Messiah is Worshipped - Matthew2v1-12

of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked,

Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews?

We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.

When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him.

When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law,

he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.

In Bethlehem in Judea, they replied, for this is what the prophet has written.

But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judea are by no means least among the rulers of Judah.

For out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.

He sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go and search carefully for the child.

As soon as you find him, report to me so that I may go and worship him.

After they had heard the king, they went on their way.

And the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary and they bowed down and worshipped him.

Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Let's pray.

Father God, we thank you for this wonderful, true historical account of the early years of Jesus.

And particularly this account of the Magi as they come to worship Jesus.

We pray that we would not just fill our minds with information nor mere facts,

but that our hearts would be moved and stirred to worship you as the Messiah.

Teach us today why and what it means to worship you.

May we see you in all your greatness and in all your glory.

And may we too be overjoyed at meeting Christ afresh.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, Matthew's account introduces us to perhaps the most well-known visitors to Jesus

in the whole story, the Magi.

And three things we're going to learn from them and from this passage as we follow their journey to Jesus.

Here's the first.

Who the King is.

Right at the beginning, there's a question mark about who is the true King.

Have a look at verse 1.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked,

where is the one who has been born King of the Jews?

Now, something is not right when you go to the King of the land and ask the King, where is the King?

It's like knocking on the door of Aras Anukteron and asking Michael D. Higgins,

can you tell me where the President of Ireland is?

So, who is the King?

Well, first, Herod claims to be the King.

Herod was installed, historians tell us, as King over Judea by the Romans.

He was a ruthless character.

He killed off members of his family who were a threat to his power.

He had no problem disposing of them.

He ruled with an iron fist.

So, when we read in verse 3, when King Herod heard this, when he heard that there was another king born,

he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him.

When King Herod's kingship was threatened, there was every reason for people to be in fear.

In fact, if there was any hint of rebellion, he sent in his hit squad.

And the events that follow in chapter 2 prove it.

At the end of verse 13, the dream that had come to Joseph,

and in the dream he was told, end of verse 13,

that Herod is going to search for the child, that is Jesus, to kill him.

Verse 16, when Herod realised that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious.

And he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and in its vicinity,

who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.

A massacre of baby boys.

It was a nasty, nasty piece of work.

He was a power-hungry, ruthless tyrant.

So Herod claims that he is the king.

But the visit of the Magi would have us look to Jesus.

Because they claim that Jesus is the king.

Now we don't know a lot about the Magi.

Tradition calls them the three wise men.

I was talking to somebody during coffee and they said,

we certainly need a lot of them.

And three kings.

That's another way they're referred to.

Probably because there are three gifts mentioned.

But the fact is, we don't know a whole lot about them.

We don't know how many there are.

And nothing tells us that they actually were kings.

Verse 2 just tells us they were Magi.

People who studied the stars.

We might call them astrologers today.

And while their identity is unclear,

their mission is absolutely clear.

Look at verse 2.

They've come from another country to Jerusalem

and they ask the king,

where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?

We saw his star when it rose

and we have come to worship him.

Now no one gets to be born a king.

You become a king.

To have the right to a throne,

you have to wait until the present king dies

or the king abdicates

or there's some kind of overthrow of the kingdom.

You are not born a king.

You become a king.

But yet the Magi, as they come,

are claiming that this child,

whose star they have followed,

in verse 2,

is born king of the Jews.

They're claiming that Herod,

well, you're not the king,

but Jesus is the king.

Now he's not just king of the Jews,

but Jesus is king of all people and all nations.

Well, how do we know that?

Well, there are two things, I think,

that from this text

that point to this fact that Jesus is king,

not just of the Jews,

but of all people.

Firstly, the Magi are not Jews themselves.

They've come from the East,

but yet they want to worship King Jesus.

Why would someone from another culture

and another country

want to worship the king of another people?

You don't worship another king

unless you're sure that the king

is also your king too.

Second, the Magi are also staking their life on it.

They don't just think this is true,

they're actually ready to put their life

on the line for it.

If Herod was ready to kill all the boys under two,

then you can be quite sure

he would put these foreigners to death

even for questioning his kingship.

The fact is, by asking Herod,

where is the true king,

they run the risk of being put to death themselves.

You see, Matthew is wanting us to see

that the one born king of the Jews,

Jesus, is the king.

But not just king of the Jews,

he's king of the Magi,

he's the king of all peoples and all nations.

And the problem is with that,

people don't like it.

And we often don't like it either.

Because I want to live as king.

You see, Herod, in his role and in his position of authority,

can't stand another person taking his place as king.

He sees it as a threat to his rule.

In fact, he'll do anything it takes to keep his kingship.

Even if that means the death of innocent two-year-old boys.

He will massacre whoever stands in his way.

Anything to keep hold of power.

But perhaps what is even more disturbing

is the fact that I am Herod.

And you are Herod.

Because I want to be king of my life

and king of my world.

I want to be the one who makes up the rules.

And no one is going to tell me how I should live.

No one, especially King Jesus,

will tell me what I can do

and what I can't do.

In fact, we stand alongside the crowd

who cried for the blood of Jesus.

It comes later in Matthew's Gospel

where Jesus has been arrested

and he is before Pilate.

Let's read what's on the screen.

What shall I do then with Jesus

who is called the Messiah?

God's chosen king, Pilate asked.

They all answered, crucify him.

Why?

What crime has he committed, asked Pilate.

But they shouted all the louder, crucify him.

You see, every time we fight

against the kingship of Jesus,

every time we disobey his word,

when we turn our backs on what he has to say to us,

we stand with those who called and cried out

for the death of an innocent man.

Like Herod,

we have sought to get rid of Jesus

to maintain our self-autonomy.

Jesus is not just king of the Jews

or just king of the Magi.

He is born king of my life

and he's born king of your life.

So first,

who is the king?

Well, Jesus is our true king.

Second,

why we worship this king.

Well, there's two things that show us

why we should worship Jesus as king.

First,

there's the extraordinary events

around the birth of Jesus Christ.

when Herod hears that there's another king,

he calls in all the religious experts

in verse 4.

When he had called together

all the people's chief priests

and the teachers of the law,

he asked them

where the Messiah was to be born.

And being religious experts,

they knew the answer.

Verse 5,

in Bethlehem in Judea,

they replied,

because this is what was written

by the prophet,

the prophet Micah.

Verse 6,

But you,

Bethlehem,

in the land of Judea,

are by no means

least among the rulers of Judah.

For out of you,

out of Bethlehem,

will come a ruler

who will shepherd

my people Israel.

Now that quote,

verse 6,

comes from the prophet Micah.

Written over

700 years before

the coming of Christ.

Predicting

that the Messiah,

the king,

God's saving king,

would be born

in a town called Bethlehem.

Well you say,

what's so unique about that?

I mean,

hundreds of babies

could have been born

in Bethlehem

since that prophecy.

So how do we know

that Jesus

is the one being talked about?

How do we know

Jesus is the one

who is to be born

the king?

Well something

had got the Magi's attention.

Verse 2,

We saw his star

when it rose

and have come

to worship him.

Verse 9,

And after they had heard

the king,

they went on their way,

and the star

they had seen

when it rose

went ahead of them

until it stopped

over the place

where the child was.

Now that's extraordinary.

They don't have access

to Google Maps.

They have just a star.

And as astrologers,

there has been

something different

in the sky.

There is something

unique about this star.

something that's different.

It moved

so that they could

follow it.

We're not quite sure

how or what,

but it moved

in a particular direction

that they could follow.

And it was at a level

or a height,

I guess,

where it stopped

right above

where Jesus was.

So they knew

this was the place

where Jesus was.

These are

extraordinary things.

A prophecy made

700 years before

and a star

that pinpoints

the exact location

of this child.

At the very least,

we have to stand back

and be amazed

at extraordinary events

such as this.

This is no

ordinary child.

This is the Messiah

who is to be

worshipped.

It isn't just

the words of God,

but also

all of creation

through the stars

themselves

that point

to the very fact

that Jesus

is here.

So first,

we have the

extraordinary events

as to why we should

worship.

Then who Jesus is

because Micah

not only tells us

where the king

will be born,

but what this king

will be like.

Let's read

verse 6 again.

But you,

Bethlehem,

in the land of Judah

are by no means

least among

the rulers

of Judah.

For out of you

will come a ruler

who will shepherd

my people Israel.

Bethlehem.

you might as well

call it

Bally

go backwards.

Not a lot

goes on

in this small

town of Bethlehem

and not a lot

comes out of

Bethlehem either.

But yet,

what is considered

to be least

amongst everybody

in all the talk,

it's a least place,

it's a nothing place.

Yet,

the prophet

tells us,

verse 6,

out of you,

out of backward,

unimportant,

insignificant Bethlehem

will come a ruler

who will shepherd

my people Israel.

Now,

Matthew identifies

Jesus

as being

this shepherd.

A little later on

in Matthew,

we read this,

when Jesus saw

the crowds,

when he saw

the crowds,

Jesus had

compassion on them

because they were

harassed

and helpless

like sheep

without a shepherd.

You remember

the reading

Ralph read

from Ezekiel?

The people

were leaderless.

They were left

to themselves,

nobody looking out,

everybody just

looking out

for their own self.

And as Jesus

looked out

on the world,

as Jesus looked out

on the people,

he saw lives

broken and ruined

by sinful behaviours

and selfish choices.

Literally,

heading towards

hell

and not even

knowing they were

in danger.

that's what it

means.

They are

harassed

and helpless.

They're going

in every direction

but the right

direction.

And just like

sheep need

a shepherd

to lead them

and direct them

and show them

the way to

safety,

so we need

a shepherd king

who will lead us

and bring us

to safety,

bring us

to a place

of security,

bring us

to a place

of peace

and joy.

And that's

what Jesus,

the true shepherd,

did.

He is the shepherd

of the people.

Just as Ezekiel

had pointed forward

to,

God said,

I will.

I will come

and rescue

and bind up

their wounds.

I will heal

them.

I will restore

them.

I will lead

them.

And so Jesus

is that

promised

shepherd king

who came

to give

his life

for us

on the cross,

who rose

again

from the grave

defeating death

and giving us

true life.

You see,

many people

will see Jesus

as insignificant

and unimportant.

The Christmas

celebrations

will go on

but Jesus

doesn't get

involved

or isn't

included

because,

well,

he's from

Bethlehem.

Backward,

unimportant,

insignificant.

But yet,

he is the

great shepherd,

the one who

has given

his life

so that we

might have

life.

This is

the Messiah

who has

come into

the world

for you

and for me.

He is

the king.

who is

to be

worshipped.

You see,

Jesus

is worth it.

Look at

verse 10.

Look at

the response

of the

Magi.

Verse 10,

when they

saw the

star,

they were

overjoyed.

When we

examine these

extraordinary

events,

a 700-year-old

prophecy,

a moving

star,

when we

see that

Jesus is

the great

shepherd who

loves us

and gives

his life

for us,

we will

not be

disappointed.

We will

be overjoyed.

In other

words,

when we

come to

Jesus,

it is

beyond what

our imagination

could ever

take in.

In fact,

it is only

those who

worship Jesus

experience

true and

lasting joy.

Look back

at these

religious

experts in

verse 4.

They had

all the

scriptures,

they had

all the

knowledge about

where Jesus,

the Messiah,

God's chosen

king,

was going to

be born.

They only

needed to be

asked and

they knew

it straight

away.

Oh yeah,

Micah,

the prophet,

Bethlehem,

you'll find

him there.

But they

don't move

an inch,

do they?

They don't

follow after

the Magi.

They just

stay put.

They would

not worship.

But look

at the Magi.

These were

pagans,

non-religious

people.

They didn't

have a Bible.

Well,

they had

heard about

the king

of the Jews,

but they

didn't have

the privilege

of having

the scriptures.

They didn't

have great

teachers to

teach them

about the

coming Messiah.

But what

little knowledge

they did

have,

what they

saw from

creation

itself,

they acted

upon.

They

followed the

star and

they were

not disappointed.

They were

overjoyed.

How much

more privileged

are we

today

in 2018

to have

the fullness

of God's

revelation?

All the

scriptures,

the account

of Matthew,

all of it

written down

for us,

the gift

of his

Holy Spirit

to lead

us and

to show

us who

is the

true king.

God's

Lord's

and we

could name

all the

different people

and all the

different folk

who came

to visit

Jesus,

where it

happened,

when it

happened,

who he

is.

But we

can stay

put where

we are

in our

seats

and not budge an inch

and worship the true Messiah.

We just go home and carry on our lives

as per normal.

Nothing changes.

Just full of religiosity,

full of knowledge in our heads,

but never in our hearts.

We only experience true and lasting joy

when we follow with the Magi

and worship him

and we will be overjoyed.

Jesus is worth it.

So, who the King is,

why we worship the King,

and then third, how we worship the King.

The Magi, it's crystal clear,

have come to worship Jesus.

We see that at the end of verse 2.

We saw his star when it rose

and have come to worship him.

Now, worship, to worship someone or something,

is to give them the highest value

or the greatest worth.

So, it's not surprising that in the New Testament,

the word worship is only ever used

in relation to God.

No one else receives worship.

No one else is deserving of worship.

Worship is set apart for God alone.

And Matthew helps us to understand

how we should worship Jesus,

God's King, the God-Man.

Two things we see from verse 11.

First, we submit to Jesus.

Verse 11.

On coming to the house,

they saw the child with his mother Mary,

and they bowed down and worshipped him.

Bowing down, that physical act of bowing down

is to lower yourself before someone

who is greater than you.

I mean, they're before a child,

an infant.

But they bow down,

lowering themselves.

In other words,

they are acknowledging that this child

who they come before

has authority and power over them.

And when we bow down to someone,

we are saying,

they are worth trusting.

You deserve my total allegiance

and unwavering loyalty.

Yes, there were other folk there.

Mary was there.

I assume Joseph was there too.

But only Jesus gets the worship.

The one born a King.

And that is exactly what is expected of us.

Worship is not just singing songs

for 20 minutes on a Sunday.

It includes our singing.

But worship is submitting yourself to Jesus.

It's bowing down to him.

Bowing our lives to him 24-7.

The one who deserves and demands

our total allegiance

and unwavering loyalty.

In bowing down,

we are submitting to his word,

to the authority of God's word.

It's living a life that says daily,

your will be done.

Not my will be done.

It's surrendering our self-autonomy.

This willing and wanting ourselves

to rule over our life.

It's putting that to one side.

Turning from it in repentance.

And joyfully obeying Jesus.

So how do we worship this King?

We submit to him.

Second,

we serve Jesus.

Look at the rest of verse 11.

Then they opened their treasures

and presented him with gifts of gold,

frankincense,

and myrrh.

Now,

an awful lot has been said

about the meaning of these gifts

and their symbolism.

Some talk about gold

being of value,

great treasure,

frankincense,

gold for a king,

frankincense for deity,

myrrh,

speaking of his death

and his burial.

But Matthew doesn't actually say

anything about their meaning,

so we can't be quite sure

about that.

But the emphasis seems to be

on their treasures

and gifts.

The point is that

what they bring

is valuable

and precious.

The Magi have sought

to give their best treasures.

They opened their treasures

and presented him

with gifts.

In other words,

nothing is too extravagant

for Jesus.

And this is what

getting to the heart of worship

is all about.

So let me ask us all a question.

What is it that you most treasure

in your life?

Think about it for a minute.

What is your greatest love

or possession?

or who do you value the most?

Maybe it's your spouse

or your child.

Maybe it's your house

or your job.

Because whatever you value

the most,

whatever you set up

to be having

the greatest value,

that is what you worship.

It's what you give your life to.

It's what you serve.

It's what you dedicate

your time in doing.

The account of the Magi

is telling us this,

that there is only one person

who is worth our worship.

Only one who deserves

our service.

Therefore,

everything else

and everyone else

is to be given over to him.

All our desires,

all our hopes,

all our wishes,

all our dreams

are to be put

and sacrificed

to him.

He is to be

our greatest treasure,

our greatest value.

And if he is

our greatest treasure,

then it demands

our very life itself.

Listen to what Jesus said.

Just flick forward

to Matthew chapter 10.

Matthew 10 · chapter mention

Matthew chapter 10.

Matthew 10 · chapter mention

Verse 37.

Verse 37.

As we read these verses,

just think of that question.

Who do you treasure the most?

What is your greatest value?

What's of worth to you?

Verse 37.

Anyone who loves

their father

or mother,

this is Jesus speaking,

anyone who loves

their father

or mother

more than me

is not worthy of me.

Anyone who loves

their son

or daughter

more than me

is not worthy of me.

No one.

No one.

Not even your closest spouse

or child

can come before

your first

primary love

of Jesus.

Verse 38.

Whoever does not

take up their cross

and follow me

is not worthy of me.

If you cannot

sacrifice

and let go

of your treasures

and take up

your cross,

you're not worthy of me.

whoever finds

their life

will lose it

and whoever

loses their life

for my sake

will find it.

Jesus is saying,

you must give

your life

to me.

That's what worship is.

Give your life

to me.

Submit to me

as your true shepherd.

Serve me

as your true shepherd.

The one who gave

his life for you.

The one who will

lead you in paths

that are plentiful.

The one who will

give you life

in all its abundance.

Life

where you will be

overjoyed.

Jesus is the king

and the king

is to be worshipped.

He is worth it

because he has given

his all,

his everything

for us.

Let's pray.

As we pray,

let's just take

a moment

in the quietness

to reflect

on those things

that we

value

and treasure

more

than the Lord

Jesus.

Ask him

to help us

to surrender

those things

to him

and that we

would give

our life

to him

in complete

surrender.

Amen.

Father, we are

sorry.

Sorry for

playing

Herod,

for wanting

to rule

over our

own life

and to

protect

our self-autonomy.

Father,

please forgive us.

We run

afresh to you,

the true

shepherd king

who loves

us

immensely,

who has

given his life

for us,

who has

given us

life

in all

its fullness.

And so

we come,

Father,

we bow

before you.

We submit,

we surrender.

We give

our life

as our gift

to you

to say

thank you.

Thank you for

being our

king.

help us

that we

would worship

you rightly

and honor

you

for who

you are.

And may

the world

also follow

in the steps

of the

Magi.

May people

we meet

this season

see

the greatness

of Jesus

and may

they bow

down

and be

overjoyed.

We pray

this in

Jesus'

name.

Amen.