THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE WISE MEN (3 OF 4)
by J.D. Greear
Scripture: Matthew 2:1-18
This content is part of a series.
The Gospel According to the Wise Men (3 of 4)
Series: Upside-Down Christmas
J.D. Greear
Matthew 2:1-18
This is a story many of us know-it probably strikes you as a quaint, little, Christmas bedtime story, but this story is loaded with profound, counter-intuitive truth that reveals to you the essence of the gospel. It answers some deep questions. Like... How can we believe there is a God when the world seems like it is in such a chaotic mess; where is God when something as unspeakable as the events in Newport, Connecticut happen?
Or this question: If Christianity is true, why don't all the smart people in the world automatically agree on it? Why does my college professor ridicule it?
Or, What about all the people in the world who are not Christians? How does God feel about them? You ever have those questions? I do. The answers to all these questions, or the beginning of the answers, at least, are in this story:
Matthew 2:1-12: [2:1] Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, [2] saying, ''Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.'' [3] When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;
First of all, we have several wrong assumptions about the birth story of Jesus that we need to clear up.
Our favorite Christmas carols completely romanticize the night of his birth, making it seem like some genteel, precious- moments-event rather than the chaotic, inconvenient, 'oh my God she's having the baby' moment that it was.
For example: ''Silent night, holy night... all is calm, all is bright.'' Have you ever been present for the birth of a baby? I've been present for 4 of them. None of them were ''silent nights.'' All was not calm; all was not bright. Even after the epidural, all was not calm and bright.
Or how about, Away in a manger. Think about this line: ''The cattle ...
Series: Upside-Down Christmas
J.D. Greear
Matthew 2:1-18
This is a story many of us know-it probably strikes you as a quaint, little, Christmas bedtime story, but this story is loaded with profound, counter-intuitive truth that reveals to you the essence of the gospel. It answers some deep questions. Like... How can we believe there is a God when the world seems like it is in such a chaotic mess; where is God when something as unspeakable as the events in Newport, Connecticut happen?
Or this question: If Christianity is true, why don't all the smart people in the world automatically agree on it? Why does my college professor ridicule it?
Or, What about all the people in the world who are not Christians? How does God feel about them? You ever have those questions? I do. The answers to all these questions, or the beginning of the answers, at least, are in this story:
Matthew 2:1-12: [2:1] Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, [2] saying, ''Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.'' [3] When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;
First of all, we have several wrong assumptions about the birth story of Jesus that we need to clear up.
Our favorite Christmas carols completely romanticize the night of his birth, making it seem like some genteel, precious- moments-event rather than the chaotic, inconvenient, 'oh my God she's having the baby' moment that it was.
For example: ''Silent night, holy night... all is calm, all is bright.'' Have you ever been present for the birth of a baby? I've been present for 4 of them. None of them were ''silent nights.'' All was not calm; all was not bright. Even after the epidural, all was not calm and bright.
Or how about, Away in a manger. Think about this line: ''The cattle ...
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