January 2, 2016
Scripture Reading: Matthew 2:1-8
1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and 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.”
3When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4When 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. 5“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
6“ ‘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.’ ”
7Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8He 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 too may go and worship him.”
Questions for Reflection:
In this passage, we’re introduced to the magi from the east and to King Herod. Over the next two days, we’ll dig into the role that both play in the narrative of Jesus’ birth and childhood. Let’s begin with Herod. Herod (also known as Herod the Great or Herod I) was the Roman appointed King of Judea from 37BC until his death around 4BC. He was approaching the end of his life when Jesus was born.
Herod was a terribly jealous and paranoid king. In fact, he was so jealous of the idea that someone else would take his role of king that he had many of his own sons killed. Caesar Augustus on hearing the account reportedly said, “It’s better to be Herod’s pig than son.” Jewish historian Josephus tells us that he was so paranoid that the people of Israel would not be mourning at this death that he called many respected leaders to Jericho and ordered that they be put to death on news of his passing.
Herod’s character reveals the emptiness of his heart. While Herod was around the Scriptures, he did not know the Scriptures. While the magi from the east understood the significance of what had happened in Bethlehem, it was lost on Herod. And even when it asks the magi to report back so that he too “may go and worship him,” he shows us that we can say all the right words and yet be desperately far from God.
What we can learn from Herod’s example is that proximity to the Scriptures does not mean we have heard, learned or taken to heart the Word of God. Just because we say the right words does not mean that we have a heart for worship. How is your heart? As you begin this new year, focus on making loving God a priority. Ask Him to soften your heart for Him. Ask Him to create a desire within you that can only be satisfied by Him. In your prayer time, ask Him to be the focus of your heart this year.