Keeping Christ in CHRISTmas Day #12 Seeking the Saviour this Christmas

Keeping Christ in CHRISTmas – Day #12 - Seeking the Saviour this Christmas (Matthew 2:1)

Seeking the Saviour this Christmas (Matthew 2:1)

Matthew 2:1, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,”

There was nothing usual or common about the birth and early childhood of Jesus Christ. Practically every event was unusual or uncommon, and totally unexpected. There was the fact of His being God's very own Son, the virgin birth, the announcement by angels, being born in a stable, and on and on. The unexpected continued right on through the experience of the wise men. The wise men are a picture of those who seek Jesus. As they sought Him, events totally unexpected happened time and again. King Herod had ruled Galilee and ultimately Judah from 37-4 B.C. It is of importance to mention this because it gives us an understanding of the time of the birth of Jesus. Herod was given the title "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate. If we understand this, we know Jesus was actually born sometime before a.d. 1, because Herod died in 4 b.c.

If one were to consider the faith of these wise men, it will not take one long to see that these men had a bold and blazing faith. I have always been intrigued with the story of the wise men. Usually the same questions are asked concerning these men and they are: How many were there? Where did they come from? How did they know? In all of our Christmas plays we always find three. The reason for this is that they presented Jesus with three gifts upon their arrival in Bethlehem. The reality is that none of us know the exact number of these men. The journey of this group may have taken 1 to 2 years. These wise men had left their homes, families, and comforts to journey to a strange land in search of the King. Wouldn't Christmas be wonderful if everyone were interested in seeking Jesus? Herod became very troubled at the thought of another King. He was a wicked man who wanted to destroy anyone or anything that might threaten his reign. He wanted to find Jesus and kill Him. This is evident by the slaughter of all the male children (Matthew 2:16). It didn't take long for men to want to take Christ out of Christmas. No doubt Herod's actions were the result of Satan's influence. He certainly didn't want Jesus to make it to the cross. Where is He? Every person needs to be asked the question, for He has already come and most are not aware of it. Why? Because they are preoccupied with self and worldly affairs, with ambition and material possessions, with the physical and the flesh.

We have come a long way in such a short amount of time. How far away from God and how lost the world has become—not to know that God has sent the true King, His own Son, into the world! "He was in the world...and the world knew Him not" (John 1:10-11). How could God send His Son into the world and the world not know it? How clearly the wise men illustrate the world's blindness to eternal affairs. A wise man is a man who seeks after the King of the Jews. The wise men were commissioned to search for the newborn King. Ponder the wise men's testimony about the star. The wise men had unashamedly testified to the supernatural, the star that had led them to seek the newborn King. All the city had heard their testimony, even Herod. God used an evil man, Herod (without his knowing it), to help the wise men in their search. Any person who seeks the newborn King will be led by God to Him—no matter who God has to use to help the seeker. The wise men were now commissioned to go and search and find the child. The newborn King's own people were not even aware of His coming. The wise men never expected they would have to search for Him.

Isn't it amazing how history repeats itself? Many in our day are at work to remove Christ from Christmas. I never thought I would see this day in America. When I was a child, everyone knew what Christmas was about. I played the part of Joseph in a school play. Even folks who didn't go to church recognized Christmas as the birth of Christ. Now there is a push to replace Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays. We don't want to offend the Muslims. It is a Christian holiday! Satan knows this is a special time of year when the world gets a 1st hand witness of the birth of Christ. I pray we will stand up and declare that Christmas isn't just a secular holiday, but a Christian holy day! Let's instill in our children the reason for Christmas, the birth of Christ, not Santa Claus and big presents. I have tried to imagine the joy and glory they felt as they came into the house. After all their searching, they had found the King. They immediately fell and worshipped Him. God will meet the need of anyone who faithfully searches and does all they can, the person who continues on and refuses to quit. Yet how few search Him out today (II Corinthians 6:2). Christmas is a special time for the believer. It is beyond what I can comprehend, that Jesus would leave the glory of heaven to die for me. It's amazing that He came at all! Will you seek Him and make Him known this Christmas? Let us worship Jesus this Christmas season. He is the reason!

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