Prophecy

 1//6/25

“Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.” And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”” —Matthew 2:19-20, 23 

If you’ve been reading along with Matthew’s narrative of the birth of Jesus, it will be hard to have missed how often he says words to the effect that “this was to fulfill the words of the prophet…” In fact, Matthew uses these words five times in the first two chapters of his gospel. 

People have two very distinct attitudes towards prophecy. Either they fall for it hook, line, and sinker, or they discount it altogether as happenstance or trickery. Of course, the world has had its share of fortune tellers, but that’s not what Biblical prophecy is all about. The “pro” in prophet isn’t like the pro in proposal, looking to something in the future. It is more like the pro in pronoun, which is representative of the actual word.

Most of the Biblical prophecies are where the prophet speaks for (in place of) God. Unlike fortune telling, these words are clear and specific, not vague and subject to wild interpretation as are the Tarot cards or such people as Nostradamus. Biblical prophecy always points us to the work God is doing or will do in Jesus Christ. It’s not about your future—who you will marry, whether or not you’ll have fame and fortune; Biblical prophecy is always about our future in Jesus. Focus on him, and the rest will fall into place.

Worship Transformation

1/6/25

 Yesterday we learned that genuine worship is more concerned with giving than receiving. There is one more characteristic of genuine worship: It changes you.

“Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.” —Matthew 2:12 

If you go home from worship the same way you came, you didn’t really worship. The whole purpose of worship is to connect with God, which is exactly what happened with the wise men.  Their worship resulted in a divine encounter that changed their plans. Too often, when we “worship,” we go home no different than when we came. We still carry with us the worries we should have given to Jesus, we hold onto grudges and unforgiveness, we stumble over the same bad habits, we remain glued to our phones instead of tuned in to Jesus.

Worship turns the focus from ourselves to God, and when that happens, we cannot go home the way we came.

Givers and Takers

 1/5/25

Have you ever thought about what it means to worship God? We sing songs, offer prayers, give money, listen to sermons, receive communion, but is that always genuine worship? Is it possible to do all these things and still fail to worship? Pay attention to today’s Scripture:

“Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 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.” When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 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.”

—Matthew 2:7-11 

Notice in these verses two different places the word worship is used. Herod sent the wise men to Bethlehem, saying he wanted to worship, when his real purpose was to secure his place on the throne by killing the Child. He wanted to take something from Jesus…his very life.

The wise men on the other hand, bowed down and gave gifts to the baby Jesus. Do you see the difference? Herod wanted to take. The wise men gave. 

I’ve often heard people say regarding a worship service, “I didn’t get much out of that service today.” They are missing the point. Worship is about giving, not taking. If you ever feel you didn’t get much out of a time of worship, ask yourself what you are giving to it. That’s the whole point.

Apathy

 1/4/25

When [Herod] had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘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.’ ” —Matthew 2:4-6 

There is a difference between knowing something and believing it. And that difference is life and death. If anyone should have been in Bethlehem in those early days and weeks of Jesus’ earthly life, it should have been the scribes and priests. They not only had the Scriptures, they knew the prophecies by heart. So why weren’t they curious enough to look for the Child themselves? Apparently, even after Herod inquired, they couldn’t be bothered to go and see for themselves.

If you’ve grown up in church, you are familiar with the stories. But familiarity is not the same as faith. The danger we face is getting so accustomed to the stories that we aren’t even curious about what God is doing. Don’t let these stories lull you into inactivity and unbelief. If you aren’t interested enough to actively seek out the Christ, your faith is words alone, and unable to save you from your sins or give you hope when you have to walk in the darkness.

Angry People

 1/3/25

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 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.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. —Matthew 2:1-3 

Pay attention to verse 3: “When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” Herod was about as bad as you could get. He was a master builder; the Temple he built was an amazing structure, as were many other building projects he undertook. But he was proud, paranoid, and power-hungry. Suspecting a power struggle, he murdered his own wife, her two sons, her brother, mother, and grandmother. People quipped that it was better to be Herod’s pig than his son, a play on words: In Greek, the word for pig is only one letter different from the word for son.

So when it says when Herod was troubled, all Jerusalem was troubled, this was no exaggeration. He was ruthless and unpredictable. We’ll hear more about that later. But for now, pay attention to a bit of wisdom I learned the hard way: Keep your distance from angry people. They may be talented, have resources and connections, but if you get too close to an angry person, sooner or later, you will become a target, and it won’t be pretty.

On Your Side

1/2/25

 “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 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 2:1-2 

This story tells us of people who having seen a sign in the heavens, made the long and difficult trip to find this Child. Their religion told them something significant had happened. God is merciful and full of grace, and even though their belief system was faulty, used their superstitions and beliefs to lead them to Christ. There was just enough truth in their beliefs to make them begin searching.

In Romans 1:19-20 and 2:15, Paul hints at the same thing:

“What may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead…[They] show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them.”

Here’s some really good news for those times when you long for your friends to know Jesus: Their conscience is on your side. Even when people oppose, ridicule, or ignore you, God has written the truth on their hearts. If God can use the stars he has created to bring these astrologists to Jesus, he can and will use the bits and pieces of anyone’s belief system to win people to Christ.

Happy New Year1

 1/1/25

Happy New Year!

The Scripture for today I think is especially appropriate as we begin a new year:

“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.””

—Matthew 1:21-23 

“God with us” is how he saves us from our sins. And how he keeps us in his care. All through this last year, which has certainly had its share of challenges, God has been with us. All through this next year, which will have its share of challenges, God will be with us.