the just and

the unjust, that

there is this

common grace that

allows this world

to exist in

somewhat harmony.

But this wisdom

can only lead us

so far.

It can help us

to improve our

lives, but never

fully leads us to

the ultimate end,

which is the

salvation of our

souls.

The communion

with the triune

God that all

human beings

long for, whether

they understand it

or not, this

hole in our

heart that can't

be filled with

stuff or people.

There's this

interesting bit in

Dante's Divine

comedy where

Dante's guide,

Virgil, who

represents human

reason, can only

take him to the

entrance of heaven,

but no farther.

It's very wise

imagery because

salvation is not

a series of

tests or head

knowledge or

whatever of some

kind of conventional

wisdom or

behavior.

And if you

somehow succeed,

you get into

heaven.

heaven.

It's not like

that at all.

Why?

Because of sin.

Sin is active

rebellion against

God that even the

most wise among

us are guilty of.

The wisest human

being is guilty

of rebellion

against God, of

sinfulness, of a

type of inauthenticity

at times, of pride,

of slander.

I mean, go through

the Ten Commandments

yourself and you'll

see, yep, check,

check, check,

check.

The most wise of

people fall into

sin.

It is impossible to

avoid all the

trials of life,

all the trip-ups of

life, all the

temptations of life.

Living completely

sinless is completely

impossible.

Except for Christ.

Christ is born.

God, the Son of God,

He is incarnate.

He lives a completely

sinless life.

He is fully God and

fully man.

In fact, 1 Corinthians

1 calls Jesus both the

wisdom and the power of

God, that He is

literally wisdom

embodied.

The wisdom and power of

God culminate with

Christ on the cross.

In God's infinite

wisdom and kindness, He

sent God, the Son of

God, to humbly take on

the form of man, to

authentically live a

perfect life without

pretense, without

hypocrisy.

And then, when faced

with the opportunity to

not see the job

through, He has the

courage and the

conviction to say to

God the Father, with

great angst in the

Garden of Gethsemane,

not my will, but

yours be done.

And then He is hung

upon a Roman crucifix,

not for His own sins,

but for yours and for

mine.

And He dies in our

place, making us right

with God.

This is the wisdom

and power of God

displayed in its full

majesty.

It's the culmination of

the wisdom and power of

God.

But it's not the start of

it.

The start is what we

see here in Bethlehem.

Jesus makes a way for

us to grow in wisdom,

to grow into wisdom.

He gives us an

opportunity to not

live shackled to sin

and to death anymore,

but to free us so

that we can live in

obedience, in wisdom.

We can proclaim with

our mouth the good

news of the gospel to

people that are not in

the in crowd.

The point of the

magi really are,

it's not so much that

the gospel has come to

the Gentiles.

It is true.

But now that God's

people are expanded,

the people of God are

expanded.

But there are plenty of

people on this planet,

in our city, in this

neighborhood, on your

street, that don't

yet know the good

news.

The wise men, as

wise as they may have

been, in the end,

were led by God to

God, by the star.

By this light in the

sky.

In the same way that

the Israelites were led

to the promised land,

out of Egypt, by this

miraculous pillar of

fire, and this cloud in

the day, the wise men

were led by God with

this miraculous light in

the sky.

We have that, the light

of Christ in us.

We have the opportunity

of proclaiming and

leading people to the

Lord.

Not because we have some

kind of power within us

that's kind of special

about us.

It's because there's a

power outside of us

that is now in us.

The Holy Spirit.

It is a great joy and

opportunity to share the

gospel with other

people.

It is scary.

I'd encourage you guys

this new year to try to

share the gospel.

To pray.

To pray for courage.

The wise men say in

verse 2,

Where is he who has

been born king of the

Jews?

For we saw his star when

it rose.

Matthew calls Jesus the

king of the Jews here in

chapter 2 right at the

beginning of the story.

He also calls Jesus king

of the Jews right at the

end.

At his death.

The sign hanging above the

dying Christ said Jesus

king of the Jews.

That this child was

destined to live but

ultimately to die for you.

And God calls this the

wisdom and power of God.

Let's pray.

Lord God I pray that you

will help us to behold the

Christ child.

Behold Jesus in all of his

glory.

All of his goodness.

All of his power and all

of his wisdom.

To understand that true

wisdom sought us out while

we were still afar.

When we were not a part of

the in crowd.

That true wisdom humbled

himself.

taking all of his divine

and all of his divine

prerogatives to condescend

to live as a poor

likely unattractive man

2,000 years ago.

to live a completely

authentic life.

To die on the cross for

our sins courageously.

Lord help us to think about

that.

Help us to dwell on that.

Help us to have the same

attitude as the wise men.

That we will rejoice with

great joy.

That we will fall at the

feet of Christ and worship

him.

Help us to be wise people.

Help us to be people that

proclaim your gospel to

whomever come across our

path.

To whomever God puts in our

path.

That we will be truly humble

people.

That we will be truly

authentic people.

And that we will be truly

courageous people.

Lord that we will feast on

your word.

And that you will help us to

act on it.

Lord help us not to look to

conventional prevailing wisdom

as if it is eternal.

But rather look to your

eternal word for true wisdom.

We pray these things in

Christ's name.

Amen.