BE WISE, LOOK FOR JESUS
Matthew 2:1-12
SEEKING
JESUS IS WISE
V:1-2. "After
Jesus was born in Bethlehem Judea ,
during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem
2 and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king
of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."
A. This Christmas season should be full of joy, peace and
hope because of the birth
of our Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ. He King of Kings.
1. He is the star
of the universe.
2. Every morning
when we wake up, we ought to look for Jesus.
3. There is no
person wiser than the one who keeps his mind focused on Jesus.
B. The Magi were men who were probably rich, but more than
that men who
studied the stars
and knew their significant.
1. This star they
saw on the night Jesus was born probably brighter and set
lower in the
sky than any other star.
2. Let me suggest
that the star may have been the same bright light the shepherds
in Bethlehem
Luke 2:9
3. God does not
tell us from what country the Maji came or exactly how long
it took for
them to get to Jerusalem
4. God does not
tell us how many men there were who came to King Herod
look for the
King of The Jews, but they came.
5. They were
determined to worship the new born King.
6. Nothing should
stop us from worshipping Jesus.
a. The Maji
had one purpose in mind that was to lift up the name of
the king of Kings.
b. We have but
one true purpose in life and that is to worshipped Jesus.
c. Everything
else we do in life should support our worship of Jesus.
C. 1. God the Father,
Himself set the worship of Jesus in motion with an
heavenly angelic choir before the
shepherds at night
in this way:
Luke 2:13-14
"And
suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host
praising
God and saying, "Glory to God in
the highest,
And on
earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
2. God made
known to the lowly shepherd first, the
birth of Jesus.
a. Let me
suggest that it was to the shepherds first because Jesus is the
Chief
Shepherd.
b. The
shepherds were doing what Jesus does for us; watching over the sheep
24/7.
c. Jesus
neither sleeps or slumbers.
d. That is
good news to us, that were are never out of His sight.
SATAN GET'S DISTURBED WHEN YOU SEEK JESUS
V:3-4. 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 Christ was to be born.
A. Herod was a
violent man. He came to be king by force killing anyone he thought
to be a threat
to his throne.
1. Herod killed
one of his wives and her sons.
2. All Jerusalem
by the king
Herod.
B. Foreigners who
were non Jews, came looking for the new
King to worship Him.
1. The Jews who
should have known Jesus, only looked for
Him because
they
feared their pagan king.
2. The chief priest
and the teachers of the law had all the evidence of Jesus birth
but
attached no significance to their knowledge.
a. They had
the testimony of the shepherds who were eyewitnesses to His
birth.
Luke 2: 8-17.
b. They had the testimony of Simeon in
the temple the day Jesus was
dedicated. Luke 2:25-35.
c. The had
the testimony of Anna the prophetess in the temple . Luke 2:36.
d. They
had the prophecy in the scriptures all the details of Jesus birth.
3. We can get
so distracted by our own agendas, that we miss the blessings
in the
Word of God.
a. As
believers, we are commanded to study the Word of God.
2
Timothy 2:15
"Study to shew thyself
approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be
ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
b. Not only
that, but God gives us the importance of the scriptures.
2
Timothy 3:16-17
"
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction,
for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be
adequate,
equipped for every good work."
4. The local Church in Jerusalem
never looked.
ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT JESUS IS HIS WORD
V:5-6 "In Bethlehem Judea ," they replied, "for this is what the
prophet has written:
"But you, Bethlehem land of Judah
are by no means
least among the rulers of Judah
for out of you will
come a ruler
who will be the shepherd
of my people Israel
A. It is a sad thing when the Church who has the Word of
Jesus take Him
for granted.
1. The Word of God
should never become a text of convenience.
a. A text we
got to when we are in trouble.
b. A text we
go to when we need something from God.
2. The Church
quickly found the Word of God, and quoted it
correctly. but
were not convicted by it.
3. The worst thing
we can do is ignore the wisdom that is in the Bible.
B. We have no evidence that the Chief Priest and the
teachers of the law
went looking for
Jesus, when they were reminded of the scriptures
concerning His
birth.
1. They only
used the scriptures to benefit their agenda.
2. We have no
evidence that the Chief priest and the teachers of the
law were
excited to know of the birth of their long awaited Messiah.
3. This Christmas
season should be an exciting time because someone
who loves
us was born to save us.
THE DEVIL GET'S BUSY WHEN YOU SERVE JESUS
V:7-8. " Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found
out from them the exact time the
star had appeared.
8 He sent them to Bethlehem
soon as you find
him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."
A. Once you have investigated the scriptures, you put you
knowledge into action.
1. Herod's reason
for searching for Jesus was wrong, but through him
gives us
directions to find Jesus.
2. We should know
the time and the place that Jesus was born.
3. We should
continue searching the scriptures to know Jesus in our lives
4. By all means
we should go to the temple to worship Him.
B. Herod said " as soon as you find him" let me
know.
1. Time is not on
our side.
2. Tomorrow is not
promised to us.
God has given us
today to worship Jesus.
C. Notice Herod did not call Jesus a baby, He knew HE was a
young child.
1. Herod knew when
Jesus was born.
2. He knew not to
look for a baby in a manger.
3. Jesus came in
the flesh as a baby, but He grew to be a man.
4. We celebrate
the birth of Jesus, but live in excitement of our
life with Him
as the risen savior,
LET GOD BE YOUR GUIDE
V:9-10. " After they had heard the king, they went on
their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it
stopped over the place where the child was.
10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. "
A. When you are looking for Jesus, He will always lead you
to Himself.
1. No one can
come to Jesus unless he is drawn by the Father. John 6:44
2. God start
drawing us to Him when we look up out of our misery
and see the
light that is in the Son.
B. Some plant and some water that which was planted/
1. God planted the
seed of Jesus in the minds of Maji when the were
searching the
stars in wonder of His glory.
2. It is obvious
that Maji had some knowledge of the scriptures.
3. From the age of
the Dead Sea Scrolls, we know that the Old Testament
was complete
at least 300 years before the birth of Christ.
4. That seed was
watered when they saw the saw the star again on
search for
Jesus.
5. God gives us
information about Jesus as we study His Word.
a. If you want
to know where Jesus is, stop by the Bible.
b. The steps of
a good man are ordered by the Lord.
c. The Word of God
is a lamp to our feet.
6. When we come in the presence of Jesus we ought to shout
for joy.
THE ORDER OF WORSHIP
V:11. " On coming to the house, they saw the child with
his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their
treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh."
A. When coming into God's sanctuary, our first thing we
ought to do
is fall down and
worship Jesus.
1. Worship starts
with honoring God with all our being.
2. When ever you
come in the presence of the Lord you ought to bring a
free will
offering.
B. God gives us three gifts that were brought to Jesus in
His house.
1. Let me suggest
that gold represented His kingship.
2. The frankincense
may represent an offering for the atonement of our sins.
a. In the
temple the priest, were in charge of burning incense
outside
the temple represented the prayers of the saints.
3. We know that
Jesus body was anointed with myrrh after His death.
a. Therefore the myrrh may have represented
the completion of His
mission on
earth.
b. He was born
to die for our sins.
NEW
DIRECTIONS FROM THE LORD
V:12. " And having been warned in a dream not to go
back to Herod, they returned to
their country by
another route."
A. When you follow God, He give you insight into future
events.
1. God protects
those He loves.
2. No weapon
formed against God's people with prosper.
3. While Herod may
had plans to kill the Maji, God
protected them back to their home.
B. There are several points that we need to highlight.
1. The worship of
the Lord is mandatory for believer.
2. Those who
worship must bring an offering.
3. Those who
worship the Lord are guided to a closer relationship
with Him.
4. Those who
worship the Lord must constantly look for His guidance.
JESUS THE REASON FOR THE
SEASON
Rev M. Mitchell
Asst Pastor Of Greater Macedonia
Baptist Church
For more lessons, follow me on facebook
or visit my blogs: revmmitichell.com and
goodnewsrevmitc.blogspot.com
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