Moment to Moment (Bible blog)
Father, when Herod heard your Son was born, he was hostile and wanted to kill him.
The priests and the scribes, on the other hand, were indifferent and simply went home.
But when the wise men learned your Son was born, their hearts’ desire was to seek and worship him.
Father, give me the heart of the wise men, a heart passionate to seek and worship your Son.
Lord, let me never take you for granted or lose my wonder at you.
That’s what the priests and scribes seemed to have done.
They studied your scriptures. They did all their religious rituals.
But when they heard you had been born, they couldn’t be bothered to seek you out. They just went back to their studies and religious practices with hearts completely unchanged.
Lord, let me instead be like the wise men. Seeking you. Overwhelmed with joy at the sight of you. Falling to my knees. Worshiping you.
We heard of the ark in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.Let’s go to his dwelling place;
let’s worship at his footstool.” (Psalm 132:6-7)
In the Old Testament, the ark of the covenant was a symbol of God’s presence with the Israelites.
But at a time when the Israelites had turned their backs on God, it got captured by the Philistines. And even when the Philistines returned the ark, it was ignored by the Israelites for years. (I Samuel 4-7, I Chronicles 13:3)
But in this psalm, the poet recounts how David took the ark of the covenant from Kiriath-jearam and brought it to Jerusalem. (1 Chronicles 15)
The poet also recounts the promises God made to David to keep his dynasty alive forever.
There are two Ephrathahs in the Old Testament. This psalm probably is referring to the one in Kiriath-jearam.
But I do find it interesting that hundreds of years later, God kept his promise to David through the birth of Jesus in another Ephrathah: Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:5)
And after he was born, wise men from the East said,
Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him. (Matthew 2:2)
And because of the cross, now we are clothed with salvation as God’s priests and we shout for joy because of it. (16)
More, the day will come when God will put all Jesus’ enemies under his feet. (I Corinthians 15:24-27).
And on that day, his crown will indeed be glorious. (18)
So let us remember that Christmas is not just about Jesus coming 2000 years ago. He will come again.
On that day, we will all sing,
The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 11:15)
“How passionate am I to come worship Jesus?”
That was my thought as I read this passage.
The wise men were definitely passionate about coming to worship Jesus. They left their country and left no stone unturned in order to find him.
And when they found the star of the Savior hovering over Bethlehem, “they were overwhelmed with joy.” (Matthew 2:10)
Finding the Savior, they fell to their knees and worshiped him, offering him costly gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Contrast their response with that of the chief priests and scribes.
For whatever reason, their hearts were not stirred in the least to find and worship their Messiah. Instead, they went back to the temple to read their scrolls and perform their religious duties.
What about us? Do we daily have a passion to worship our Messiah? Are we overwhelmed with joy that he is near and that we have access to him?
Does that passion make us willing to sacrifice our time and our money simply for the privilege of coming before him and worshiping him?
Or are we…indifferent?
Today is the “Feast of Epiphany,” the day when many Christians remember the visit of the three wise men. (Though honestly, I have never been in a church that has celebrated this feast or thought about its significance).
But reading this story again, I think of the words of Simon who talked to Mary and Joseph on the day they brought Jesus to the temple to be circumcised.
Indeed, this child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed and a sword will pierce your own soul—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed. (Luke 2:34-35)
“That the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
The thoughts of the chief priests certainly were. You would think they had heard the rumors that the Messiah was born. (Matthew 2:3)
And yet it doesn’t seem to have occurred to them to seek him out. How that could be is beyond me.
King Herod, of course, wanted to kill this threat to the throne.
And the wise men came to worship him.
Even today, Jesus reveals the thoughts of people.
Most people feel unthreatened by thoughts of baby Jesus in a manger.
But when it comes to a Jesus who claims to be their king, that’s where their hearts are revealed.
Many dismiss the thought out of hand.
Others become hostile.
And others bow before him.
What response does Jesus spark in your heart?
Moment to Moment (Bible blog) 