This message emphasizes that true Christmas wisdom lies in recognizing and worshipping Jesus Christ not just as a king, but as divine God, and understanding the sacrificial nature of His coming.
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انقر للتوسيع
انقر لاستعراض خريطة الذهن التفاعلية الكاملة
NOW MY FRIEND, WHEN THEY CAME AND THEY WORSHIPPED HIM, AND
THEY BROUGHT THAT FRANKINCENSE WHICH WAS A SWEET PERFUME TO BE
USED FOR GOD ONLY, AND THEY BOWED DOWN AND WORSHIPPED HIM,
THEY WERE SAYING NOT ONLY IS HE ONE OF SOVEREIGN DOMINION, HE’S
A KING, BUT HE’S ONE ALSO OF SINLESS DEITY. HE IS GOD. NOW
FOLKS, IF THERE’S A MESSAGE THAT NEEDS TO BE PREACHED IN
THIS DAY AND THIS AGE, THAT’S THE MESSAGE. ADRIAN
ROGERS’ HAD THE UNIQUE ABILITY TO APPLY BIBLICAL TRUTH TO
EVERYDAY LIFE. IT WAS ONE OF THE MANY THINGS THAT MADE HIM
SUCH A REMARKABLE PASTOR, BIBLE TEACHER, AND WRITER, AND YOU’LL
HEAR THAT IN THIS SERIES OF CHRISTMAS MESSAGES THAT WE’RE
CALLING, “WHAT CHILD IS THIS.” BEFORE WE BEGIN, REMEMBER, YOU
CAN FOLLOW ALONG WITH PASTOR ROGERS’ OUTLINE, NOTESL OR A
COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT OF TODAY’S MESSAGE AT LWF.ORG OR THE MYLWF
APP. NOW, LET’S JOIN ADRIAN ROGERS.
FIND THE CHRISTMAS STORY, PLEASE, IN MATTHEW CHAPTER TWO,
AND WE’RE TALKING TODAY ABOUT CHRISTMAS WISDOM, HOW YOU CAN
HAVE SOME WISDOM IN YOUR CHRISTMAS. NOW LET’S READ THIS
STORY HERE. I’M GONNA READ RIGHT THROUGH ALL TWELVE VERSES
HERE. “NOW WHEN JESUS WAS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDEA IN THE
DAYS OF HEROD THE KING, BEHOLD, THERE CAME WISE MEN,” NOW JUST
UNDERSCORE THAT, “WISE MEN FROM THE EAST TO JERUSALEM, SAYING,
‘WHERE IS HE THAT IS BORN KING OF THE JEWS? FOR WE HAVE SEEN
HIS STAR IN THE EAST AND ARE COME TO WORSHIP HIM.’ WHEN
HEROD THE KING HAD HEARD THESE THINGS, HE WAS TROUBLED AND ALL
JERUSALEM WITH HIM. AND WHEN HE HAD GATHERED ALL THE CHIEF
PRIESTS AND THE SCRIBES OF THE PEOPLE TOGETHER, HE DEMANDED OF
THEM WHERE CHRIST SHOULD BE BORN. THEY SAID UNTO HIM, ‘IN
BETHLEHEM OF JUDEA, FOR THUS IT IS WRITTEN BY THE PROPHET, ‘AND
THOU, BETHLEHEM, IN THE LAND OF JUDAH, ART NOT THE LEAST AMONG
THE PRINCES OF JUDAH, FOR OUT OF THEE SHALL COME A GOVERNOR
THAT SHALL RULE MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.’’ THEN HEROD, WHEN HE
HAD PRIVILY CALLED THE WISE MEN, INQUIRED OF THEM
DILIGENTLY WHAT TIME THE STAR APPEARED. AND HE SENT THEM TO
BETHLEHEM AND SAID, ‘GO AND SEARCH DILIGENTLY FOR THE YOUNG
CHILD AND WHEN YE HAVE FOUND HIM, BRING ME WORD AGAIN THAT I
MAY COME AND WORSHIP HIM ALSO.’” OF COURSE, YOU KNOW
WHAT HE WANTED TO DO WAS NOT TO WORSHIP HIM BUT TO KILL HIM, AS
YOU CAN TELL BY READING MORE SCRIPTURE. “AND,” UH, “WHEN
THEY HAD HEARD THE KING,” UH, “THEY DEPARTED AND LO, THE STAR
WHICH THEY SAW IN THE EAST WENT BEFORE THEM TILL IT CAME AND
STOOD OVER WHERE THE YOUNG CHILD WAS. AND WHEN THEY SAW
THE STAR, THEY REJOICED WITH EXCEEDING GREAT JOY, AND WHEN
THEY WERE COME INTO THE HOUSE, THEY SAW THE YOUNG CHILD WITH
MARY HIS MOTHER AND FELL DOWN AND WORSHIPPED HIM, AND WHEN
THEY HAD OPENED THEIR TREASURES THEY PRESENTED UNTO HIM GIFTS:
GOLD AND FRANKINCENSE AND MYRRH. AND BEING WARNED OF GOD
IN A DREAM THAT THEY SHOULD NOT RETURN TO HEROD, THEY DEPARTED
INTO THEIR OWN COUNTRY ANOTHER WAY.” NOW THERE’S A LOT THAT WE
DON’T KNOW ABOUT THESE WISEMEN, HA, HA. FOR EXAMPLE, AH, WE
DON’T KNOW HOW MANY THEY, THERE WERE. SOME SAY THERE WERE THREE
BECAUSE THREE TYPES OF GIFTS. MAYBE SO, BUT MAYBE NOT, THE
BIBLE DOESN’T SAY WITH SPECIFICITY. WE CERTAINLY DON’T
KNOW THEY RODE ON CAMELS. THEY MAY HAVE. UH, SOME SCHOLARS SAY
THEY PROBABLY RODE ARABIAN HORSES. WE REALLY DON’T KNOW.
WE REALLY DON’T KNOW WHAT COUNTRY THEY CAME FROM. MOST
LIKELY HOWEVER, THEY CAME FROM BABYLON. THERE’RE A LOT OF
THINGS THAT WE DON’T KNOW ABOUT THESE MEN. WE DON’T HAVE TO
KNOW ‘CAUSE IF WE HAD TO KNOW, THE BIBLE WOULD’VE TOLD US WITH
SPECIFICITY. BUT WE DO KNOW THIS; THAT THEY WERE WISE,
BECAUSE THE BIBLE SAYS THEY WERE WISE MEN. THE, THE
BIBLICAL WORD FOR THAT IS MAGI. THESE WERE MEN WHO WERE
STUDENTS OF SCRIPTURE, THEY WERE STUDENTS OF PROPHECY, THEY
WERE STUDENTS OF THE STARS IN THE SKY AND, UH, MOST LIKELY IF
THEY WERE FROM, UH, BABYLON, UH, THEY WERE STUDENTS OF THE
PROPHET DANIEL BECAUSE DANIEL SPENT A GREAT DEAL OF TIME IN
BABYLON, AND DANIEL HIMSELF WAS A GREAT, GREAT PROPHET AND VERY
WISE. NOW THERE’S SOMETHING ELSE WE DON’T KNOW. WE DON’T
KNOW, KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT STAR WAS. NOW THERE’S SOME
ASTRONOMERS SAY, “WELL, IT WAS A SUPER NOVA, AH, SOME, OR
ALIGNMENT OF THE PLANETS THAT CAUSED AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME
EXCESSIVE BRIGHTNESS IN THE SKY.” THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE THAT IT
COULD’VE BEEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT FOR THIS REASON. IT MOVED
AND IT LED THEM, SO YOU COULD NOT HAVE SOME SUPER NOVA, SOME
STAR LIKE THAT. OTHERS SAY, “ALRIGHT, THEN, IT WAS A
COMET.” NO, IT COULDN’T BEEN A COMET BECAUSE A COMET JUST
FLASHES ACROSS THE SKY AND IT’S GONE. UH, AND, UH, IT COULDN’T
BEEN A COMET THAT WOULD’VE STAYED UP THERE FOR MONTHS AS
THESE MEN TRAVERSED, UH, THAT, UH, DISTANCE OF ABOUT, UH,
THREE HUNDRED MILES FROM BABYLON, UH, OR WHEREVER IT WAS
IN THE EAST WHEN THEY FIRST SAW THE STAR. UH, WHAT WAS IT?
EDERSHEIM, WHO IS A MESSIANIC JEWISH SCHOLAR, SAYS THAT THE
WORD STAR HAS A NUMBER OF MEANINGS IN THE BIBLE, AND IT
COMES FROM A ROOT THAT LITERALLY MEANS BRILLIANCE,
BRILLIANCE, LIGHT. AND, UH, MOST LIKELY WHAT THIS
BRILLIANCE WAS, THIS, THIS AURA, THIS THING IN THE SKY,
WAS THE SHEKINAH GLORY OF GOD! AND WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT,
THAT MAKES PERFECT SENSE. BECAUSE THE GLORY OF GOD HAS
ALREADY LED PEOPLE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT. FOR EXAMPLE, WHAT
LED THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL THROUGH THE WILDERNESS? A
PILLAR OF FIRE BY NIGHT, A PILLAR OF CLOUD BY DAY. THAT
WAS WHAT THEY CALLED THE SHEKINAH GLORY OF GOD, THAT
EFFULGENCE OF GOD THAT HAD A PHYSICAL MANI, MANIFESTATION OF
GOD’S GLORY, AND OF COURSE IT COULD MOVE, IT DID MOVE, IT
GUIDED THEM THROUGH THE WILDERNESS. WHEN SOLOMON
DEDICATED THE TEMPLE, WHAT HAPPENED? THE SHEKINAH GLORY OF
GOD CAME INTO THE HOLY OF HOLIES. AND BEFORE THE
BABYLONIANS INVADED, UH, ISRAEL, UH, EZEKIEL THE PROPHET
TELLS ABOUT THAT SHEKINAH GLORY, HOW IT DEPARTED FROM THE
TEMPLE. UH, HE SAID IT CAME OUT OF THE HOLY OF HOLIES TO THE
THRESHOLD THERE OF THE TEMPLE, AND THEN LATER ON IT MOVED FROM
THE THRESHOLD OF THE TEMPLE, IT, IT, IT MOVED ON TO THE
GATE, THE EASTERN GATE. AND EZEKIEL SAW IT. AND THEN HE SAW
THAT GLORY AS IT MOVED ON TO A MOUNT OF OLIVES AND WENT ON UP
AND DISAPPEARED. WHAT I’M TRYING TO SAY IS THAT THE GLORY
OF THE LORD COULD BE SEEN AS A, AS A BRILLIANCE. EZEKIEL
DESCRIBED IT. AS A MATTER OF FACT, UH, WHEN THOSE SHEPHERDS
WERE IN THE FIELD, WHAT SHONE AROUND THEM? THE GLORY OF THE
LORD! AND THEN THEY WENT, AND IT CAME OVER THE PLACE WHERE
THE YOUNG CHILD LAY. SO, EH, I THINK THAT, UH, WHAT HAPPENED
IS, AND IT, IT’S A WONDERFUL STORY, IS THAT THE GLORY OF GOD
APPEARED TO THESE WISE MEN THERE IN THE EAST AND THAT
GLORY OF GOD LED THEM THERE TO THAT PLACE, THAT HOUSE WHERE
THE YOUNG CHILD WAS. FOR EXAMPLE, LOOK IN LUKE CHAPTER
TWO VERSE NINE, JUST WRITE IT DOWN, “AND LO, THE ANGEL OF THE
LORD CAME UPON THEM AND THE GLORY OF THE LORD SHONE ROUND
ABOUT THEM AND THEY WERE SORE AFRAID.” NOW, THERE’S SOME
THINGS WE MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT ALL OF THE DETAILS. WE KNOW
EVERYTHING WE NEED TO KNOW, BECAUSE IF WE NEED TO KNOW
ANYMORE, THE BIBLE WOULD TELL US. BUT WE DO KNOW THIS; THAT
THESE MEN WERE EXCEEDINGLY WISE MEN. WHY? BECAUSE THEY SOUGHT
OUT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST TO WORSHIP HIM. LOOK UP HERE AND
LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, NOW, MY PRECIOUS FRIEND, HA, HA,
LISTEN TO ME; THE WISEST THING YOU COULD EVER DO AT
CHRISTMASTIME OR ANY OTHER TIME IS TO WORSHIP JESUS. NOW I HOPE
THAT DOESN’T FALL FLAT, I HOPE YOU DON’T MISS THAT. FRIEND,
THAT IS THE BOTTOM OF ALL BOTTOM LINES. THAT IS THE
WISEST THING THAT ANYBODY COULD EVER DO, AND IT’S SIMPLY TO
WORSHIP THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. NOW THERE’RE A LOT OF PEOPLE
WHO WANT THE JOYS OF CHRISTMAS WITHOUT THE WORSHIP OF JESUS!
IMPOSSIBLE! IMPOSSIBLE! NOW YOU MAY HAVE A GIDDY TIME, BUT
YOU’RE NEVER GOING TO KNOW THE JOYS OF CHRISTMAS UNTIL YOU
LEARN TO WORSHIP THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. I WANT YOU TO SEE THAT
THESE MEN WERE SO INTERESTED IN WORSHIPPING THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST, HA, HA, THAT THEY DID THIS, AH, IN SPITE OF GREAT
DIFFICULTY. THE BIBLE SAYS IN VERSE ONE, “NOW WHEN JESUS WAS
BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDEA IN THE DAYS OF HEROD THE KING,
BEHOLD THERE CAME WISE MEN FROM THE EAST TO WORSHIP HIM.” IF
BABYLON, THAT’S A DISTANCE ABOUT THREE HUNDRED MILES.
THERE WAS THE DIFFICULTY OF DISTANCE. I CAN, A FRIEND, UH,
A THREE HUNDRED MILE TRIP TODAY, IF YOU’RE RIDING IN A
FINE AUTOMOBILE, MAY TIRE YOU OUT. CAN YOU IMAGINE WHAT A
TRIP WOULD’VE BEEN LIKE IN THAT DAY? THE DIFFICULTY OF A TRIP
LIKE THAT! AND THERE WAS NOT ONLY THE DISTANCE BUT THE
DISCOMFORT. UH, THEY WERE NOT RIDING IN A AIR-CONDITIONED
AUTOMOBILE; THERE WERE NO TRAINS, NO PLANES, NO MOTELS.
THIS IS RUGGED TERRAIN. THEY’RE COMING OVER THAT KIND OF
INHOSPITABLE, UH, TERRAIN TO, TO WORSHIP THE LORD. HUH, AND,
AND VERY FRANKLY, THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE WATCHING ON TELEVISION,
THIS IS A RAINY DAY IN OUR CITY TODAY AND, UH, I HATE TO TELL
YOU THIS, BUT THERE ARE SOME FOLKS WHO ARE NOT HERE TODAY
BECAUSE IT’S RAINING. HA, HA, ONE MORNING JOYCE AND I, IT WAS
ABOUT, UH, 5:30 IN THE MORNING AND A THUNDERCLAP HIT. SHE
SAID, “ADRIAN, DID YOU HEAR THAT?” I SAID, “WHAT?” SHE
SAID, “TEN THOUSAND BAPTISTS JUST ROLLED OVER AND WENT BACK
TO SLEEP.” [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] I MEAN, YOU KNOW, DIFFICULTY.
HERE THESE GUYS CAME TO WORSHIP THE LORD IN SPITE OF
DIFFICULTY. I’M AMAZED AT WHAT WILL KEEP SOME PEOPLE OUT OF
THE HOUSE OF GOD, AND I GO TURN ON MY TELEVISION, I SEE UP
THERE IN GREEN BAY AND THE, AND THE GREEN BAY PACKERS PLAYING
TELEVISION, AND THERE ARE GUYS OUT THERE WITHOUT THEIR SHIRTS
ON, FULL OF EMBALMING FLUID IN THE SNOW. [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER]
YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT WHEN I SAY EMBALMING
FLUID. [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] I HOPE YOU DON’T. WELL, I HOPE
YOU DO. I HOPE YOU KNOW, BUT I HOPE YOU DON’T KNOW BY
EXPERIENCE. ALRIGHT NOW, [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] I MEAN,
THESE GUYS ARE OUT THERE, I MEAN, BARE-CHESTED, ROOTING FOR
PEOPLE, UH, PULLING A FOOTBALL UP AND DOWN A PASTURE. AND YET
PEOPLE SAY, “WELL, YOU KNOW, IT’S RAINING; WE COULDN’T COME
THIS MORNING.” NO, HERE WERE MEN, THEY WANTED TO WORSHIP THE
LORD IN SPITE OF DISTANCE, IN SPITE OF DIFFICULTY, AND IN
SPITE OF DANGER. THERE WAS OLD HEROD THE KING. HE WAS THE ONE
WHO HAD ALL THE LITTLE BOY BABIES MURDERED LATER ON, HE
SAID, “TELL ME WHERE HE IS THAT I MIGHT COME AND WOR, WORSHIP
HIM.” HE DIDN’T WANT TO WORSHIP HIM; HE WANTED TO MURDER HIM.
HE TRIED TO MURDER THE BABY JESUS. HE’D ALREADY MURDERED A
COUPLE OF WIVES; HE’D MURDERED THREE SONS. AS A MATTER OF
FACT, HEROD, WHO WAS SO HATED, HAD ARRANGED THAT WHEN HE DIED,
THERE WERE SOME PROMINENT CITIZENS, HE HAD A LIST OF
THEM, THEY WERE ALL TO BE PUT TO DEATH THE DAY HE DIED. DO
YOU KNOW WHY? HE WANTED TO BE SOME TEARS THE DAY HE DIED. SO
HE HAD A LIST OF PEOPLE. I MEAN, THAT’S THE KIND OF A MAN
THAT HEROD WAS! AND, AND THESE WISE MEN, UH, SINCE HE, THAT’S
HIS JURISDICTION, HAD TO DEAL WITH HIM. IN SPITE, IN SPITE OF
DISTANCE, IN SPITE OF DIFFICULTY, IN SPITE OF DANGER,
THEY SOUGHT TO WORSHIP THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. I WONDER, DOES
WORSHIP MEAN THAT MUCH TO YOU, OR DO YOU HAVE SORT OF A TAKE
IT AND LEAVE IT ATTITUDE. THE BIBLE SAYS, “YOU SHALL SEEK FOR
ME AND FIND ME WHEN YOU SEARCH FOR ME WITH ALL YOUR HEART!”
GOD HAVE MERCY UPON OUR HALF-HEARTED WORSHIP, SAY,
“AMEN.” I MEAN, IF HE’S WORTH ANYTHING, HE’S WORTH
EVERYTHING. WORSHIP MEANS “WORTH-SHIP,” THAT’S WHERE WE
GET THE WORD WORSHIP. “WORTH-SHIP.” WHAT IS JESUS
WORTH TO YOU? I BELIEVE THE BIGGEST CULT IN AMERICA IS THE
CULT OF THE COMFORTABLE; WE JUST WANT TO TAKE IT EASY.
JEREMIAH 29 VERSE 13, “AND YE SHALL SEEK ME AND FIND ME WHEN
YOU SHALL SEARCH FOR ME WITH ALL OF YOUR HEART.” NOW, HOW
DID THESE WISE MEN FIND THE LORD JESUS? I WANT YOU TO
LISTEN, BECAUSE OUR MESSAGE TODAY IS GONNA HAVE TWO POINTS.
NUMBER ONE, HOW THEY SOUGHT HIM, AND NUMBER TWO, WHAT THEY
BROUGHT HIM. OKAY? HOW THEY SOUGHT HIM, AND NUMBER TWO,
WHAT THEY BROUGHT HIM. NOW, FIRST OF ALL, I WANT YOU TO SEE
HOW THESE WISE MEN SOUGHT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. HOW THEY
SOUGHT HIM. UH, UH, VERSE ONE SAYS, “NOW WHEN JESUS WAS BORN
IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDEA, IN THE DAYS OF HEROD THE KING, BEHOLD,
THERE CAME WISE MEN TO JERUSALEM.” THERE WERE THREE
THINGS THAT HELPED THEM TO FIND THE LORD JESUS AND, FRIEND, IF
YOU’RE LISTENING THROUGH TELEVISION OR IF YOU’RE HERE
TODAY WITHOUT CHRIST, UH, LET ME TELL YOU HOW YOU CAN SEEK
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. FIRST OF ALL, THERE WAS THE MINISTRY OF
THE SPIRIT, THERE WAS THE MINISTRY OF THE SPIRIT. WHAT
PUT IN THE HEARTS OF THESE MEN TO SEEK THE LORD JESUS? THE
HOLY SPIRIT. THE BIBLE SAYS, EH, OF OUR HUMAN FLESH,
“THERE’S NONE THAT SEEKETH AFTER GOD, NO, NOT ONE.” NOW
THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE REALM OF CHURCH GROWTH
TODAY WHO SAY “WELL, WE NEED TO HAVE, UH, SEEKER-SENSITIVE
SERVICES,” THAT IS, THE PEOPLE ARE COMING SEEKING GOD. FRIEND,
THE BIBLE SAYS NO MAN SEEKS GOD. NONE, NOT ONE. YOU SAY,
“WELL, I SOUGHT HIM.” THE ONLY REASON YOU SOUGHT HIM IS ‘CAUSE
HE FIRST SOUGHT YOU. THAT’S, UH, LISTEN, FRIEND, UH, WHEN
GOD GOT YOU, YOU WERE RUNNING FROM GOD. THE ONLY REASON GOD
GOT YOU IS HE CAN RUN FASTER THAN YOU CAN, HA, HA, I MEAN,
“THERE’S NONE THAT SEEKETH AFTER GOD, NO NOT ONE.” “WE
LOVE HIM BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED US.” IT IS GOD WHO PUT THE
DESIRE IN OUR HEART TO SEEK HIM. IT WAS GOD WHO PUT THE
DESIRE IN THE HEART OF THESE WISE MEN TO SEEK THE LORD GOD.
WORSHIP IS A DESIRE PLANTED IN THE HEARTS OF MEN BY THE HOLY
SPIRIT. AND I WANT TO TELL YOU, TODAY GOD IS SEEKING YOU. YOU
SAY, “HOW DO, HOW DO I, HOW DO I KNOW?” WELL, THE BIBLE
TEACHES THE LORD, “IS NOT WILLING THAT ANY SHOULD PERISH,
BUT THAT ALL SHOULD COME TO REPENTANCE.” THE BIBLE SAYS
CHRIST IS, “THAT LIGHT THAT LIGHTETH EVERY MAN THAT COMETH
INTO THE WORLD,” AND I CAN TELL YOU WITH AUTHORITY TODAY THAT
JESUS IS SEEKING YOU, AND I DON’T BELIEVE IT’S INCIDENTAL
OR ACCIDENTAL THAT YOU’RE IN THIS SERVICE TODAY OR LISTENING
BY TELEVISION OR TAPE. GOD IS SEEKING YOU! AND BY THE DEAR
HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD, IF YOU WILL LISTEN, THERE’S A STILL SMALL
VOICE IN YOU THAT IS INCLINING YOUR HEART TO WORSHIP HIM. YOU
CAN STULTIFY AND SMOTHER THAT VOICE IF YOU WILL, BUT GOD IS
REACHING OUT TO YOU THROUGH THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT,
AND THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE BRIDE SAY, “COME, COME TO
JESUS.” THERE’S A SECOND THING THAT ENABLED THESE WISE MEN,
UH, TO SEEK HIM. NOT ONLY THE MINISTRY OF THE, THE SPIRIT,
UH, BUT THERE WAS THE MESSAGE OF THE SCRIPTURE. LOOK IN
VERSES TWO THROUGH SIX OF THIS SAME CHAPTER. AND, UH, THE
BIBLE SAYS, UH, “SAYING, WHERE IS HE THAT IS BORN KING OF THE
JEWS, FOR WE HAVE SEEN HIS STAR IN THE EAST AND ARE COME TO
WORSHIP HIM. THEN HEROD THE KING,” EH, “WHEN HE HEARD THESE
THINGS, HE WAS TROUBLED AND ALL JERUSALEM WITH HIM, AND WHEN HE
HAD GATHERED ALL THE CHIEF PRIESTS AND THE SCRIBES OF THE
PEOPLE TOGETHER, HE DEMANDED OF THEM WHERE CHRIST SHOULD BE
BORN.” NOW THAT’S A STRANGE THING. WHERE’S THE MESSIAH
GOING TO BE BORN? HE BRINGS THE HIGH MUCKETY-MUCKS IN THERE,
THE PRIESTS AND THE SCRIBES. “TELL ME WHERE HE’S GOING TO BE
BORN.” “AND THEY SAID UNTO HIM, ‘IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDEA.’” NOW
HOW DID THEY KNOW THAT? “FOR THUS IT IS WRITTEN BY THE
PROPHET, ‘THOU BETHLEHEM, IN THE LAND OF JUDAH, ART NOT THE
LEAST AMONG THE PRINCES OF JUDAH, FOR OUT OF THEE SHALL
COME A GOVERNOR THAT SHALL RULE MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.’” IT’S VERY
PLAIN. THE BIBLE PROPHESIED IN MINUTE DETAIL THINGS ABOUT THE
LORD JESUS CHRIST AND ONE OF THESE WAS HIS BIRTHPLACE. THESE
MEN HAD THE WORD OF GOD. UH, THEY HAD NOT ONLY THIS PROPHECY
FROM MICAH, AH, CHAPTER FIVE AND VERSE TWO THAT TELLS THAT
JESUS CHRIST WOULD BE BORN IN BETHLEHEM, BUT IF THEY CAME
FROM BABYLON, THEY ALSO HAD THE PROPHECIES OF THE PROPHET
DANIEL, WHO TOLD IN DANIEL CHAPTER NINE IN THAT REMARKABLE
PROPHECY, UH, THE TIME THAT JESUS WOULD COME AS THE
MESSIAH. UH, THESE ARE WONDERFUL PROPHECIES. NOW I
WANT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING ELSE; IF YOU WANT TO FIND JESUS
THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON, NOT ONLY IS THERE THE MINISTRY OF, OF
THE SPIRIT, THERE’S THE MESSAGE OF THE SCRIPTURE. OPEN THE
BIBLE AND READ. LISTEN, THEY MISSED, MANY OF THESE PEOPLE
MISSED HIS FIRST COMING BECAUSE THEY SIMPLY DID NOT READ,
BELIEVE, OR OBEY THE SCRIPTURE. WE DON’T HAVE ANY RECORD, FOR
EXAMPLE, THAT THESE, UH, SCRIBES AND THESE PRIESTS WENT
DOWN THERE TO WORSHIP HIM. THAT’S AMAZING. THEY KNEW WHERE
HE WAS, HA, HA, THEY KNEW ABOUT IT, BUT THEY STILL DIDN’T GO.
WE DON’T HAVE ANY RECORD THAT HEROD WENT. THAT’S AMAZING.
THERE WAS THE MESSAGE, THE PLAIN MESSAGE. YOU CAN HEAR ME
PREACH TODAY AND BELIEVE IT INTELLECTUALLY AND MISS IT
ALTOGETHER, DID YOU KNOW THAT? ISN’T IT AMAZING THAT THERE ARE
UNBELIEVING BELIEVERS, UH, THAT, THAT THEY NEVER REALLY
EVER ACT ON WHAT THEY SAY, AH, THEY BELIEVE? AND BY THE WAY,
AS THE SCRIPTURES CLEARLY AND PLAINLY DELINEATED HIS FIRST
COMING, LISTEN TO ME CAREFULLY, THE SCRIPTURES CLEARLY AND
PLAINLY DELINEATE HIS SECOND COMING. AND THERE’S SOME WHO
MISSED HIS FIRST COMING, AND THERE’S SOME WHO’RE GONNA MISS
HIS SECOND COMING FOR EXACTLY THE SAME REASON! THEY’RE NOT
LISTENING TO THE MINISTRY OF THE SPIRIT AND THE MESSAGE OF
THE SCRIPTURES. BUT NOW THERE WAS A THIRD THING THAT LED
THESE MEN, THESE WISE MEN, AND THAT WAS THE MIRACLE OF THE
STAR, THE MIRACLE OF THE STAR. THE SHEKINAH GLORY OF GOD WAS
LEADING THEM STEP BY STEP. WELL, YOU SAY, “WHEN GOD
APPEARS TO ME IN SHEKINAH GLORY, THEN I WILL FOLLOW HIM.”
FRIEND, GOD KNEW WHAT WAS NECESSARY FOR THOSE PEOPLE IN
THAT DAY AT THAT TIME. LISTEN CAREFULLY TO ME. WHEN YOU SET
YOUR HEART TO FIND GOD, WHEN YOU WANT TO KNOW HIM, WHATEVER
IT TAKES, WHATEVER IS NECESSARY, GOD WILL GET THAT TO
YOU THAT YOU MIGHT KNOW HIM. NOW IT MAY NOT BE A MIRACLE OF
A STAR; IT MIGHT BE SOME OTHER KIND OF A MIRACLE. IT MIGHT BE
THAT GOD WILL SEND SOME MESSENGER TO YOU. IT MAY BE
THAT, UH, UH, YOU WILL, UH, HEAR THE URGING OF A NEXT-DOOR
NEIGHBOR. I DON’T KNOW WHAT KIND OF A STORE, UH, STAR GOD
WILL SEND TO YOU, BUT GOD WILL REVEAL HIS GLORY, UH, TO YOU!
NOW, IF YOU DON’T WANT THE LORD, GOD’S NOT GONNA LEAD YOU,
GOD’S NOT GOING TO GUIDE YOU. UH, I DON’T EVEN FIND ANY
RECORD THAT THE STAR APPEARED TO HEROD AT ALL, FOR EXAMPLE.
WHY? HEROD DIDN’T WANT TO KNOW THE LORD. I’VE OFTEN SAID SOME
PEOPLE CAN’T FIND GOD FOR THE SAME REASON A THIEF CAN’T FIND
A POLICEMAN. THEY DON’T WANT TO KNOW! THEY DON’T SEEK GOD. YOU
GET SERIOUS ABOUT SEEKING GOD, LISTEN TO ME, YOU GET SERIOUS
ABOUT SEEKING GOD, I PROMISE YOU, ON THE AUTHORITY OF THE
WORD OF GOD, HE’LL REVEAL HIMSELF TO YOU. WHATEVER’S
NECESSARY. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW HIM, YOU CAN KNOW HIM. SO THESE
MEN WERE WISE, NUMBER ONE, IN HOW THEY SOUGHT HIM. THEY WERE
WISE, NUMBER TWO, IN WHAT THEY BROUGHT HIM. NOW WHAT DID THEY
BRING HIM? WELL, THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THEY BROUGHT HIM, UH,
GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MYRRH. NOW, IS THAT JUST INCIDENTAL?
NO, IT’S FUNDAMENTAL. WHY THESE THREE SPECIFIC GIFTS? WHY ARE
THESE THINGS MENTIONED IN THE SCRIPTURE? I REMIND YOU THAT
ALL SCRIPTURE’S GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD. UH, THERE,
THERE’S NOTHING THERE THAT IS NOT IMPORTANT, PROPERLY
UNDERSTOOD. SO, UH, THE GOLD, NUMBER ONE, SPEAKS OF HIS
SOVEREIGN DOMINION, HIS SOVEREIGN DOMINION. NOW, LOOK
IN VERSE TWO, “WHERE IS HE THAT IS BORN,” WHAT? “KING, KING OF
THE JEWS.” AND THEN LOOK IN CHAPTER TWO VERSE SIX, “AND
THOU BETHLEHEM, IN THE LAND OF JUDAH, ART NOT LEAST AMONG THE
PRINCES OF JUDAH, FOR OUT OF THESE SHALL COME A GOVERNOR,”
THAT MEANS A RULER, “THAT SHALL RULE MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.” IT IS
OBVIOUS, BEYOND ANY EQUIVOCATION, THAT THESE WISE
MEN KNEW THAT THAT CHILD WAS A KING. IF YOU WANT TO HAVE
WISDOM THIS CHRISTMAS, YOU’RE GONNA UNDERSTAND THE SAME
THING. “HE IS LORD, HE IS LORD, HE IS RISEN FROM THE DEAD, AND
HE IS LORD.” YOU SEE, WHEN THEY BROUGHT GOLD, GOLD WAS THE MOST
PRECIOUS METAL THEY KNEW. IN THAT DAY IT WAS USED TO SIGNIFY
A KING. IT, THEY, THEY MADE THEIR CROWNS OF GOLD. THE BIBLE
SPEAKS OF CROWNS OF GOLD. UH, DANIEL SAID THAT MESSIAH WOULD
BE A KING. HE SPEAKS IN DANIEL NINE VERSE 25 OF MESSIAH THE
PRINCE. ISAIAH THE PROPHET SAID IN ISAIAH CHAPTER NINE, VERSE
SEVEN THAT HE WAS TO BE A KING. LISTEN TO THIS, “OF THE
INCREASE OF HIS GOVERNMENT AT PEACE THERE SHALL BE NO END.
UPON THE THRONE OF DAVID AND UPON HIS KINGDOM TO ORDER IT
AND TO ESTABLISH IT WITH JUDGMENT AND WITH JUSTICE FROM
HENCEFORTH EVEN FOREVER. THE ZEAL OF THE LORD OF HOSTS SHALL
PERFORM THIS.” THAT LITTLE BABY IS KING. NOW YOU’LL NEVER,
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER KNOW THE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS UNTIL YOU
CROWN HIM KING. HAVE YOU DONE THAT? THE ANGEL SAID TO MARY IN
LUKE ONE VERSE 33, “AND HE SHALL REIGN OVER THE HOUSE OF
JACOB FOREVER, AND OF HIS KINGDOM THERE SHALL BE NO END.”
WHEN YOU DEAL WITH JESUS, YOU’RE DEALING WITH
SOVEREIGNTY, AND HE IS WORTHY OF OUR TRIBUTE. WHEN YOU COME
TO AN EARTHLY KING, YOU HAD AN EARTHLY KING OR EVEN A
GOVERNMENT, YOU PAY TRIBUTE. JESUS SAID, “RENDER UNTO CAESAR
THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR’S AND UNTO GOD, THE THINGS THAT
ARE GOD’S.” I’LL GUARANTEE YOU, WHEN INCOME TAX COMES AROUND,
UNLESS YOU’RE A DIRTY CROOK, YOU’RE GONNA PAY YOUR TAXES.
YOU RENDER TO CAESAR THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR’S. I WANT TO
ASK YOU A QUESTION; HAVE YOU RENDERED TO JESUS THE THINGS
THAT ARE HIS? DO YOU REALIZE THAT HE IS KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS? HAVE YOU TAKEN THE CROWN FROM YOUR HEAD AND
PUT THE CROWN UPON HIS HEAD? DO YOU SAY, “LORD JESUS, I
SURRENDER MY GOLD TO YOU? I PAY TRIBUTE TO YOU, I DO HOMAGE TO
YOU, I BOW MY KNEE TO YOU.” HAVE YOU DONE THAT? I SAY,
LISTEN, HAVE YOU DONE THAT? IN EVERYBODY’S HEART THERE’S A
THRONE. WHEN SELF IS ON THAT THRONE, CHRIST IS ON THE CROSS;
WHEN CHRIST IS ON THAT THRONE, SELF IS ON THE CROSS, AND
EVERYBODY’S IN ONE OF THOSE TWO CATEGORIES TODAY. THEY
RECOGNIZED, THESE MEN WERE WISE BECAUSE THEY RECOGNIZED HIS
SOVEREIGN DOMINION. “WHERE IS HE THAT IS BORN KING OF THE
JEWS?” ALRIGHT, BUT SECONDLY, AH, NOT ONLY DID THEY BRING TO
HIM GOLD, BUT THEY BROUGHT TO HIM FRANKINCENSE. AND
FRANKINCENSE SPEAKS OF HIS SINLESS DEITY. NOT ONLY IS HE
KING, FRIEND, HE IS GOD! HE IS GOD. YOU SAY, “WELL, WHAT DOES
THE FRANKINCENSE HAVE TO DO WITH THIS?” WELL, UH, LOOK
AGAIN IN VERSE 11, SAYS, “THEY BROUGHT UNTO HIM GIFTS, GOLD
AND FRANKINCENSE AND MYRRH.” WHAT IS FRANKINCENSE?
FRANKINCENSE IS ONE OF THE INGREDIENTS IN A SWEET PERFUME
THAT WAS USED IN THE TABERNACLE AND THE TEMPLE FOR ONE PURPOSE;
THE WORSHIP OF GOD. AS A MATTER OF FACT, GOD SAID IN EXODUS
CHAPTER 30 THAT IT’S NOT TO BE USED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE. IT
IS SACRED, TO BE USED FOR ALMIGHTY GOD. NOW, NOT ONLY DID
THEY WORSHIP HIM THEREFORE AS KING, BUT THEY WORSHIPPED HIM
AS GOD. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE BIBLE SAYS, “THEY CAME AND
WORSHIPPED HIM.” LOOK IN, UH, CHAPTER TWO VERSE 11, “WHEN
THEY WERE COME INTO THE HOUSE, THEY SAW THE YOUNG CHILD WITH
MARY HIS MOTHER AND FELL DOWN AND WORSHIPPED HIM.” IF THAT
CHILD IS NOT GOD, THAT’S THE ULTIMATE IN BLASPHEMY. THAT
ANYBODY WOULD WORSHIP A TWO-LEGGED CREATURE WHO IS NOT
GOD. WHY, IF HE’S NOT GOD, HE HAS AIDED AND ABETTED THE
GREATEST CRIME OF THE CENTURIES, AND THAT IS ENDIC,
ENTICING PEOPLE TO IDOLATRY. THE BIBLE SAYS WE’RE TO WORSHIP
GOD, WE’RE TO HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE US. IN THE BOOK OF
THE REVELATION, AN ANGEL APPEARED TO JOHN, SO AWESOME,
SO GLORIOUS. JOHN, WHEN HE WAS STRICKEN IN AWE WITH THIS
PARTICULAR ANGEL, JOHN FELL TO HIS FACE TO WORSHIP HIM. THE
