WEBVTT 00:00:02.310 --> 00:00:05.769 We come today to the book of Numbers. What an 00:00:05.769 --> 00:00:08.029 odd name for a book in the Bible, we might think. 00:00:09.669 --> 00:00:14.890 But the English name for the Bible originates 00:00:14.890 --> 00:00:17.129 in the fact that there are two census figures 00:00:17.129 --> 00:00:22.390 which are recorded in this book. One of them 00:00:22.390 --> 00:00:24.649 early on in the book is the census of the nation 00:00:24.649 --> 00:00:29.510 before their march in the wilderness. The latter 00:00:29.510 --> 00:00:34.869 one is their census. after the march. The Hebrew 00:00:34.869 --> 00:00:39.729 name for the book is, in the English, In the 00:00:39.729 --> 00:00:44.450 Wilderness, which perhaps is a more fitting title 00:00:44.450 --> 00:00:47.329 for the book because it records that period of 00:00:47.329 --> 00:00:51.750 time between the giving of the law on Mount Sinai 00:00:51.750 --> 00:00:55.590 and the ultimate arrival of the nation at the 00:00:55.590 --> 00:01:01.350 front door of Canaan at the plains of Moab. It 00:01:01.350 --> 00:01:05.269 covers a period of some 39 years, all of which 00:01:05.269 --> 00:01:11.189 was spent in the wilderness. Here is recorded 00:01:11.189 --> 00:01:13.530 that fateful decision on the part of the people 00:01:13.530 --> 00:01:17.810 to disbelieve and disobey the Lord by failing 00:01:17.810 --> 00:01:22.569 to enter into Canaan at Kadesh Barnea. And you 00:01:22.569 --> 00:01:25.109 recall as a result of their failure there, God 00:01:25.109 --> 00:01:29.310 condemned a whole generation to die on that wilderness 00:01:29.310 --> 00:01:34.849 march. As Israel eventually arrived at the plains 00:01:34.849 --> 00:01:40.469 of Moab and prepared to enter the land God had 00:01:40.469 --> 00:01:44.930 given to them, their presence in the land of 00:01:44.930 --> 00:01:50.870 Moab created a great amount of fear. The Moabites 00:01:50.870 --> 00:01:54.590 had heard how Israel had, during their wilderness 00:01:54.590 --> 00:01:59.549 time, conquered the Amorites. And the Amorites... 00:02:00.400 --> 00:02:03.620 had fallen to them, and the Moabites now were 00:02:03.620 --> 00:02:11.659 fearful of the same thing. So Balak, who was 00:02:11.659 --> 00:02:15.280 the king of the Moabites, thought of an alternate 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:20.020 strategy to a military one. Fighting didn't work 00:02:20.020 --> 00:02:25.340 for the Amorites, so he had to think up some 00:02:25.340 --> 00:02:27.740 strategy that might work more effectively for 00:02:27.740 --> 00:02:32.419 them, the Moabites. He decided to send for a 00:02:32.419 --> 00:02:37.319 prophet who might come and on behalf of the Moabites 00:02:37.319 --> 00:02:42.400 curse the people of Israel. Such a prophet was 00:02:42.400 --> 00:02:47.939 found. His name was Balaam. Balaam was a false 00:02:47.939 --> 00:02:53.460 prophet. He was not a believer in the true God, 00:02:53.599 --> 00:03:00.139 and yet he had contact with the true God. He 00:03:00.139 --> 00:03:04.539 is somewhat of an enigma to us in the Old Testament. 00:03:06.080 --> 00:03:08.300 We read about him, though, in Numbers chapter 00:03:08.300 --> 00:03:11.580 22, and I invite you to turn there and look at 00:03:11.580 --> 00:03:16.419 verse 5 with me, where it says that Balak sent 00:03:16.419 --> 00:03:19.280 messengers to Balaam, the son of Beor, at Pethor, 00:03:19.500 --> 00:03:22.960 which is near the river, that is the Euphrates 00:03:22.960 --> 00:03:26.539 River, in the land of the sons of his people, 00:03:26.599 --> 00:03:30.150 to call him, saying, Behold, a people came out 00:03:30.150 --> 00:03:32.990 of Egypt. Behold, they cover the surface of the 00:03:32.990 --> 00:03:36.370 land, and they are living opposite me. Now therefore, 00:03:36.449 --> 00:03:39.949 please come, curse this people for me, since 00:03:39.949 --> 00:03:42.930 they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I may be 00:03:42.930 --> 00:03:45.050 able to defeat them and drive them out of the 00:03:45.050 --> 00:03:48.430 land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed, 00:03:48.590 --> 00:03:52.469 and he whom you curse is cursed. So the elders 00:03:52.469 --> 00:03:56.430 of Moab and the elders of Midian departed. with 00:03:56.430 --> 00:04:00.490 the fees of divination in their hand. And they 00:04:00.490 --> 00:04:04.789 came to Balaam and repeated Balak's words to 00:04:04.789 --> 00:04:10.629 him. Balaam was a false prophet who loved money. 00:04:11.990 --> 00:04:14.909 And the story that unfolds before us indicates 00:04:14.909 --> 00:04:17.550 that at first he declined to go with them. God 00:04:17.550 --> 00:04:20.610 told him not to. But they came back and offered 00:04:20.610 --> 00:04:23.600 some more money. And it was hard for him to say 00:04:23.600 --> 00:04:25.879 no, and God said, well, if you want to do it, 00:04:25.879 --> 00:04:30.220 do it. And so Balaam went to Moab, and there 00:04:30.220 --> 00:04:35.620 three times attempted to curse the people of 00:04:35.620 --> 00:04:39.480 Israel. But he had warned Balak that he would 00:04:39.480 --> 00:04:41.920 say nothing that God didn't put into his mouth. 00:04:42.579 --> 00:04:45.259 And God would not put into his mouth, of course, 00:04:45.379 --> 00:04:50.089 curses upon his own people. Rather, God gave 00:04:50.089 --> 00:04:54.290 to Balaam words of blessing. And that was all 00:04:54.290 --> 00:04:56.790 he would speak. Balak took him to one place and 00:04:56.790 --> 00:04:58.970 then another place and then another place. He 00:04:58.970 --> 00:05:00.889 said, try it here. And they would build alders 00:05:00.889 --> 00:05:02.589 and they would kill bulls and they would kill 00:05:02.589 --> 00:05:05.810 rams. And then he would try to give the cursing 00:05:05.810 --> 00:05:09.389 and nothing but blessing would come out of the 00:05:09.389 --> 00:05:13.649 mouth of Balaam. Now that would make you kind 00:05:13.649 --> 00:05:16.949 of mad. If you had hired this man to come and 00:05:16.949 --> 00:05:19.639 pronounce a curse, And he couldn't or wouldn't 00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:23.000 do it. And that is exactly what happened. Look 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:28.180 over in chapter 24 and verse 10. It says, Balak's 00:05:28.180 --> 00:05:33.040 anger burned against Balaam. And he struck his 00:05:33.040 --> 00:05:36.920 hands together. And Balak said to Balaam, I called 00:05:36.920 --> 00:05:39.980 you to curse my enemies. But behold, you have 00:05:39.980 --> 00:05:42.420 persisted in blessing them these three times. 00:05:42.519 --> 00:05:46.399 Therefore, flee to your place now. I said, I 00:05:46.399 --> 00:05:48.339 would honor you greatly, but behold, the Lord 00:05:48.339 --> 00:05:52.399 has held you back from honor. Balaam said to 00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:55.860 Balak, Did I not tell your messengers whom you 00:05:55.860 --> 00:05:58.459 had sent to me, saying, Though Balak were to 00:05:58.459 --> 00:06:01.139 give me this house full of silver and gold, I 00:06:01.139 --> 00:06:04.540 could not do anything contrary to the command 00:06:04.540 --> 00:06:07.600 of the Lord, either good or bad, of my own accord. 00:06:07.959 --> 00:06:11.540 What the Lord speaks, that will I speak. And 00:06:11.540 --> 00:06:14.600 now, behold, I am going to my people. Come and 00:06:14.600 --> 00:06:17.060 I will advise you what this people will do to 00:06:17.060 --> 00:06:21.060 your people in days to come. And he took up his 00:06:21.060 --> 00:06:24.060 discourse and said. And now Balaam is going to 00:06:24.060 --> 00:06:28.439 give some more words to Balak regarding the future 00:06:28.439 --> 00:06:34.560 of the people of Israel. The oracle of Balaam, 00:06:34.579 --> 00:06:37.319 the son of Beor, and the oracle of the man whose 00:06:37.319 --> 00:06:40.600 eye is opened, the oracle of him who hears the 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:43.160 words of God and knows the knowledge of the Most 00:06:43.160 --> 00:06:46.379 High, who sees the vision of the Almighty falling 00:06:46.379 --> 00:06:50.639 down, yet having his eyes uncovered. So far he's 00:06:50.639 --> 00:06:57.139 just introduced himself. Now he says, I see him, 00:06:57.360 --> 00:07:07.240 but not now. I behold him, but not near. A star 00:07:07.240 --> 00:07:11.500 shall come forth from Jacob, and a scepter shall 00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:15.699 rise from Israel, and shall crush through the 00:07:15.699 --> 00:07:19.639 forehead of Moab, and tear down all the sons 00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:24.519 of Sheth. And Edom shall be a possession. Seir, 00:07:24.699 --> 00:07:28.839 its enemies, also shall be a possession. While 00:07:28.839 --> 00:07:33.560 Israel performs valiantly, one from Jacob shall 00:07:33.560 --> 00:07:36.939 have dominion and shall destroy the remnant from 00:07:36.939 --> 00:07:40.240 the city. Now we're going to stop at that point, 00:07:40.279 --> 00:07:43.040 although his words go on talking about the future 00:07:43.040 --> 00:07:46.819 of Israel. Because we have just read some of 00:07:46.819 --> 00:07:49.040 the most significant verses in all the book of 00:07:49.040 --> 00:07:52.839 Numbers. We have here a passage that is messianic. 00:07:54.180 --> 00:07:57.579 A passage that speaks of the coming Redeemer. 00:07:57.930 --> 00:08:01.850 who would reign. And so as we think about Christmas 00:08:01.850 --> 00:08:04.149 in the Pentateuch and in the book of Numbers 00:08:04.149 --> 00:08:07.329 specifically, this morning we're going to examine 00:08:07.329 --> 00:08:12.310 the reign of the Redeemer, because that is the 00:08:12.310 --> 00:08:15.790 word that Balaam gives. You say, well, how could 00:08:15.790 --> 00:08:19.990 Balaam, a false prophet, speak what is truth? 00:08:21.730 --> 00:08:23.970 I'm not sure I know the full answer to that, 00:08:23.990 --> 00:08:28.589 except that God definitely did. put the words 00:08:28.589 --> 00:08:33.830 into the mouth of Balaam. Perhaps we have here 00:08:33.830 --> 00:08:37.590 an illustration of the marvel of inspiration 00:08:37.590 --> 00:08:44.230 when God chooses to use unworthy vessels, and 00:08:44.230 --> 00:08:48.110 yet truth is delivered through them untarnished 00:08:48.110 --> 00:08:53.230 and uncompromised. For that matter, there is 00:08:53.230 --> 00:08:55.370 no writer of Scripture that could be called worthy. 00:08:58.639 --> 00:09:01.460 None could be called worthy, although Balaam 00:09:01.460 --> 00:09:05.740 was a false prophet. And yet God chose to give 00:09:05.740 --> 00:09:11.580 truth in this instance through a wicked man who 00:09:11.580 --> 00:09:14.000 was willing to sell his services as a religious 00:09:14.000 --> 00:09:19.200 leader. Dr. Ronald Allen says regarding the prophecy 00:09:19.200 --> 00:09:22.600 that we've read that this prophecy should come 00:09:22.600 --> 00:09:26.019 from one who was unworthy makes the prophecy 00:09:26.019 --> 00:09:31.100 all the more dramatic. and startling. Christmas 00:09:31.100 --> 00:09:33.580 in Numbers is contained in this prophecy about 00:09:33.580 --> 00:09:36.860 the reign of the Redeemer. This prophecy of the 00:09:36.860 --> 00:09:41.879 star scepter, as it is called in verse 17, is 00:09:41.879 --> 00:09:46.759 a messianic reference. He says, a star shall 00:09:46.759 --> 00:09:51.480 come forth from Jacob, a scepter shall rise from 00:09:51.480 --> 00:09:58.830 Israel. The star slash scepter prophecy. That 00:09:58.830 --> 00:10:02.570 it is Messianic was even agreed to by ancient 00:10:02.570 --> 00:10:07.870 Jewish commentators and translators. There was 00:10:07.870 --> 00:10:13.090 a period of time when the Jewish people, in their 00:10:13.090 --> 00:10:17.289 dispersion, began to pick up the Aramaic language 00:10:17.289 --> 00:10:21.789 instead of the Hebrew language. And so to assist 00:10:21.789 --> 00:10:27.679 them in their understanding of Aramaic, and their 00:10:27.679 --> 00:10:31.960 lack of understanding often in Hebrew. Many of 00:10:31.960 --> 00:10:38.799 the Jewish rabbis and leaders wrote commentary 00:10:38.799 --> 00:10:44.139 or paraphrases of the Hebrew Old Testament into 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:48.320 the Aramaic language. Those were called targums, 00:10:48.440 --> 00:10:53.759 which means an interpretation. We have still 00:10:53.759 --> 00:10:59.090 existent today targums. very ancient commentaries 00:10:59.090 --> 00:11:03.429 or paraphrases of the Old Testament in which 00:11:03.429 --> 00:11:08.190 Jewish rabbis would give the meaning or the explanation 00:11:08.190 --> 00:11:11.029 or the interpretation of the Hebrew words as 00:11:11.029 --> 00:11:14.789 they understood them. Now, regarding these words 00:11:14.789 --> 00:11:17.389 in numbers, there are some significant statements. 00:11:18.529 --> 00:11:22.730 The Targum of Ancalos, as it is called, It's 00:11:22.730 --> 00:11:25.450 one of the most complete targums of the Pentateuch, 00:11:25.509 --> 00:11:29.169 the five books of Moses. And regarding this verse, 00:11:29.450 --> 00:11:32.950 the rabbi who was writing it said that the verse 00:11:32.950 --> 00:11:36.309 refers to when a mighty king of Jacob's house 00:11:36.309 --> 00:11:40.190 will reign and the Messiah will be magnified. 00:11:42.009 --> 00:11:44.809 So you see, even the ancient Jews understood 00:11:44.809 --> 00:11:51.299 that this was a Messianic reference. The Targum 00:11:51.299 --> 00:11:55.940 of Jonathan reads this way, When there shall 00:11:55.940 --> 00:11:59.399 reign a strong king of the house of Jacob, and 00:11:59.399 --> 00:12:02.639 Messiah shall be anointed, and a strong scepter 00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:07.120 shall be from Israel. That was that rabbi's understanding 00:12:07.120 --> 00:12:12.820 of this prophecy. The star scepter prophecy was 00:12:12.820 --> 00:12:15.960 also understood to be messianic by the early 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:22.710 church fathers. Justin Martin, who died in 168 00:12:22.710 --> 00:12:26.350 A .D., and Athanasius the Great, who died in 00:12:26.350 --> 00:12:30.710 373 A .D., both referred to this passage in Numbers 00:12:30.710 --> 00:12:33.970 saying that it referred to the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:12:35.509 --> 00:12:38.809 So when we come to Numbers chapter 24 and we 00:12:38.809 --> 00:12:41.580 look at this verse, understand... This is not 00:12:41.580 --> 00:12:45.019 some preacher's idea in 1991. We're looking at 00:12:45.019 --> 00:12:47.899 something that historically has been understood 00:12:47.899 --> 00:12:52.940 as messianic. Now, what is specifically stated 00:12:52.940 --> 00:12:56.480 here about Messiah? Well, there are at least 00:12:56.480 --> 00:13:00.360 four things that are stated. First of all, it 00:13:00.360 --> 00:13:05.080 says there is a male figure that is seen in the 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:08.279 distant from Balaam's day. Notice he says it, 00:13:08.340 --> 00:13:13.100 I think, in a rather moving way. I see him, but 00:13:13.100 --> 00:13:22.679 not now. I behold him, but not near. Balaam says, 00:13:22.820 --> 00:13:26.320 I look into the future of Israel, and I see a 00:13:26.320 --> 00:13:33.399 male figure. I see a man. It's not soon. He's 00:13:33.399 --> 00:13:37.659 not at hand. He's not near, but I see him. The 00:13:37.659 --> 00:13:41.289 second thing he says, that this man will be of 00:13:41.289 --> 00:13:46.149 Israel and will reign as a royal sovereign or 00:13:46.149 --> 00:13:50.169 a king. Notice he says, a star will come forth 00:13:50.169 --> 00:13:54.350 from Jacob. A star was a symbol of a king, a 00:13:54.350 --> 00:14:00.370 mighty ruler. A scepter shall rise from Israel, 00:14:00.649 --> 00:14:06.350 he says. And then he says that this one who will 00:14:06.350 --> 00:14:10.250 reign from Israel, will deliver Israel from all 00:14:10.250 --> 00:14:15.929 of her enemies, including Moab. He will crush 00:14:15.929 --> 00:14:19.870 the forehead of Moab. Edom will be a possession, 00:14:20.190 --> 00:14:24.129 Seir. And all of the enemies of Israel will be 00:14:24.129 --> 00:14:29.490 destroyed. And finally, he says, at the same 00:14:29.490 --> 00:14:36.460 time, this future Messiah, this ruler, will cause 00:14:36.460 --> 00:14:41.159 Israel to grow strong as her enemies languish. 00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:47.220 Notice, while Israel performs valiantly, he says, 00:14:47.240 --> 00:14:52.360 one from Jacob shall have dominion. And so Israel 00:14:52.360 --> 00:14:56.019 will go like this while her enemies will go like 00:14:56.019 --> 00:15:01.740 that because of this future deliverer. The point 00:15:01.740 --> 00:15:05.019 in the prophecy of Numbers is that Israel's ultimate 00:15:05.019 --> 00:15:10.559 blessing awaits the arrival of her deliverer 00:15:10.559 --> 00:15:17.100 from all of her enemies. Now I'd like for you 00:15:17.100 --> 00:15:18.779 to turn with me to the New Testament, to the 00:15:18.779 --> 00:15:21.139 Gospel of Matthew, where we read earlier this 00:15:21.139 --> 00:15:27.759 morning in our scripture text. Those of you who 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:29.899 are familiar with the Gospel of Matthew know 00:15:29.899 --> 00:15:33.919 that Matthew wrote his Gospel to present Jesus 00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:37.840 Christ as the King, specifically the King of 00:15:37.840 --> 00:15:41.559 the Jews. And so from the very first verse, he 00:15:41.559 --> 00:15:45.600 introduces Jesus as royal. He says, the book 00:15:45.600 --> 00:15:48.720 of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of 00:15:48.720 --> 00:15:53.639 David. And then he gives a genealogy that traces 00:15:53.639 --> 00:15:58.720 him all the way back to David legally. His point 00:15:58.720 --> 00:16:03.379 is that Jesus Christ was qualified and was, in 00:16:03.379 --> 00:16:08.500 fact, the king of Israel. Now, when we come to 00:16:08.500 --> 00:16:13.480 chapter 2, we have the story of the three wise 00:16:13.480 --> 00:16:19.139 men, as we often call them, the three magi. A 00:16:19.139 --> 00:16:21.480 lot of tradition has been added to this account 00:16:21.480 --> 00:16:25.440 over the years. The tradition, for example, that 00:16:25.440 --> 00:16:29.679 they were kings. The Bible nowhere says they 00:16:29.679 --> 00:16:34.419 were kings. That there were three of them. It 00:16:34.419 --> 00:16:37.820 doesn't say that there were only three. That 00:16:37.820 --> 00:16:42.879 their names were Melchior, Balthasar, and Gaspar. 00:16:43.720 --> 00:16:47.500 The scriptures nowhere named them. A lot of tradition 00:16:47.500 --> 00:16:51.759 has been added to this story. But there is truth 00:16:51.759 --> 00:16:55.190 here that you and I need to understand. Because 00:16:55.190 --> 00:17:00.549 Matthew alludes to this prophecy in Numbers as 00:17:00.549 --> 00:17:04.910 he presents Jesus Christ as the ruler who would 00:17:04.910 --> 00:17:14.349 come, the king, the star, the scepter. The Magi 00:17:14.349 --> 00:17:20.109 came to do homage to the king of the Jews. It 00:17:20.109 --> 00:17:23.009 is important to understand that this whole period 00:17:23.009 --> 00:17:27.920 of time, was a period of expectation. In his 00:17:27.920 --> 00:17:30.559 commentary on Matthew, John MacArthur, I think, 00:17:30.559 --> 00:17:34.519 summarizes it well. He says, During that time 00:17:34.519 --> 00:17:37.140 there was a widespread expectation of the coming 00:17:37.140 --> 00:17:40.619 of a great king, a great deliverer. The Roman 00:17:40.619 --> 00:17:43.519 historian Suetonius, speaking of the time around 00:17:43.519 --> 00:17:46.579 the birth of Christ, wrote, There had spread 00:17:46.579 --> 00:17:50.220 over all the Orient an old and established belief 00:17:50.990 --> 00:17:54.430 that it was fated at that time for men coming 00:17:54.430 --> 00:17:59.609 from Judea to rule the world. Another Roman historian, 00:17:59.930 --> 00:18:04.049 Tacitus, wrote that there was a firm persuasion 00:18:04.049 --> 00:18:07.869 that at this very time the East was to grow powerful 00:18:07.869 --> 00:18:11.490 and rulers coming from Judea were to acquire 00:18:11.490 --> 00:18:16.089 a universal empire. MacArthur goes on to write, 00:18:16.170 --> 00:18:18.650 the Jewish historian Josephus reports in his 00:18:18.650 --> 00:18:22.250 Jewish Wars that at about the time of Christ's 00:18:22.250 --> 00:18:24.549 birth, the Jews believed that one from their 00:18:24.549 --> 00:18:27.809 country would soon become ruler of the habitable 00:18:27.809 --> 00:18:31.549 earth. And he goes on to explain other ways in 00:18:31.549 --> 00:18:36.690 which this was a time of expectation. In some 00:18:36.690 --> 00:18:41.309 respects, it was a time something like our own. 00:18:43.980 --> 00:18:46.640 For there is beginning to build in our world 00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:51.759 a sense that something has to happen, that things 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:57.599 cannot go on as they are now. Now, I wasn't around 00:18:57.599 --> 00:18:59.740 at the turn of the last century, but those of 00:18:59.740 --> 00:19:05.299 you who were, that's a joke, folks, I think, 00:19:05.500 --> 00:19:10.440 would recall that around the turn of the century, 00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:15.420 into the 1900s, There was also a time of expectation, 00:19:15.839 --> 00:19:19.839 a real emphasis on biblical prophecy. The Christ 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:23.799 was coming. It seems to be the kind of a thing 00:19:23.799 --> 00:19:26.059 that happens with the turn of centuries. But 00:19:26.059 --> 00:19:29.599 in this case, we have also the turn of a millennium. 00:19:30.140 --> 00:19:38.339 We go from the 1900s to the 2000s. Two thousand 00:19:38.339 --> 00:19:41.759 years ago, there was the same kind of a sense 00:19:41.759 --> 00:19:47.099 in the air. Something was about to happen. And 00:19:47.099 --> 00:19:50.559 a great ruler, or maybe a series of them, was 00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:54.420 going to arise to dominate the whole earth that 00:19:54.420 --> 00:19:59.519 was habitable. And there was this idea being 00:19:59.519 --> 00:20:02.960 talked about that that person would come from 00:20:02.960 --> 00:20:12.430 Judea. And so we have arriving in Judea the Magi. 00:20:13.589 --> 00:20:18.630 Who were they? The word Magi, as you can easily 00:20:18.630 --> 00:20:26.369 see, gives us our word magic or magician. The 00:20:26.369 --> 00:20:32.569 Magi were people who specialized in astrology. 00:20:34.529 --> 00:20:40.049 Combined with... a type of science of that day, 00:20:40.230 --> 00:20:46.529 combined with politics, combined with astronomy. 00:20:48.150 --> 00:20:50.789 It's kind of hard to put your hands around what 00:20:50.789 --> 00:20:55.289 a magi was, but that's the idea. It was a lot 00:20:55.289 --> 00:20:59.769 of these ideas pulled together. They certainly 00:20:59.769 --> 00:21:02.390 were people who observed the heavens, and that's 00:21:02.390 --> 00:21:06.250 obvious from the context here. They were spread 00:21:06.250 --> 00:21:10.609 throughout the whole Middle East. These magi 00:21:10.609 --> 00:21:16.089 came from the land of the sun's rising. That 00:21:16.089 --> 00:21:21.809 would be, for that day, Babylon or Persia or 00:21:21.809 --> 00:21:26.450 perhaps Parthia, over in the area of the Euphrates 00:21:26.450 --> 00:21:33.769 River or beyond it. These men had observed something 00:21:33.769 --> 00:21:37.190 unusual in the heavens as a part of their trade. 00:21:38.329 --> 00:21:46.829 A star had arisen, as it says here. It was the 00:21:46.829 --> 00:21:49.930 appearance of that star that arose, coupled with, 00:21:50.009 --> 00:21:53.230 probably, their familiarity with Jewish writings 00:21:53.230 --> 00:21:57.190 that led them to come to Judea. You say, how 00:21:57.190 --> 00:22:00.240 would they get familiar with... with Jewish writings. 00:22:00.339 --> 00:22:03.660 Well, these were people who liked to read prophecy. 00:22:03.839 --> 00:22:06.319 That was part of their thing, predicting the 00:22:06.319 --> 00:22:13.059 future. And it's likely that Daniel and other 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:17.519 Jewish people in the area of Babylon hundreds 00:22:17.519 --> 00:22:21.079 of years before had distributed the Jewish scriptures 00:22:21.079 --> 00:22:24.940 so that that became part of the library of Babylon 00:22:24.940 --> 00:22:31.430 and Parthia and Persia. And so these astrologers, 00:22:31.490 --> 00:22:36.329 astronomers, politicians, scientists, as they 00:22:36.329 --> 00:22:39.630 studied through the books and saw this amazing 00:22:39.630 --> 00:22:45.890 sight in the heavens, put together the idea that 00:22:45.890 --> 00:22:48.410 here was a fulfillment of what everybody was 00:22:48.410 --> 00:22:53.349 expecting. A ruler had now been born in Judea. 00:22:55.339 --> 00:22:58.539 Matthew records this visit of the Magi. In doing 00:22:58.539 --> 00:23:01.019 so, it's important to understand that he is not 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:05.200 sanctioning astrology. Matthew was well acquainted 00:23:05.200 --> 00:23:07.279 with the Old Testament. He quoted lots of it. 00:23:08.160 --> 00:23:10.900 And he knew those texts undoubtedly that condemn 00:23:10.900 --> 00:23:15.799 astrology and any participation in it in any 00:23:15.799 --> 00:23:21.839 fashion whatsoever. God hates astrology. Matthew 00:23:21.839 --> 00:23:25.380 does not condone. but he records what happened. 00:23:26.259 --> 00:23:29.980 These men came from the east looking for the 00:23:29.980 --> 00:23:35.319 Jewish king. It has often been wondered what 00:23:35.319 --> 00:23:37.500 the star was, and there's not an easy answer 00:23:37.500 --> 00:23:40.839 to that. I think the best answer is that it was 00:23:40.839 --> 00:23:43.980 a supernatural event which God designed for the 00:23:43.980 --> 00:23:49.579 benefit of these people. It is interesting to 00:23:49.579 --> 00:23:54.819 me to note that Balaam, who gave the prophecy 00:23:54.819 --> 00:24:00.660 of a star rising in Israel, came from the very 00:24:00.660 --> 00:24:03.400 same geographical area that the wise men came 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:09.940 from hundreds of years later because of a star 00:24:09.940 --> 00:24:15.660 that directed them to go to Judea. Probably the 00:24:15.660 --> 00:24:20.420 star that they saw was a manifestation of the 00:24:20.420 --> 00:24:25.930 Shekinah glory of God. And God caused that to 00:24:25.930 --> 00:24:30.769 happen in such a way that they understood it 00:24:30.769 --> 00:24:35.170 to direct them to the land of the West, to Palestine. 00:24:36.789 --> 00:24:40.910 And so they came. There is no indication that 00:24:40.910 --> 00:24:43.769 the star wandered through the heavens leading 00:24:43.769 --> 00:24:48.779 them, though it's often depicted that way. They 00:24:48.779 --> 00:24:51.099 did the logical thing. Having understood that 00:24:51.099 --> 00:24:52.920 there was a king of the Jews born, they went 00:24:52.920 --> 00:24:55.819 to the capital of the Jews, the city of Jerusalem. 00:24:55.980 --> 00:24:59.799 And there they inquired after him. And our text 00:24:59.799 --> 00:25:03.880 tells us that they went to Herod. Herod was an 00:25:03.880 --> 00:25:09.799 interesting person. D .A. Carson writes about 00:25:09.799 --> 00:25:12.140 him in the Expositors Bible Commentary saying, 00:25:12.299 --> 00:25:16.500 Herod the Great was born in 73 B .C. and was 00:25:16.500 --> 00:25:19.759 named King of Judea by the Roman Senate in 40 00:25:19.759 --> 00:25:24.720 B .C. By 37 B .C. he had crushed, with the help 00:25:24.720 --> 00:25:27.180 of Roman forces, all opposition to his rule. 00:25:28.079 --> 00:25:32.640 Son of the Idumean Antipater, he was wealthy, 00:25:32.799 --> 00:25:35.880 politically gifted, intensely loyal, an excellent 00:25:35.880 --> 00:25:39.200 administrator, and clever enough to remain in 00:25:39.200 --> 00:25:41.740 the good graces of successive Roman emperors. 00:25:42.640 --> 00:25:45.660 His famine relief was superb, and his building 00:25:45.660 --> 00:25:49.000 projects, including the temple begun in 20 B 00:25:49.000 --> 00:25:53.359 .C., admired even by his foes. Those are the 00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:56.700 good things that can be said about Herod. In 00:25:56.700 --> 00:25:59.400 a secular sense, he was a good leader, good administrator, 00:25:59.640 --> 00:26:02.460 good politician, a very fine military leader. 00:26:03.920 --> 00:26:07.930 But he lacked character. Carson goes on to say, 00:26:08.069 --> 00:26:11.710 he loved power, inflicted incredibly heavy taxes 00:26:11.710 --> 00:26:14.690 on the people, and resented the fact that many 00:26:14.690 --> 00:26:18.450 Jews considered him a usurper. Now here's the 00:26:18.450 --> 00:26:21.569 reason for that. He was named the king of the 00:26:21.569 --> 00:26:29.069 Jews, but he was not a Jew. He was an Edomite, 00:26:29.109 --> 00:26:33.410 an Edomian. The Edomites were the historical 00:26:33.410 --> 00:26:39.410 enemies of the Jews. And so in order to consolidate 00:26:39.410 --> 00:26:42.250 his power over the people that he ruled over, 00:26:42.269 --> 00:26:45.569 he married a Jewess of one of the most influential 00:26:45.569 --> 00:26:53.829 families of the Jews. In his last years suffering 00:26:53.829 --> 00:26:57.710 an illness that compounded his paranoia, he turned 00:26:57.710 --> 00:27:00.809 to cruelty and in its fits of rage and jealousy 00:27:00.809 --> 00:27:05.500 killed close associates, his wife, and at least 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:11.640 two of his sons. He is a man who in his latter 00:27:11.640 --> 00:27:21.500 years became insane. Insane with jealousy. Insane 00:27:21.500 --> 00:27:28.960 with hatred. Insane with murder. It is said that 00:27:28.960 --> 00:27:35.039 a few days before he died, which was about a 00:27:35.039 --> 00:27:37.799 year or maybe two after Jesus was born. It is 00:27:37.799 --> 00:27:40.019 said that Herod knew that there would not be 00:27:40.019 --> 00:27:44.059 mourning in Jerusalem because of his death. And 00:27:44.059 --> 00:27:46.240 so he ordered the arrest of some of the leading 00:27:46.240 --> 00:27:48.920 people in Jerusalem and commanded that the moment 00:27:48.920 --> 00:27:50.960 he died, they were to be killed so that there 00:27:50.960 --> 00:27:54.720 would be weeping in Jerusalem. That's the kind 00:27:54.720 --> 00:27:58.799 of a man he was. And we read later here in Matthew 00:27:58.799 --> 00:28:01.079 chapter 2 of his slaughter of the innocents. 00:28:01.839 --> 00:28:06.500 The babies in Bethlehem. But they went to Herod 00:28:06.500 --> 00:28:10.460 and asked, where is the king of the Jews? Well, 00:28:10.500 --> 00:28:13.220 of course, that immediately got his interest. 00:28:14.420 --> 00:28:17.920 And he inquired of the religious leaders as to 00:28:17.920 --> 00:28:21.180 where the king was to be born. Probably he did 00:28:21.180 --> 00:28:25.480 not inquire of them in one session. Because he 00:28:25.480 --> 00:28:27.400 brought together, it says, the chief priests 00:28:27.400 --> 00:28:29.720 and the scribes, and these two groups did not 00:28:29.720 --> 00:28:33.789 get along. The chief priests were the liberals 00:28:33.789 --> 00:28:38.769 of the day, the Sadducees. They didn't believe 00:28:38.769 --> 00:28:42.230 a whole lot. That's why they were Sadducee. They 00:28:42.230 --> 00:28:45.289 were the liberals of the day. On the other hand, 00:28:45.289 --> 00:28:48.609 there were the scribes, the Pharisees, the legalists. 00:28:49.650 --> 00:28:53.430 And these two were like this. So probably in 00:28:53.430 --> 00:28:56.490 order to test them to make sure that each was 00:28:56.490 --> 00:28:58.390 telling the truth, he brought them in separately 00:28:58.390 --> 00:29:01.059 and inquired where the Christ was. was to be 00:29:01.059 --> 00:29:03.359 born where this king was to be born and they 00:29:03.359 --> 00:29:06.619 both apparently did answer appropriately in bethlehem 00:29:06.619 --> 00:29:10.039 bethlehem located some five or six miles to the 00:29:10.039 --> 00:29:12.960 south of the city of jerusalem on one of the 00:29:12.960 --> 00:29:18.519 main main trade routes he reported the place 00:29:18.519 --> 00:29:23.799 to the magi and then asked that when they had 00:29:23.799 --> 00:29:26.319 found this babe that they should return and tell 00:29:26.319 --> 00:29:29.240 him exactly where the babe was so that he might 00:29:29.240 --> 00:29:32.000 come and worship him also. We know, of course, 00:29:32.039 --> 00:29:36.519 that that was a lie. Well, the Magi got the word 00:29:36.519 --> 00:29:39.599 they wanted, and so they went outside of the 00:29:39.599 --> 00:29:43.460 city, and it says that again the star appeared 00:29:43.460 --> 00:29:47.140 to them. I believe that this was another appearance 00:29:47.140 --> 00:29:51.119 of the Shekinah glory of God, and that in some 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:55.359 supernatural way, God caused that Shekinah glory, 00:29:55.599 --> 00:30:00.789 that brilliance of... his presence, to direct 00:30:00.789 --> 00:30:05.750 them to the exact house where Jesus, Joseph, 00:30:05.829 --> 00:30:10.349 and Mary were living. And notice it says, they 00:30:10.349 --> 00:30:14.349 came into the house and they saw the child with 00:30:14.349 --> 00:30:18.210 Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshipped 00:30:18.210 --> 00:30:25.230 them. Is that what it says? No, it doesn't. It 00:30:25.230 --> 00:30:33.170 says they worshipped him. Not her. They did not 00:30:33.170 --> 00:30:37.329 come to worship the Holy Family. They came to 00:30:37.329 --> 00:30:43.309 worship Him, the Lord Jesus Christ. And they 00:30:43.309 --> 00:30:47.950 presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, 00:30:47.950 --> 00:30:55.890 and myrrh. We have in what occurs here A contrast 00:30:55.890 --> 00:30:59.589 of attitudes regarding the birth of the king. 00:31:01.569 --> 00:31:04.589 On Herod's part, there was hostility. He was 00:31:04.589 --> 00:31:08.150 jealous that any king claiming to be king of 00:31:08.150 --> 00:31:10.890 the Jews should be born. And he was determined 00:31:10.890 --> 00:31:16.450 to destroy that king. And today there are those 00:31:16.450 --> 00:31:20.930 who are hostile to the Lord Jesus Christ. And 00:31:20.930 --> 00:31:24.759 they will do anything they can. to attack him, 00:31:24.940 --> 00:31:28.660 to attack his people, to destroy the work of 00:31:28.660 --> 00:31:31.940 God in the world, to suppress the truth of God. 00:31:32.039 --> 00:31:37.740 They are hostile to God. Then there are the religious 00:31:37.740 --> 00:31:40.099 leaders, who though they knew the right answers, 00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:45.880 were absolutely indifferent as to the news that 00:31:45.880 --> 00:31:49.480 the king of the Jews had been born. And so following 00:31:49.480 --> 00:31:53.200 them today are large masses of people. who live 00:31:53.200 --> 00:31:57.599 in apathy, who celebrate Christmas with family 00:31:57.599 --> 00:32:01.480 and gifts and good food, but who have absolutely 00:32:01.480 --> 00:32:04.759 no concern beyond that for the spiritual meaning 00:32:04.759 --> 00:32:09.200 of it. We've been having some Christmas teas 00:32:09.200 --> 00:32:12.160 in our church, and one of the ladies who had 00:32:12.160 --> 00:32:17.079 one just a few days ago invited a neighbor who 00:32:17.079 --> 00:32:21.240 was in her mid -thirties. And after the tea was 00:32:21.240 --> 00:32:23.359 over, she went to her neighbor and said, I so 00:32:23.359 --> 00:32:27.140 appreciate your inviting me here. She says, I 00:32:27.140 --> 00:32:30.619 am 30 -some years old, and I never knew why people 00:32:30.619 --> 00:32:33.440 talked about shepherds and wise men and so on 00:32:33.440 --> 00:32:36.519 around Christmas. I have never heard that story 00:32:36.519 --> 00:32:43.000 before in all my life. Do we understand there 00:32:43.000 --> 00:32:45.910 are people like that in our society? who are 00:32:45.910 --> 00:32:48.089 celebrating something, who are apathetic to it 00:32:48.089 --> 00:32:51.549 because they know nothing about its spiritual 00:32:51.549 --> 00:32:56.329 significance. Then there are the wise men who 00:32:56.329 --> 00:33:02.089 come and worship and who give to the Lord Jesus 00:33:02.089 --> 00:33:06.369 Christ gifts honoring his royalty, his deity, 00:33:06.569 --> 00:33:11.849 his coming death. Very practically speaking, 00:33:12.069 --> 00:33:14.549 the gifts probably provided the money that Mary 00:33:14.549 --> 00:33:17.009 and Joseph needed for them to finance the trip 00:33:17.009 --> 00:33:20.230 down to Egypt, the stay there, and then the return 00:33:20.230 --> 00:33:25.009 to Nazareth later. This was God's provision for 00:33:25.009 --> 00:33:28.690 them. As these wise men worshipped, they brought 00:33:28.690 --> 00:33:36.009 money, monetary gifts, to the Lord Jesus. What 00:33:36.009 --> 00:33:39.529 we have in Matthew is an illusion. to that star 00:33:39.529 --> 00:33:43.690 scepter prophecy in the book of Numbers. The 00:33:43.690 --> 00:33:49.029 king that Balaam said he saw, but not now and 00:33:49.029 --> 00:33:53.930 not near, is the king that you and I know as 00:33:53.930 --> 00:33:58.910 the Lord Jesus Christ. The king who came now 00:33:58.910 --> 00:34:04.549 2 ,000 years ago. He is the king of the Jews. 00:34:06.150 --> 00:34:10.090 He is the king of Israel. He is the King of righteousness. 00:34:10.449 --> 00:34:13.769 He is the King of peace. He is the King of the 00:34:13.769 --> 00:34:18.309 nations. He is the King of kings and Lord of 00:34:18.309 --> 00:34:25.670 lords. God used a star of some heavenly supernatural 00:34:25.670 --> 00:34:30.610 event to direct the wise men to where the Lord 00:34:30.610 --> 00:34:34.590 Jesus was. Do you and I understand today that 00:34:34.590 --> 00:34:40.780 we are God's stars, as it were? That God has 00:34:40.780 --> 00:34:43.940 put us in the world to direct people whose heart 00:34:43.940 --> 00:34:46.860 he is preparing that they might come to Jesus 00:34:46.860 --> 00:34:50.500 Christ and know him and worship him? You say, 00:34:50.559 --> 00:34:52.119 where does it say anything like that in the Bible? 00:34:52.340 --> 00:34:54.940 Well, Philippians chapter 2 and verse 15, it 00:34:54.940 --> 00:34:58.340 says that you and I are like luminaries in the 00:34:58.340 --> 00:35:04.440 world, lights in the world. You and I are like 00:35:04.440 --> 00:35:08.739 reflectors of Jesus Christ. That people might 00:35:08.739 --> 00:35:13.139 see his glory in us and be led to worship him. 00:35:16.880 --> 00:35:19.179 The real question that I want to close with, 00:35:19.239 --> 00:35:27.739 though, is this. Jesus Christ is the king. But 00:35:27.739 --> 00:35:33.360 is he the king in your heart? What is your attitude 00:35:33.360 --> 00:35:36.980 toward the king? Are you allowing him to rule 00:35:36.980 --> 00:35:41.679 in your life as sovereign? What gift do you give 00:35:41.679 --> 00:35:45.280 to him today, on this Sunday before the time 00:35:45.280 --> 00:35:49.039 we celebrate his birth? Do you give him your 00:35:49.039 --> 00:35:53.500 heart? Do you give him your worship? Do you give 00:35:53.500 --> 00:35:59.000 him your will? Do you give him your all? As we 00:35:59.000 --> 00:36:02.300 come to the Christmas season, let's give everything 00:36:02.300 --> 00:36:07.789 we have to him. Let us bring our gifts, not merely 00:36:07.789 --> 00:36:10.550 of gold and frankincense and myrrh, but the gift 00:36:10.550 --> 00:36:15.809 of our lives, the gifts he has given to us, and 00:36:15.809 --> 00:36:21.070 give them to him in worship and devotion. Someone 00:36:21.070 --> 00:36:25.550 has rightly said, though Jesus Christ in Bethlehem 00:36:25.550 --> 00:36:29.869 a thousand times be born, if he's not born within 00:36:29.869 --> 00:36:37.480 your heart, your life is still. Let's pray together. 00:36:40.039 --> 00:36:43.579 You know, friend, the one who was hostile to 00:36:43.579 --> 00:36:49.539 the Lord Jesus, Herod, and those who were merely 00:36:49.539 --> 00:36:53.659 apathetic that he was born, though they had different 00:36:53.659 --> 00:36:58.599 attitudes in life, are spending the same place 00:36:58.599 --> 00:37:04.409 for all of eternity. They share hell together 00:37:04.409 --> 00:37:11.389 because they refused to receive and to worship 00:37:11.389 --> 00:37:19.570 the Christ. Have you opened your heart to Him? 00:37:19.650 --> 00:37:22.789 Have you received Him? Have you given to Him 00:37:22.789 --> 00:37:31.070 your all? If not, will you do that today? Father, 00:37:31.110 --> 00:37:33.309 we thank you that this one born in the manger, 00:37:33.469 --> 00:37:40.190 the one worshipped by the Magi, indeed became 00:37:40.190 --> 00:37:47.150 the Lamb of God who died for our sins. And we 00:37:47.150 --> 00:37:50.510 bow in awesome worship before you, recognizing 00:37:50.510 --> 00:37:57.530 that this babe is the Redeemer who came to rule. 00:38:00.360 --> 00:38:06.519 Lord, establish your rule in my heart, in the 00:38:06.519 --> 00:38:10.440 heart of each one of us. There let your kingdom 00:38:10.440 --> 00:38:19.440 begin and let it grow. We present to you ourselves 00:38:19.440 --> 00:38:25.900 in worship. We yield unto you all that we are 00:38:25.900 --> 00:38:33.750 and have. And we ask you to make us, in this 00:38:33.750 --> 00:38:40.929 season and in every season, bright stars, illuminaries, 00:38:40.929 --> 00:38:47.929 lights in the world. You might use us to bring 00:38:47.929 --> 00:38:55.949 others to faith in yourself. In Jesus' name, 00:38:56.190 --> 00:39:04.219 amen. Would you stand with me, please?