The Paradox, Part 2

Jesus Christ St. so yeah this is the season I caught a few lyrics from Christmas but you tell them that Jesus Christ deserves to be there more the ruler their master, their king. You watch as they become visibly shaken is why in this season. Our world is more than comfortable with Jesus staying in a manger. Just don't get a major trouble start. Remember the birth of our more Jesus Christ with all the trappings that come with this season.

We can't forget that Jesus came for a purpose. He came to save us and to rule over us as the Lord of our heart and life. Welcome to a new week of Bible teaching today on wisdom for the hard Stephen Devi returns to a lesson he began last Friday were looking at some of the implications of the Christmas story. The series is called an indescribable gift and today's lesson is the paradox here Steve Joseph is now being asked to take Mary through the betrothal. And Mary, and obviously expecting woman, probably a private ceremony. Now that public ceremony were all village turns out noisemakers and merriment. That's all scuttled. That's all over with the very beginnings of their early days are more with such heartbreak factor.

Both can live with the accusation of immorality for the rest of their lives. Some always struck by the fact when Jesus Christ was 30 involved in his ministry.

The Jewish leaders accuse them. John 841, of being worn as a result of sexual immorality throw that space effectively saying we know what your mother did, and also the implication is you are illegitimate you probably don't even know your father. You're not the Messiah you're the son of a godly woman she don't know rush forward because I gotta get somehow to that stables firm for Joseph and hands for Mary.

Don't ever forget what the paradox of this narrative means for them. It will create the appearance of a contradiction of who they really are. Mary loves God shall burst into song filled with Old Testament scripture and love for God.

Joseph loves God is is not as a man follows after what does it look like I could care less about God and his word. Listen as long as they live.

They will never have their reputations back again in the opinion of their world and and I wonder. I cannot help but wonder how many people listen to me today who are unwilling to follow Jesus Christ of because of primarily what it might do to your reputation what people might think you the last thing that it was follow that stuff and that person factors the church becomes more and more marginalized as it is viewed as more and more, and out of step with culture. We are going to see people drop off because we will ruin our reputation by following Jesus Christ.

Here's the message from Joseph and Mary to you and me.

Don't worry about what will happen to your reputation. Don't worry about what will happen to your business. Your future just follow Jesus Christ.

Let him take care some of those wonderful words in this narrative and the biography of this man found in verse 24 were told very next morning, Joseph awoke from sleep.

He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.

He took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son and called his name Jesus is. There are a couple other people will point out here ungodly people to whom the incarnation of God in Christ is going to really really present a contradiction of terms for them and I can settle with Luke's gospel can effectively hold your finger.

Matthew Trevor Luke Luke chapter 2 fills in the blanks and he tells us what happens nine months later familiar text. I can remember growing up as a boy that would gather the four songs in the living room in front of the jury in the presidencies and out before we do anything you read Luke chapter 2 and we would say our breath, hurry, don't stop to expound on anything.

Please read it in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed or registered the political leader effectively then wants to make sure that is registered back to the place of their chief descendent Chris David comes from Bethlehem.

So Joseph and Mary up to track back to the Bethlehem Bethlehem means house of bread there going back there to to register. He wants to make. Caesar wants to make sure everybody's on the role so that everybody pays their taxes.

What's fascinating here is that you consider Bethlehem. This is where they're going to go effect verse four tells us that they take offer that areas are more than likely going to travel 60 or 70 miles. This is where David kept his sheep as he was then apprenticed to become king. This is where earlier one of his forefathers by the name of Boaz Farm, where he would meet his bride Ruth and now God providentially arranges what Joseph and Mary. Don't miss this they would never volunteer to do this they had to be made in Anbar, 60 mile journey. Plus expecting your first baby and is nothing in the Christmas story by doing this is that a donkey nothing they don't want you probably were to port on one maybe they just arrived with the others were traveling back to the house of bread they they may not even know that Mike had prophesied centuries earlier that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Got to get the Bethlehem Caesar's idea that this is God, the bread of life would be born in the house of bread.

I have a fascinating book in my library entitled to 12 Caesar's and I often pull it out to to reactivate myself to the world in which Jesus was born, and also the early church. Later, hi. I pull that book out again because I've never really studied much on Caesar Augustine's eyes are red that fascinating chapter by the way, Caesar is simply the word Kaiser or czar could also be Pharaoh. If you are in Egypt and simply means the supreme ruler and they believe the Caesar's especially all affairs of their lineage tracked back to the gods. They claim divine parentage by just a few years before Jesus is born. This particular Caesar from Luke chapter 2 verse one Caesar Augustus menace brand-new coinage on one society as Julius Caesar, his predecessor marking him as divine and on the other side of the client and has his image, Caesar Augustus, and he is captioned as the son of a God.

So what you have here is you have Caesar Augustus inheriting the throne of his predecessor practice.

It is further interesting that that Caesar inherited the throne from Julius Caesar, and when he did not long after Julius Caesar died comment was observed in the sky for several days. The Empire filled with superstitions, much like our world is today believe that it was some kind of omen that is somehow delivered the truth of the soul of Julius Caesar was now received among the immortal gods and Caesar Augustus sorted John… Opportunity to further establish his own divine parentage, so he had a star chiseled into a brand-new statue of Julius Caesar. His adopted father, and he had placed in the forum.

So here you have here you have God incarnate little G incarnate supposedly testify by a star in the heavens, and now his son is claiming the throne sounds only slightly familiar, doesn't it. Satan who well knows the Old Testament prophecies counterfeits and prepares the world believe zone falls gospel so that as a backdrop.

Imagine the explosive nature of Persian astrologers, Persian kingmakers arriving in Jerusalem, saying that they come because they seeing a star in the heavens, leading them to the birth of the king go back to Matthew chapter 2 he picks up on that encounter tells us that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king is simply a smaller king avast solely he belongs to Caesar you simply given Herod Galilei that region to rule. They came in the hall. Matthew says wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, where is he was been born king of the Jews, for we saw his star in the East to come to worship him and with care. Herod the king heard this, he was.

He was trouble king with a star appearing in the sky.

In other words, this born is bigger than the Herod. In fact, he is about to Caesar. Herod was trouble was is wise men.

These magi are from Persia which is modern day Iran. They were the faculty members who trained in the Academy Royal University that would train the upper class and in the princes to inherit the throne themselves.

In fact they taught architecture in science and mathematics.

They were also astrologers centuries before some of them and become disciples of their chief wise man Daniel who taught them prophecies that he had with him and that exile certainly of the Torah and Isaiah now. Centuries later, you have spiritual descendents of Daniel arriving in Jerusalem because they seen the star that were not stair simply means brilliancy could be translated shiny this is.

I believe the Shekinah glory. That's how you explain it turns on and turns off and turns on it turns off the covers just over the house seen the glory of God. They know the prophecies of the star rising the shining rising related to the Messiah. So now you have his entourage arriving in Jerusalem for mold Persia now in the early centuries the church tradition taught that there were 12 wise men, 12 of them in later years.

The number was reduced to three, probably because most churches enough room on stage for 12 wise men during their Christmas plans and they whittle it down more manageable number.

You got this incredible entourage arriving. These are Babylonian kingmakers, you can send the throne without their affirmation.

Why were here can be seen as shiny and Herod was trouble for one thing, he was Herod the great, love the names of humility. The tests themselves been appointed by his father early Galli's father is been appointed by Julius Caesar himself. He was the king of that region even adopted the title of the king of the Jews by the time he's introduced us here in chapter 2 movies 70 years of age.

He is a brutal, paranoid man jealous of his throne. Effects of murder three of his sons before he dies. She can't stand the thought of them raining his plays.

He is the king of the Jews, how much a person's show of asking for the king of the Jews and declaring that this newly born king actually have a star assignment from heaven implying that he was related to the gods and he wasn't just related.

He was the anointed one, Messiah, Christ, and Herod was trouble. That word means agitated. You could translate that visibly shake your scrambling someone dares to take my throne, and even indirectly challenge these with divine lineage vague notice in the text that Herod was agitatedly that so was all of Jerusalem, not too excited about this idea either. He's going to mess up our lives. He is more than likely the Challenger system he might interrupt our calendars find the same three reactions to the news of Jesus Christ.

Birth of the same reactions of our world is not change first reaction is anger. Anger bristling with agitation. Of course it will lead to murder ladies and gentlemen to your world and the mine is filled to this day with Harris and Caesars nobody has the right to challenge their sovereignty. No one has the right to determine their truth. No one has the right to dictate to them their opinions. No one has the right to demand their allegiance. They are not about to let anybody else became you tell somebody that Jesus Christ out there on the street in my patch on the head.

So yeah, this is the season and caught a few lyrics from Christmas all but you tell them that Jesus Christ deserves to be there Lord the ruler their master there king and you watch as they become visibly shake to which is why in this season. Our world is more than comfortable with Jesus staying in a manger. Just don't get about a manger. That's when the trouble starts. And if you get a manger taken as quickly as you can to the cross and then impaled on their legal Jesus same deity, either in a manger are on the cross don't interrupt my life. Don't demand my surrender. Don't declare that I'm sinful and the need of a Savior. You keep them in the major you keep them across don't have ascending back to the father in heaven taking a seat upon the throne of the universe don't have him surrounded by an angelic host created to do nothing but sing of his holy glory is given the manger will mention his name a few times and maybe sing a few carols at our Christmas Eve party but he's not going to be out of place. It at the New Year's Eve party anger, agitation, irritation second reaction is that difference Herod convenes spiritual leaders of Israel is a fascinating scene.

We had a little more information on but he got his first met in chapter 2, and assembling all the chief preseason religious leaders of the scribes of the people, he inquired of them asked them where the Christ Messiah was to be born, and they told him in Bethlehem and Micah 5 to memorize. Did you notice they did not say we have no idea where this baby is supposed to be born with those Persian cases are talking about. They were in the sun way to on their way here they knew the prophecy of Scripture that they will choose to ignore them differently. The birth of 33 years later stand those that are still alive before Pilate is Jesus Christ is about to be condemned in their dinner voice their refusal of Christ as their king and they're going to shout. We have no king but Caesar, we will choose our king. Thirdly, and wonderfully with those who responded that in anger or apathy responded in adoration and travel hundreds of miles would've taken them months to travel distance. The first century they would've been preparing for weeks after seeing the Shekinah glory and you need to know that when they arrived in Bethlehem. They did not show up at a stable ruins the whole picture. I didn't stand next to the shepherds or kneel down Matthew chapter 2 verse 11 and they came into the lot. The house and saw the child with Mary his mother saw the child that brace loss record typically for infant or baby idea. The Greek word referring to tabular teachable child. By the time the Magi had arrived.

Jesus is anywhere from 1 to 2 years of age further proven by Herod's decree that any senses his killers to families is killed two years of age and under.

They came into our house. My wife has all of these Christmas settings in the stable shepherds and true to form, my dear wife Alice, my exposition and and and she has Wiseman over there in the corner.

Some of them quite made it distance with people wonder why is because she is a theologian is doing it the right way and I appreciate the coming to the house house he built perhaps just work when they rented. Can you imagine here's the little toddler just learn to walk in these men crowned the doorway and into the home fall on their faces.

Matthew tells and worshiped. Dave gets those gifts would be used fund their escape into Egypt until Herod dies I can wrap it up I would say this way the birth of Jesus Christ created scandal that would never do in the true gospel is as scandalous today as it was the birth of Jesus Christ created suffering that would never get easy Joseph, Mary called his disciples to be martyred church around the world today suffering greatly because of their faith.

To this day, those who worship him often suffer, but they still surrendered to him.

Their lives, their fortunes, the reputation birth of Christ, created scandal, the birth of Christ created suffering the birth of Christ created a revealed sincerity in genuine worship continues to this very day is weak knowledge of his Lord and Savior, perhaps reminded of this narrative. Maybe it's new to you but your thinking will one of those Wiseman I like one of them. I'm not like Herod or Caesar or the Jewish people or the leaders of the Magi.

One of their all. What are you going to do with him on December 26. When are you going to do with him. January 1 we surrender to his mastery in his right to rule over your heart life or does that make you presold with agitation that reminds you all over again of why you're not among those who worship maybe for you. You would honestly admit that I would appreciate that.

It may be your thinking enough, probably not even think about it after Christmas Jesus Christ from the date of this will not force you to surrender to suffer for more worship, but he does invite and invite you today, not just to come to his cradle in adoration not just to come to his cross in confession and the mission's but he also invites you to coming King. He will be back personal physically rain because he is son of David.

He is the son of if you're a believer maybe what God has done through our study is to remind you and just reaffirm to you and refresh your memory with the truths he is worthy of your adoration is deserving of your surrender my it is our joy to come to the season because we understand that Christmas narrative is our joy because the cross ahead, and he will endure joy set before him because he knows effectively when his.

We anticipate also only when we meet coming King fact were looking forward to that moment when Jesus will come in the air with a lot of noisemakers call the brine turn with in a long after return with rates establishes asking that we conclude this lesson and this current series entitled an indescribable gift. Thanks for joining us today here on wisdom for the hearts. This is the Bible teaching ministry of Stephen Davey, we've taken this series and turned it into an e-book that you can download and read this Christmas season.

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