He Was VERY Disturbed
The king was disturbed.
HE was king. There could be no other. When news of the Magi reached King Herod it ruined his day. What if he lost control?
“King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’” Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
Matthew 2:3-8
There are two obvious truths found in these verses:
1. We humans forget Who controls all things.
2. God controls everything.
Because of these two truths-we need reminders. Remembering these two facts may prevent mistakes and personal suffering. Remembering these two facts can bring hope and peace.
Why do we forget?
God has all power! It’s true-no debate. How we forget. We forget when God shares some of His power with us. God put King Herod in power. Herod lost sight of the truth. He was not king because of his great intellect. He was not king because he was the best. He was not king because of his wealth…he was king because God put him there. We are no different from Herod-he forgot…so do we.
Oh…but we must not forget. God is in control of all things-now-today. In spite of the circumstances that you find yourself in-God is in control. Knowing God is control brings the human heart great comfort.
Notice what Herod did when the Magi and their purpose for being in Jerusalem was made known to him? That’s right -he called the religious leaders to examine God’s word that they might tell him “Where the Christ was to be born.” They knew. They told him. Herod used these people for his purposes. He wished to maintain the control he thought he had as king. Power had confused Herod. He forgot Who is in control. He was not comforted-he was very disturbed.
Look-there’s more evidence that God is in control.
Verse 6, the words the religious leaders used to answer Herod, was written by the prophet Micah. That’s interesting right? Prepare to be astonished. Micah wrote the words of verse 6 seven centuries before the Magi arrived in Jerusalem! Seven centuries-700 years! Only God has such power and infinite knowledge to orchestrate world events in this way. Herod thought he was powerful. No one else could be king but him. He missed the clear evidence-the truth: God is in control.
Herod did not plan to worship Jesus. We’ll see.
What about us? Have we lost sight of Who is in control? Money, power, and influence can do us just as it did to Herod centuries earlier. You remember the Magi? They had money power and influence also. Did they consider these things important?
No.
The made a long, uncomfortable, dangerous journey to find the King of Kings-Jesus. When they found Jesus, they worshiped Him!
Why was Herod disturbed? He thought someone would take his money power and influence! He had lost sight of WHO is in control of all things. He was greatly disturbed-for the wrong reasons.
Not the Magi. They worshiped Jesus.
Jesus still disturbs. There are two responses.
Herod’s.
The Magi’s