Matthew Chapter 2

Welcome, CHOSEN, and LOVED by God! It is a rainy day in Georgia. It is the kind of day that makes you want to have a cozy cup of something hot and cuddle up with a good book or and good Christmas movie. Well, maybe that is just me. I have asked the LORD for a large covered porch when we move so I can sit outside and listen to the rain. It is such a peaceful sound and I love reading on a porch in the rain. It is one of my favorite things.

I hope you were able to read chapter two of Matthew, but in case you haven’t grab your Bible and read it right now. I am not going anywhere. As I was reading this morning a couple of things came to mind. The first thing I noticed is that the wise men were on their way to Worship Jesus.

Matthew 2:1-2 “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, ^[a]wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”’

Matthew 2:10-11 “¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. ¹¹ And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

The desire for the wise men to Worship Jesus in person cost them something. It cost them time. It cost them distance from their home. It was intentional. The Worship of Jesus is intentional. He has to be everything to us. It is going to cost us time. It is going to cost us friends. It is going to cost us lifestyle. It is going to cost us places. The thing is, the cost, to me, is worth every single sacrifice. Every. Single. One. The second thing I noticed was Herod and his fear of loss of position.

Matthew 2:1-8 “

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, ^[a]wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.”

⁵ So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

⁶ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”

⁷ Then Herod, when he had secretly called the ^[b]wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

Okay, in the NKJV it tells us that Herod was troubled when he heard of the King of the Jews. In The Message Bible it says he was terrified. I was pondering this when I felt like I heard the LORD say, he was terrified because of loss of position. Wow! How many times do we get caught up in that lie from the enemy. I have felt that fear throughout the years. “What if they do it better than me?” “What if people like them better than me?” “What if I am not needed anymore?”

I am going to share a personal testimony that almost obliterated a friendship. I have asked Gina, my friend, permission to share and this was read to her before it was made public. . My friend Gina and I have been friends since about 2007. We have gone on double dates together, we joined a bookclub together, and we talk all the time. Gina was in charge of the kitchen at the church where we both attended. In 2017 I was asked to take over the Wednesday night dinners. Little did I about know that Gina did not know about the arrangement. I will spare you all the details but I will say that things were said, feelings were hurt, and we both dug in our heels and did not want to give ground. I remember wanting to heal the relationship but I did not know how. I believe she felt the same way. We were on a leadership team together and we were in church together. IT WAS HARD!

It all came to a climax one very cold night where we sat outside with another friend and had a very difficult discussion. At that moment, in the freezing cold, every single thing was out before the LORD and each other. The miscommunication and darkness was brought out into the light. Gina and I went inside and sat in the bathroom crying, apologizing, and healing. Yes, sometimes healing happens in the weirdest of places. I can say without a doubt that our relationship has never been stronger.

Position is something that the LORD gives, He takes away, and sometimes He wants us to share. Herod, because of the fear of losing position killed many babies. Gina and I, because of position, almost lost a beautiful friendship. Our prayer should be, “Speak LORD, your servant is listening.” When He calls us here or He calls us there, we should be quick to listen and quick to obey.