Why Did the Wise Men Worship Jesus?

In Matthew chapter 2 we have the story related to us of the wise men who traveled from afar, seeking to find the newborn King ever since they had seen His star appear in the sky. They arrived in Jerusalem whereby they eventually spoke with King Herod, who feigned interest in finding the Child himself so that he, too, could come and worship Him. Once the wise men found the Child, they bowed down to worship Him, and they bestowed wondrous gifts upon Him of gold, frankincense and myrrh. However, the Lord warned the wise men in a dream not to let Herod know where the Child was so they then returned to their own country by a different route. In a rage at being fooled, Herod ordered the slaughter of all male children in and around Bethlehem who were 2 years and younger in an attempt to murder this Kingly rival, but Herod’s plot was foiled as an angel from the Lord warned Joseph to take his family and flee into the safety of Egypt. Just as in those days of old, wise men today still seek the Lord, and they will be able to find Him. As Paul said in Acts 17:27, “He is not far from each one of us.”
So why did these Magi, these wise men, worship Jesus? They did so because Jesus deserves our worship because Jesus is worthy of our worship. “Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You did create all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.” (Revelation 4:11)
There was a day when Jesus climbed a high mountain and took along with Him Peter, James and John, and right before their eyes His form changed. His garments glowed. Suddenly, two other individuals appeared with Him: Elijah and Moses, two towering figures from Israel's past. Peter, frightened and not knowing what to do, suggested making three sacred tents to recognize the awesome presence of these three: Elijah, Moses and Jesus. But it was at that point a cloud formed, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son; listen to Him” (Mark 9:7). Peter and the others looked around and saw no one with them anymore, "except Jesus only" (Mark 9:8).
Jesus only. As the glory of Jesus was displayed for the disciples, as they saw attributes of His Deity expressed in physical form, Elijah and Moses came on the scene in supporting roles. Soon, they would be gone, and the disciples would see Jesus only. They saw Jesus only, because only Jesus was worthy of their worship. Only He is the beloved Son. Jesus is worthy of our worship because He is God. Jesus is absolutely sovereign, absolutely righteous and absolutely unchanging (Hebrews 1:12; Hebrews 13:8). The Magi knew that Jesus was, indeed, worthy of worship. Will you not recognize this, too, and bow down to worship Him today?
May the Lord bless you throughout this year!

No Mere Accident

I believe that it was no mere accident that God used four elderly people living under the Law of Moses to proclaim Jesus as being the promised Savior of the people, and two younger people living under the Law of Moses to be His parents. In the Gospel of Luke, Luke prepares us in this way for important issues to come: with the arrival of Jesus comes a new age and a new message among the Jewish people: the aged era of the Law and Prophets was passing away, behold, the new has come. Nevertheless, Jesus did not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets but to complete them, to fulfill them by purchasing the redemption they offered and living the life they commanded (Matthew 5:17). Jesus finished His work at the cross, saying just before His life ebbed away from Him, “It is finished” (John 19:30). As the Hebrews writer tells us in Hebrews 8:13, the Old Law was on its last legs as the Destruction of Jerusalem was fast approaching, forever abolishing the old Jewish sacrificial system, by stating, “And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.” Therefore, Luke is telling us that all the true saints of the Old Testament faith will welcome Jesus with open arms because He fits perfectly as the goal or climax of their faith. But the hypocrites will reject and persecute Him.

Luke wants us to see that an era is drawing to a close, the era of the Law and the Prophets. He shows us this by depicting the best representatives of that era as aged and at the point of death (Zechariah, Elizabeth, Simeon and Anna). They are passing away just like the era of the Law and the Prophets was passing away. The second thing Luke wants to illustrate is that there is no conflict between the Law and the Prophets and the new age of the Messiah. He shows this by depicting the most devout people under the old era as being the most receptive to the new era. Elizabeth and Zechariah and Simeon and Anna do not become resentful and angry that the Messiah has come, even though He will be a "light for revelation to the Gentiles" (Luke 2:32), a point which so troubled many of the Jews as the church began to grow. The true saints from the old era rejoice that the new has arrived! And we see this same attitude found within John the Immerser, too, who Jesus claimed to be the greatest of the Prophets, when John directed the people to follow Jesus, instead of him, when John said in John 3:29-30, “He that has the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, that stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is made full. He must increase, but I must decrease.” No longer do we live merely in the era of promise with the Law and the Prophets awaiting the consolation of Israel. Now we live in the era of fulfillment when the Kingdom of God is preached as present and powerful, albeit not yet fully consummated this side of eternity.

May the Lord bless you and your family!

Resolutions

Due to the waxing of the old year as we are fast approaching the start of a new, this is the time in which we start making resolutions in order to improve our lives. I am all for doing whatever is necessary to improve our lives, but I am a strong believer that we should always remember to do what our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, said in Matthew 6:33: “But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.” We should never fail to put God and His will first in our lives in everything we do.

The word of God is all about new beginnings: We have the Book of Genesis itself whose very name means “beginning,” and within its pages God shares with us the creation story and how with just His word the whole universe sprang into existence. We also see how sin first arrived in that perfect world, and how quick was God to offer a remedy for that sin by stating the very first prophecy of redemption regarding the Messiah in Genesis 3:15. A few chapters later we see the underpinning of the nation of Israel laid as God promises Abraham that from him would come peoples and nations and most importantly, the Promised Seed from Whom all the world would be blessed. At the conclusion of the Book of Genesis we see the foundation of God’s chosen people being created as Joseph protects his family from the famine that had ravaged the land, his family who were direct descendants of Abraham, in the land of Egypt.

In the Book of Exodus we see the beginning of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people, come to fruition as God calls them out of bondage in Egypt as the Lord formed His covenant with them at Mt. Sinai. But shortly thereafter we witness the beginning of the long history of Israel’s rebellion against Jehovah, but He is steadfastly loving and patient and kind in His longsuffering, always maintaining a remnant for Himself.

In 1 Samuel we find the beginning of the monarchy created as God has Samuel anoint Saul as its first earthly king, once again resulting from the people rejecting their true King, Jehovah. It is in 2 Samuel we find the beginning of the Davidic line to the throne established, the line from which came Israel’s and our King and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Upon His arrival the Old Covenant gave way to the new, which is why the Hebrews writer tells us in Hebrews 8:13 just before the Destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, “And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”

Jesus Christ is all about new beginnings. Through Him we have forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:13-14). Through Him we can have a new birth (John 3:3), and it is through this new birth that our old man dies and we are resurrected to be a new creation (Romans 6:3-5), and no longer at enmity with God (James 4:4). As Paul succinctly tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come.” May you begin the new year right with Christ!

The Adoration of the Magi

Because of artists’ depictions of the nativity of Jesus throughout the centuries, most people believe the Magi, the wise men of Matthew 2, visited the Lord on the night of His birth. But is this an accurate depiction?

There is not one "smoking gun" passage of Scripture to point to that answers the question as to how old was Jesus when the Magi found the Lord, but the following can be ascertained which shows it could not have been the night of His birth. By examining what we do know we can lay out the following timeline with a fair amount of certainty.

“And at the end of eight days, when He was circumcised, He was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, ‘Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord’) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, ‘a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.’” (Luke 2:21-24) Being the righteous parents they were, Joseph and Mary had Jesus circumcised when He was eight days old, and when the 40 days’ time of Mary’s purification was completed they presented Jesus, their first born Son, to the Lord in the Temple in Jerusalem, keeping the Law of Moses (Exodus 13:2 and following; Exodus 22:29-30; Leviticus 12:1 and following; Numbers 3:13; Numbers 8:17).

When the Magi came to worship Jesus, they brought with them expensive gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to give to the newborn King (Matthew 2:11). In Matthew 1:19 we are told that Joseph was a just and righteous man. It is inconceivable that a man who is called a just and righteous man by the Holy Spirit would then withhold this gift from the Lord and give the poor man’s sacrifice of a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons, instead of the normal requirement of a year old lamb. This alone proves that the Magi did not arrive the night Jesus was born. Therefore, Jesus was between 41 days and 2 years old when the Magi arrived, but they could not have arrived before day 41. The Magi had to have come after Jesus' presentation in the Temple, that is, after Jesus was 40 days old. Why is this? The answer is found in Matthew 2:13-15, which tells us that after the Magi departed, an angel of the Lord warned Joseph in a dream to flee to Egypt, since Herod was going to seek to kill Jesus. This is future tense. According to Scripture, Joseph left that very night and went to Egypt, and they stayed in Egypt until the death of King Herod (Matthew 2:15), which occurred in 4 BC. This would have left no time or opportunity for the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, which we know happened according to the Gospel of Luke.

When the Magi arrived in Jerusalem, they sought information among the people regarding the newborn King, and news of their inquiries eventually reached the ears of Herod. By the time he found out, all of Jerusalem was troubled along with Herod. He then consulted the chief priests and scribes of the people to ascertain where the Messiah was to be born, and they informed him Bethlehem was where the Messiah had been prophesied would be born. It was at this point that Herod brought in the Magi to speak with him (Matthew 2:1-7). Herod asked the Magi when they had first seen the star (Matthew 2:7) and he used this information later to have all the male children killed in Bethlehem who were age two and under (Matthew 2:16). Therefore, it should be obvious that several days have transpired in these seven verses for all of these events to occur.

I believe the Magi saw the star appear the night of Jesus' birth to announce the arrival of the Savior, prompting these men to go on this quest. They were in another country when they noted the star’s first appearance, and it would have taken time for them to travel to Jerusalem. For them to have arrived the night Jesus was born would have meant they had to have already been in the very near vicinity. That would be irrational thinking based upon what is known, just as it would be irrational to believe that they arrived in the middle of the night, woke up all of Jerusalem, including King Herod, to trouble them all by asking where they could find the newborn King that very night. As we have shown, it would have taken time for the news of their arrival and what they had discussed with the King Herod to have circulated to the point that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar about it. What is not irrational is seeing that several days are transpiring in the first seven verses of Matthew chapter 2 with Matthew's account of the Magi visiting Jesus. It is the most rational of interpretations.

We do not know where Jesus was for sure when the Magi found Him other than in a house (Matthew 2:11), but we do know that there seems to be a second appearing of His star, for after talking with Herod the Magi "went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy;" (Matthew 2:9-10). Had the star been visible to them during all their journey to Jerusalem, there would have been no need for the Magi to go and speak with the people and Herod. They simply would have followed the star to Jesus. And this would explain why they "rejoiced with exceeding great joy" at the sudden appearance of the star again. They knew it would show them where Jesus was, and Matthew does not identify that place as Bethlehem. I believe, however, that it was in Nazareth or possibly even in Egypt where the Magi worshipped the Lord and gave Him their gifts.

Additionally, when the angel announces to the shepherds that the Savior had been born, Jesus was referred to as "the babe" or "a babe." In Matthew he is referred to as a "young child" and just “child” by the angel. It is this change in how He is referenced that makes me lean towards Jesus being a two-year-old child when the Magi came to Him, for even a 41-day-old would still be called "a babe," whereas a two-year-old is called a "small child."

Innovative Ends Season on High Note

The Innovative Staff Solutions first and second grade boys' basketball team ended the season with an impressive 45-18 victory over SKK. With the win, Innovative finishes the season with a won-loss mark of 5-2.

Donovan Ferguson started things off on the right foot for Innovative as he drove the length of the court on the opening possession for his only 2 points of the game. Donovan did not take another shot until the 4th period as he was content on working the ball to his teammates and setting excellent screen after excellent screen throughout the contest. He had a season high 4 assists in the game, but he easily could have had a dozen more. Donovan pulled down 5 rebounds, he had 2 blocked shots and he committed no turnovers in the game. As usual, Donovan played outstanding defense, leading the team with 6 steals.

(Isaac Ray and Donovan Ferguson in picture on right. Donovan Ferguson has his hands in the air. Isaac is setting a pick for Donovan, who is calling for the ball.)

Isaac Ray, cousin and best friend of Donovan, continued to take his game to a higher level as he had a season high 6 points as he connected on 2 three point shots, the first one coming on an assist and a pick from Donovan. Isaac also had a season high 4 steals while pulling down 2 boards. Isaac did not commit any turnovers, either, as Innovative took care of the ball at the offensive side of the game.

It really was a team victory as each of the players scored for the second straight game. Jackson Nichols led all scorers with 16 points. Lance had 5, including one 3 pointer, Myles had 6, Jordan had 8 and Landon Kasey had 2 to round out the scoring.

Donovan's stats for the season:

10.1 points per game
6.0 steals per game
8.0 rebounds per game
2.6 blocks per game
1.1 turnovers per game
1.4 assists per game

The Greatest Gift

William Sydney Porter, better known as the short story author O. Henry, said, “The magi, as you know, were wise men – wonderfully wise men who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. They invented the art of giving Christmas presents.” Although I enjoy the stories with their clever plot twists from the pen of O. Henry, in this instance I disagree with the conclusion of Mr. Porter. It wasn’t the wise men who invented the giving of "Christmas" presents, it was God Himself. He did so when He gave us His only begotten Son. This was the best "Christmas" gift ever. The wise men merely continued the tradition.

In Jesus, this supreme offering from the Father, we see the glory of God on display. But what is that glory? Did it come with a lot of pomp and circumstance, as Paul saw demonstrated as he declared his defense and the gospel of Jesus Christ before King Agrippa, Bernice and Festus? Did it come with fanfare? No. God’s glory is demonstrated through His humility. In Jesus Christ we see Someone Who was willing to put aside all the trappings of what it means to be God, the Creator of the universe, in order to reach out to us. And it is this humility that makes the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ such glorious events indeed. As Paul wrote so eloquently summing up the life and purpose of Jesus Christ, “…Christ Jesus: Who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:5-8) In Jesus Christ we see God coming to Earth and being born in a lowly manger. The God of Heaven, even through the lowly birth He chose, demonstrated how He intended to live a life of service. As Jesus later on would declare, “Come unto Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

In Jesus, God showed up as one of us. Even one of His names, Immanuel, means “God With Us”. The One Who made it all, the One Who holds it all together, the One Whom we call the Creator showed up humbly, served His entire life meekly, and gave His life freely, and all that you and I might lay claim to eternal life through His shed blood. Although there is much sadness and turmoil in the world, there is something awfully wonderful about being human. There is something amazing about being created in the image of God, being created to be in a relationship with God, and to be someone that God finds value. You do have great worth, indeed, for God saw fit to give you His Son!

May the Lord bless you today and every day!

Joseph: A Loving, Just and Righteous Man

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privately. But when he thought on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, `Joseph, you son of David, fear not to take unto yourself Mary your wife: for That which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she shall bring forth a Son; and you shall call His name JESUS; for it is He that shall save His people from their sins.'" (Matthew 1:18-21)

In Matthew chapter 1 we get a glimpse into the righteous and merciful character of Joseph in the passage we just read. God had really chosen a great man to be the earthly father to His Son when He picked Joseph. Matthew wrote, "And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privately." Joseph was a righteous man. He knew he had never behaved untoward or inappropriately with the woman he planned to have for his wife, to be the mother of his children, but there she was, found to be with child! As far as Joseph knew, some other man had taken Mary and lay with her. Joseph must have felt crushed as any man in his situation would have felt.

How could this be? How could this have happened? Hadn't he and Mary grown to love each other during this time of courtship, this time of betrothal? Why had she agreed to be his wife if she had been harboring desires for some other man?

His heart aching, Joseph had a choice to make. Mary, in the culture of the time, really had no say so in the matter. Since she was merely a woman, she had no rights of which to speak. She had been her father's property, but since she had entered into the betrothal stage she was now the property of Joseph, and her fate rested literally in his hands.

According to the Law of Moses under which they lived, the penalty for Mary's seeming indiscretion was death. Deuteronomy 22:20-21 says, "But if this thing be true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in the damsel; then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has wrought folly in Israel, to play the harlot in her father's house: so shall you put away the evil from the midst of you." Joseph was very much within his legal rights to have had Mary stoned to death. She was pregnant, as anyone could plainly see, and it was not his baby! But something about his character made Joseph choose a more merciful way to handle his heartbreak regarding his betrothed and beloved Mary who was found to be with child. He chose to put her away privately.

Maybe because he loved Mary so much is why this righteous man chose to do what he could to protect her life and her reputation. When Matthew writes that "Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privately," what this means is that he was not willing to expose Mary to public humiliation, shame, and possible death. Additionally, it means that he was also planning secretly to keep her condition hidden from the public. He was willing to do this to not only protect her, but also the baby she carried as well, a baby he knew was not his own. He was going out on a limb and freeing her to go and be the wife to the man he believed Mary had loved clandestinely!

We know Joseph was planning intently how best to achieve his goal of protecting this young woman he loved, as well as the child within her womb she carried, for Matthew tells us "…he thought on these things,…." In the original Greek this conveys the meaning of thinking deeply about the situation. But little did Joseph know that he had just passed the test! Just as Abraham was at his lowest moment as he was about to offer his promised son, Isaac, on the altar, when the Lord intervened, so too, was Joseph at his lowest point. And just as his forefather Abraham had passed his test, Joseph, too, passed his test.

He was living the type of life that God hoped we all would live, a life that put the welfare and needs of others above his own, a life that lived the principle of mercy, a life that lived that agape love! Joseph was not only a just man, he was just the man to be the father to the Lord's only begotten Son! He was the example of true manhood from whom God wanted His Son to learn! And so God intervened at the lowest ebb in Joseph's life, and He sent an angel to comfort and reassure this loving and righteous man that all was indeed going to be fine! Mary had not betrayed him! Mary, too, was a righteous and holy woman, blessed of all women on the Earth to bear the Son of the Living God!
These lessons were not lost on Jesus. When He was confronted with a woman who was caught in the very act of adultery, He did not call for her death, as He could have, but instead He chose to call her to her repentance. Could He have been hearkening back to His own mother and the mercy His earthly father had shown her when she had been discovered to be with child? Possibly…. Is it any surprise, then, with having the example before Him we have in righteous, loving and honorable Joseph, that on two separate occasions Jesus chose to quote Hosea 6:6 when He said, "But go and learn what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners" in Matthew 9:13 and "But if you had known what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless" in Matthew 12:7?

May we all learn the lesson of Joseph, and be as just and merciful as he was!