Worship the New Born King

Matthew 2:1-12

Key Verse 2:11

** This passage shows the [right] way to worship Jesus, the new born king. Note: we call it “the way” to mean that there is always the right reason(s) to worship the way we are to worship the new born king. This is important because man’s purpose is to come to meet the right object of worship and indeed worship him in the way we should. Consider the first question of the first question the Westminster Catechism asks is “What is the chief and highest end of man?” The answer is to glorify God and fully enjoy him forever.” We can fulfill this purpose in the context and by way of worship.  

Read verses 1-2. What did the Magi know about Jesus? How did they come to obtain this knowledge? What did they do about this knowledge they came across? What didn’t they know? What did they do with the question they had? What can we learn from the Magi in seeking the truth (about the object of worship)? About Jesus?

** The king of the Jews was already born (arrived).

** They saw his star in the east. They did not have the Bible. Yet they had an alternative, that is, by way of searching Jesus’ star. Most likely they heard from the Old Testament Scriptures such as the prophecy by the prophet Balaam in Numbers 24:17 that the time of the Savior’s birth would coincide with the appearing of his star in the sky. Psalm 19:1 talks about the heavens declaring the glory of God. Consider what the heavenly host sang saying “Glory to the highest” in Luke 2:14. 

** They acted upon it, investing all of their resources in this venture.

** They did not know the place where they could meet the new born king. They must have thought the place was Jerusalem, but there they lost the star. Their GPS system did not work in the city of Jerusalem. 

** So they stopped relying on their own GPS system. They then started asking people around, until the whole city came to wake up. This is a very important quality of a scholar, a truth seeker. You just can’t stop at anything; you keep searching and searching, until you find the truth. This stubbornness is the key to finding the truth. Many scientists succeed on this account. 

** Like the Magi we need to make the most use of all means available in order to come to know Jesus better and worship Him in the way we should, until songs of praise erupt in our hearts. The Apostle Paul demonstrated this attitude when he said, “I want to know Christ…” in Phi 3:10. The Apostle Peter also expressed the same attitude when he said in 2Pe 1:19. Actually when Jesus came, he too exhibited the same sincere attitude from his boyhood as we see Jesus sitting among the teachers at the Lord’s temple even from his young adulthood. Luke 2:46

** Jesus is the true object of worship. In the Bible, worship is directed to only one person, that is, God alone. This indicates that Jesus is God. Being the king (of all the kings of the) Jews (which means Jesus is the spiritual king), he is to be worshiped with a reverent attitude on our part. Categorically Jesus is the Creator God and the sustainer of the existing order and the order to come. According to Heb 1:3, he is the exact representation of God’s being. This is what the heavenly host meant when they sang, “Glory to the highest”. 

Read verse 3. What does “disturbed” mean? What does this passage indicate about King Herod? All Jerusalem with him? 

** Disturbed = distressed, upset, troubled, sorry, agitated, annoyed, bothered, irritated, vexed, interfered with, interrupted, intruded upon, dislocated, displaced, unsettled…

** King Herod wanted to hold onto the life security he thought he had built for himself as his own means of survival and wellbeing. He thought Jesus came to threaten his own life security. He thought this way because he was greatly deceived by the devil. The devil always deceives, kills, and then destroys his victims for good. There are many modern day King Herods in our own generation. They look big and impressive. They are proud. But they are nothing but small puppets, the slaves, of the devil. 

** “All Jerusalem with him” – this description is a synonym for the pseudo Christians who put one foot in the world another in the church. They are compromising with the sinning world. They want to get the best of both worlds. In this sense they are double-minded people; they are worse than even the outright wicked like King Herod. They are never friends much less worshipers of Jesus.

Read verses 4-6. What does the “Christ” mean? Who is “the prophet” referred to in verse 5? Why do you think God revealed the information (on the birth place of the Christ) in advance? Yet it appears that the religious leaders (chief priests and teachers of the law) did not do anything with the news that came to their knowledge (cf. 3). Why?  

** Christ = the anointed (in the sense that he is the one appointed by God the Father) to save the dying world. In Hebraic term this title is called Messiah, the one God designed to save the fallen race, the descendants of Adam. 

** The name is Micah (which in Hebrew means “Who is like [Yaweh] YHVH”? (Or “Who is like Jesus”) In fact no one (Savior) is like Jesus, for Jesus alone lowered himself to the lowest position, sacrificing himself like no one, all to save the dying. He prophesied about the birth place of the Savior about 7 centuries prior to Jesus’ birth. Can you foretell the birth place of anyone who is to be born seven years later or seven decades later or even seven centuries? But God knows the end from the beginning, and through his servants like Prophet Micah the Lord foretold the birthplace of the Savior. 

** God did this to prepare his people for the Savior and let them be used to disseminate this hope of meeting the Savior, so that they would not lose hope (or drown to death in the sea of corrupted world such as the world where King Hezekiah ruled). Remember that the only hope for true reformation/restoration is found in Jesus. If this is the case, it is the only hope for people of all generations [living before, during, and after, the coming of Jesus the Savior] to go by, for after all Jesus is the Savior who is the only person being able to reach out and save people of all generations. 

** It is because they were busy-minded, perhaps materialistic, so they must have sold the truth for money. They did have the truth, but they sold it for money, not for what the truth is for that is salvation of their soul in exchange for all the treasures of the world. Read Pro 23:23

They are the worst group of people found in the passage. The next worst group is all people in Jerusalem who were “with” King Herod (‘with’ = on his payroll, for example, like parasites living under the wings of Herod, perhaps playing golf with him.)

Read verses 7-8 and compare what King Herod said and what he later did in verse 16. What does this comparison tell us about the King Herod? 

** He is indeed the incarnation of the devil, for the devil is always deceptive. 

Read verses 9-10. Who (or what) assisted the Magi in getting them to “the” house (where they could meet the new born king)? What does this episode indicate about the way of [seeking the true object of] worship? 

** The star (as the Lord God keeps it the way it operates). “The house” indicates that by that time Jesus moved from the manger to a house. We don’t know what happened to Joseph. Maybe he went out to buy groceries. 

** It has been said, “God helps those who help themselves.” Or “Where there is a will there is a way.” This reminds us of what the Scriptures say like 2Ch 15:2, Isaiah 55:6; 65:1. Read also Romans 10:20. So the first step is to seek him meaning business. Then God will take care of the rest. 

Read verse 11a. What (or whom) did they see? Whom did they worship?  Whom did they not worship?

** The child with his mother Mary

** The child

** Mary

Read verse 11b-12 and consider the gifts they presented to the new born king. What is each of the three gifts for? Do they have anything in common? Why do you think they presented these gifts to the child? What can we learn from them about the way of worship? Why did they not go back to King Herod? 

** Gold – biblically “gold” stands for the King of the Universe. This is seen without an exception in the way the Lord God commanded Moses to make furnishings for the ark of covenant. Exodus 25 et al 

Incense – for the use by the priests for prayer

Myrrh – for either medical purposes (such as embalming), or as a perfume to enhance the atmospheric environment as in a marriage bed

** In those days they all represented very “expensive” (or simply costly) items.

** Their example shows us the right way to give thanks to the Lord, the King of Universe, which resulted in them appreciating the value of the new born king, and getting the purpose of their life fully fulfilled, giving them true satisfaction. 

The end

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