The Best of Intentions: Worship of the King
The Birth of the Savior • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro on having good intentions
This morning, I want to look at the intentions of these wise men and King Herod.
Read Matthew 2:1-12
There is a gap in time of about a year or two between the close of chapter 1 and chapter 2. It is because these men saw a star that they traveled east. It is in verse 2 that we learn both the catalyst for their journey as well as the reason what they came to do. They ask Herod where the king of the Jews who has recently been born is because they saw a star appear.
These wisemen were from a pagan background and had a great deal of influence in Babylonian and Persian courts. They relied heavily on observation of astronomy and astrological speculation. This is why they had a great deal of influence in the empires in the east. And now they have seen a star appear which typically would indicate that an influential person had been born. Which is why they come westward seeking this new king.
But the most fascinating aspect of these first two verses has to be that the men came seeking to worship Jesus. That was their intention. The argument could be made that this may not have been true worship of Jesus as the Messiah but I would place before you that Matthew included this in His gospel because these men truly believed that Jesus was the Messiah. This is a group who are highly educated in the gods of other religions and yet they are convinced that this Messiah of the Jews is the one who is worthy of their praise.
The intention of the wise men was for worship. Throughout these verses, I want to look at what worship looks like when we have the best intentions, the intentions that the King of the World is deserving of. We begin with the
Location of Worship
Location of Worship
In verse two we can see that these men were seeking to worship Jesus. That was their desire. They notice the star as if they are looking for a sign for someone to bow down to. I make mention of this because there are some who begin worshipping Jesus and are never actually looking for Him. Yet, others understand that there is something missing in their lives and have tried all of the other options with great failure.
They find out that Jesus is located in Bethlehem in verses 5 and 6 and that is where they ultimately go. Is location important when worship takes place? The answer to this is really both yes and no. Ultimately, the church is not a physical location but a group of people. We are reminded in Hebrews 10:25 not to neglect meeting together and I find this to be extremely important. No where else in the bible is there such a strong warning not to neglect worshipping and this is found in the context of the local church.
It is also remarkable the distance that these men travel in order to worship Jesus. The distance from Babylon to Bethlehem would have been about 800 miles and the journey would have taken several weeks. And yet we often cook up excuses to gather together because its just too tough or we don’t have the time. For the wise men, 800 miles was no obstacle when it came to worshiping Jesus.
I’m afraid that you and I have gotten spoiled when it comes to church. We are willing to do difficult things in order to worship God. I say this, fully knowing that gathering together with a group of more than 5 or 6 means that there will be some who you don’t really enjoy worshiping with. Maybe someone smells bad or another person can’t carry a tune. Maybe this person offended you or that person never says hello. But is this a worthy obstacle to worship the true king? I don’t believe that it is.
The location of the worship of the wise men is important because we are reminded that they were seeking an opportunity to worship Jesus and because they were willing to put in the hard work that was necessary to worship him.
Next, as we look down to verse 8, we see
Deception in Worship
Deception in Worship
We are introduced to Herod in 1 but learn a great deal more about Him in verse 8. Herod the King was half Jewish and was the legally appointed ruler of Israel and Judah under the authority of Rome. The first tidbit we have about him is that he was troubled about the news that the wise men brought about the King of the Jews. It was more than just troubled, it seems. A better description is that he was in great turmoil. We are also told that all of Jerusalem was in the same state of mind but this is likely to all of the leaders in Jerusalem that had been appointed by Herod.
Then he assembled the chief priests and scribes to ask them where the Christ was to be born. It is perplexing that the rule of the Jews would not know that Micah 5:2 prophesies that He will be born in Bethlehem and speaks to the lack of loyalty He had to God’s people during this day.
After finding out it was Bethlehem, Herod gathers the wise men in secret to determine when this star appeared. Then He sends them to find the boy and come back and inform him of the location. It is here we see the paranoia that Herod had. History tells us that many of his family members for fear that they were trying to take over.
Herod says that he desires to go and worship as well but based on this information, it is clear that it is not his intention to worship the one who now poses a threat to his throne. He is being deceptive here.
We have a tendency to be deceptive in our approach to worship as well. We come for the wrong reasons. We pretend that we are here to give honor to God when it is actually just a self-serving act to draw attention to ourselves. Herod is seemingly saying the right thing but based on background information and verse three where He is troubled, the remainder of chapter 2 makes sense that Herod would seek to kill Jesus, forcing His family to flee to Egypt.
Do we have the best intentions when we gather with the people of God to worship or do we seek to deceive those that are around us? We ought to often search our own hearts and ponder why it is that we worship. He is worthy of your time. He is worthy of your praise. He is worthy of your attention. So won’t you give it to him?
The remainder of the points this morning look directly at the actions of the wise men. Next, we think about the
Attitude of Worship
Attitude of Worship
The wise men go on their way and see the star that is guiding them to where Jesus was. When they see the star, they rejoice. In fact, they rejoice with great joy. The emphasis here is not just on the act of being glad but it is being glad from a source of Joy.
Just reading verse 10 reminds me of the first hymn in our hymnbook, Rejoice the Lord is King. It is in that song that we are reminded that we rejoice because Jesus is King, because we now have hope, because His kingdom cannot fail, and that the savior reigns!
When we gather together for the purpose of worshiping, it is vital that our attitudes reflect what we think of the God we are praising. And this attitude spreads to everything that we do. We arrive early because of an attitude of rejoicing. We stick around and fellowship because of an attitude of rejoicing. We sing loud because of an attitude of rejoicing. This attitude should radically change your worship experience and believe it or not, it will also change the experience of those that are around you!
We worship with we also should be
Giving in Worship
Giving in Worship
These wise men bring treasures and lay gifts at the feet of the mother and father of the boy. What do you have to offer God? It is more than mere monetary gifts. We have all been given abilities that serve God and His people. We ought not be stingy with these things but offer them up freely because we were given them in the first place. The offering of the wise men was a symbol of their devotion to Jesus.
So, let me ask what have you given God today? Is what you have given him worthy of a king or have you just gone through the motions as always?
We have much to give but Jesus Christ is worthy of it all.
Finally, we must be
Led in Worship
Led in Worship
Verse 12 tells us that the wise men are told in a dream not to return back east by way of Herod because they would have likely been endangered. They go a different way because of God’s divine intervention.
It is fitting that we end here because I believe one of the ways we are led in worship of God that we often fail to follow through on is how to respond to His word. It is more comfortable to remain seated during an altar call than it is to make your way and seek the Lord and His will on your life.
So, as we close this morning, has God placed something on your mind today through the Holy Spirit? Will you follow the leading of the Lord? I pray that you will.
