“Blessed are they who keep his statues and seek him with all their heart.” (Psalm 119:2)
The first story after Jesus' birth opens with Magi who have traveled a long distance to offer homage to a new king born in Judea. They enter Jerusalem with a large enough caravan to attract the city's attention (2:3); they must have assumed that they would find the newborn king in Herod's palace in Jerusalem.
Magi were astrologers from the royal court of the king of Persia. Part of their job description was to make the king of Persia look good, but here they come to promote another king. Kings would often send congratulations to new rulers in other realms, but the king of Persia called himself "king of kings," that is, the highest of kings. We might not expect the Magi to worship Jesus, especially if they found him not in the royal palace but in a cave.
More unexpectedly, these Magi are astrologers, which is why they noticed the star to begin with. Although the Bible forbade divination (Deut 18:9-13), which includes astrology (Is 47:13; see also Deut 4:19), for one special event in history God, who rules the heavens, chose to reveal himself where the pagans were looking.
Yet even supernatural guidance like the star can take the astrologers only so far; for more specific direction they must ask the leaders in Jerusalem where the king is to be born (2:2). That is, their celestial revelation was only partial; they must finally submit to God's revelation in the Scriptures, preserved by the Jewish people.
Another central character in this narrative is Herod (2:3, 7-8). That Herod is dismayed by the Magi's announcement is not surprising (2:3); in this period most Greeks, Romans and even Jews respected astrological predictions. But as many incidents during Herod's reign illustrate, he was more paranoid than most other rulers. For Herod, little room existed for two kings in his realm.
Not knowing himself where the king would be born, Herod gathers the religious experts, the chief priests and scribes (2:4), most of whom in this period were loyal to his agendas. These experts immediately identify the place where the Messiah will be born on the basis of Micah 5:2. But while the religious leaders know where the Messiah will be born, they do not join the Magi in their quest. These are the religious leaders, but they fail to act on all their Bible knowledge. Jesus is just a baby, and they take him for granted.
After the Magi have left Jerusalem, they come and worship Jesus (2:9-11). A road led south to Bethlehem, which was about six miles from Jerusalem, so the rest of the Magi's journey probably did not take very long.
The Magi's innocence compared to Herod's murderous shrewdness again reminds Matthew's readers not to prejudge the appropriate recipients of the gospel (compare 13:3-23). Jesus is for all who will receive him, and God may provide Jesus' servants with allies in unexpected places if we have the wisdom to recognize them.
Exploring God’s Word Epiphany Matthew 2:1-18 “Blessed are they who keep his statues and seek him with all their heart.” (Psalm 119:2)
Jesus was born in the city of Bethlehem, in the region of Judea. A man named Herod was king over this region of Judea. After Jesus’ birth in a stable in Bethlehem, Joseph and Mary moved into a house there in Bethlehem.
It was during this time that Wise Men came from the east. These Wise Men studied the stars. While they were still in their own country, God sent a star to announce the birth of His Son and they saw it. They knew that the star announced something big! When they arrived in Jerusalem they asked about a newborn king, “Where is the child who has been born to be king of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2 NIrV) They wise men had come all this way to worship Jesus.
But when King Herod heard about a newborn king, he was very upset. Herod called together all the teachers of the law and the priests. He asked them where God’s promised Son would be born. They all knew exactly where He was to be born. God had promised that His Son would come out of Bethlehem. That is where the newborn king would be born.
As the Wise Men left King Herod, they saw the star that had led them to Jerusalem. They were so excited to see the star again. It led them to Bethlehem. They didn’t find a palace. What they found as the star stopped, was a normal house. The Wise Men went into the house. Young Jesus was there with His mother, Mary. The Wise Men bowed down and worshipped Jesus. Then they brought out their gifts.
They gave Jesus gold, frankincense, and myrrh. As the Wise Men left, God warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod. They obeyed and they went home another way.
After the Wise Men’s visit, Joseph had a dream. The angel of the Lord warned Joseph, “Get up! Go to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you to come back. King Herod is going to search for the child. He wants to kill Him.”
So Joseph got up and they left during the night. They went to Egypt. They stayed there until King Herod died. God kept His promise - “I chose to bring my Son out of Egypt.” (Hosea 11:1)
Theme Verse “Blessed are they who keep his statues and seek him with all their heart.” (Psalm 119:2)
Seek and Find Game
Supplies: Bible and blindfold
Lead the activity: Invite a student to wear a blindfold and instruct this student to complete a task blindfolded. For example: “Walk to the table across the room and pick up the Bible, then find the pens on the teach cart.” Repeat with other volunteers and additional tasks. Occasionally ask: What would make it easier to find what you’re looking for? If you really wanted to do what I ask you to do, what would make it easier?
Wearing a blindfold makes it difficult to find what you’re looking for. Ignoring or disobeying God’s instructions is like wearing a blindfold, and it gets us into lots of trouble. Listen to Psalm 119:2 to find what happens to people who learn about and follow God’s instructions.
“Blessed are they who keep his statues and seek him with all their heart.” (Psalm 119:2)
“Statutes” is another word for God’s instructions. When we seek or try to follow God’s instructions, we can find the best way to live.
Journey to Bethlehem Game
Bible Focus: Matthew 2:1-16
You’ll Need: Large star drawn on large sheet of paper, divide star into 5 parts In each section of star, write one of the following: 1 2 3 -1 -2 Plain white drawing paper Markers Bethlehem written on one sheet of plain white drawing paper 1 bean bag
Lead the Game We can worship Jesus as the Savior whom God sent for the whole world! Some of the first people who worshipped Jesus – the wise men – went on a long journey to find Jesus in Bethlehem. Let’s play a game to take a journey to Bethlehem too!
Give each student 2 or 3 sheets of plain white drawing paper and markers to be shared. Encourage students to draw a star on each sheet and color it in, or decorate it. Allow approximately 5 minutes for this activity.
Students will place their stars on the floor to form a game path. Place the word Bethlehem at the end of the game path.
Students line up at the beginning of the game path. Students take turns tossing the beanbag onto the star with numbers on it and moving the number of star papers written in the section that the bean bag landed in. The -1 or -2 mean to move backwards on the game path. The first student to reach Bethlehem answers one of the Discussion Questions!
Discussion Questions 1.How do we know that God sent Jesus as the Savior of the world? (the Bible tells us!) 2.Why should we worship Jesus? 3.What gifts did the Wise Men bring to Jesus?
BEADED STAR ORNAMENTS
MATERIALS: lots and lots of beads, pipe cleaners or chenille stems (5 per student, plus some smaller scraps to connect segments), thin ribbon for hanging
STEP 1: Have students thread the beads on to their pipe cleaners, leaving about an inch unbeaded on each end. Students need to put beads on five pipe cleaners.
STEP 2: To connect the pipe cleaners, twist the ends together.
Step Three: Once all of the pipe cleaners are twisted together on the ends, they must be joined where they criss-cross.
Push the pipe cleaners together where they criss-cross (between the beads) so that you can get a tighter connection.
Twist a pipe cleaner around the intersection and twist it into place to secure.
Continue to connect the sides where they cross. Add a ribbon for hanging.
